![]() ![]() The Washington Post called the home environment "sterile" and "lifeless," wrote that the characters' cuteness wore thin quickly and criticized the scarce customization and access to Windows components. The New York Times found the characters irritating and the home design apparently the work of an "esthetically challenged sixth-grader," criticized the hardware requirements and storage file formats and concluded that the program was not as simple to use as Microsoft had advertised. Reception and legacy Īlthough a Consumer Electronics Show demonstration was met with generally positive reactions, reviewers generally derided the software, and Microsoft Bob became one of Microsoft's more visible product failures. In addition to the extra rooms, more icons appear by default in the new rooms. One additional room is the attic, which contains the image of a Gateway 2000 computer box. This edition contains Gateway branding on the login screen along with additional rooms and backgrounds not seen in the retail version. īob features "Assistants", cartoon characters intended to help the user navigate the virtual house or perform tasks in the main interface or within the built-in applications.Īn edition of Microsoft Bob was bundled with the Gateway 2000 computer around 1995. Customers were required to call a toll-free phone number to set up the account. Each email was limited to 5,000 characters, and each additional email after the limit was reached was an additional 45 cents. The price was $5.00 per month to send up to 15 emails. Released just as the Internet was beginning to become popular, Bob offered an email client with which a user could subscribe to MCI Mail, a dial-up email account. īob includes the ability to install new applications, but because of the failure of the product, only a single add-on application package, Microsoft Great Greetings, was released. These shortcuts display the icon inside various styles of decorations, such as boxes and picture frames. ![]() The user can also add shortcuts to applications on the computer. For example, clicking on a clock opens the calendar, while a pen and paper represent the word processor. The applications built into Microsoft Bob are represented by matching decorations. The program offers multiple themes for room designs and decorations, such as contemporary and postmodern. The user can also add or remove rooms and change the destinations of each door. The user may add, remove or reposition all objects. The user may also fully customize the entire house and has full control over each room's decoration. ![]() Each room contains decorations and furniture, as well as icons that represent applications. Similar to early graphical shells like Jane, the main interface is portrayed as the inside of a house, with different rooms corresponding to common real-world room styles such as a kitchen or family room. The user interface was designed to simplify the navigational experience for novice computer users. Microsoft Bob includes various office-suite programs such as a finance application and a word processor. Applications A screenshot of the "family room" area of the Microsoft Bob software, including the "Assistant" character Rover Microsoft originally purchased the domain name bob.com from Boston-area techie Bob Antia, but later traded it to Bob Kerstein for the domain name. Melinda Gates, wife of Bill Gates, was the marketing manager for the product. The design was based on research by professors Clifford Nass and Byron Reeves of Stanford University. The project leader for Bob was Karen Fries, a Microsoft researcher. Microsoft Bob was released in March 1995 (before Windows 95 was released), although it had been widely publicized under the codename Utopia. The Rover character later reappeared as a Windows XP search companion. Its legacy would be observed in future Microsoft products, notably the use of virtual assistants. Upon release, Microsoft Bob was criticized in the media and did not gain wide acceptance with users, which resulted in its discontinuation. Clicking on the pen and paper would open the system's word processor.Ī cartoon dog named Rover and other cartoon characters provided guidance using speech balloons. Microsoft Bob presented screens showing a house, with rooms that the user could visit containing familiar objects corresponding to computer applications, such as a desk with pen and paper and a checkbook. The program was released on Maand discontinued in early 1996. Microsoft Bob was a Microsoft software product intended to provide a more user-friendly interface for the Windows 3.1x, Windows 95 and Windows NT operating systems, supplanting the Windows Program Manager. Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows Me, XP
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