In a nutshell, the Registry is the system databank of
Windows 95/98. It contains all settings, from the sound card to Winword
to mouse configuration. An operating system that is as advanced and
comfortable for the user as Windows is (aside from a few flaws -- but
nobody's
perfect and nobody's software is either) must keep track of
an almost unimaginable amount of data. Which wallpaper does the user
want? How fast should the double-click of the mouse be?
Which
program does the user prefer for word processing and what's their
favorite font? Does the user want to see 16, 256, or even more colors?
Who manufactures the user's printer and do they have a scanner too…
As
you can see, one can ask question after question. Windows has to
remember all this and much more too; the settings can change every day.
Maybe several people are working on one computer and they all prefer
different settings. The operating system must keep track of each
person's preferences separately.
Reconciling all this information requires artistry.
Keeping all these settings so that one can still see the "big picture"
and so that the user can understand and edit them in a databank requires
a veritable miracle. ...