Windows95 introduced the Windows key, before that sure there was no βwinβ key, but it was not needed much before real multitasking
Re:You're using function keys wrong
by quietbritishjim on Wednesday January 04, 2023 @05:54PM
(#34253140)
Windows 3.1 tasking was technically lacking, but still very useful and still very much needed alt+tab. It needed it even more than win95, in fact, as it had no task bar.
In the beginning, there was the "super key" https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_key_(keyboard_button).
Its purpose: control the (global) desktop environment (versus e.g. Alt/Ctrl/etc, which control the currently focused/active/local application).
Many "Windows key" shortcuts do desktop environment actions, hence the Windows key is the super key.
In the beginning, there was no "windows key".