Microsoft® Bob™ Copyright © 1995 Microsoft Corporation
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Microsoft Bob is dead? Not even! Bob is more "alive" today than when he was "born!" When Microsoft Bob "died" in 1995, Microsoft didn't bury him in the digital cemetery of unused software -- they reincarnated him in a host of new Microsoft software products. Years later, Microsoft even incorporated the fundamental concepts of Microsoft Bob into versions of their Windows operating system. Microsoft has profited far more from Microsoft Bob's concepts than they ever did from Microsoft Bob itself. Featured below are some Microsoft products before Bob's release, and after Microsoft Bob, which show how Microsoft Bob "evolved" from previous Microsoft products and how Bob's "legacy" lives on in newer software to this day. |
 Pre-Bob Software Creative Writer 1.10 (1994) It looks like Microsoft Bob -- "assistant" with bullet-listed balloon prompts, cartoonish interface, even the mouse hole. This program has to be based on Microsoft Bob's concepts, right? Sorry, it's the other way around. Creative Writer 1.10 was released seven months before Microsoft Bob. The design and interactivity that would eventually be incorporated into Microsoft Bob was first featured in children's software, such as this program, Creative Writer 1.10. The "assistant" in this program isn't animated like the Personal Guides in Microsoft Bob. And the alerts in Creative Writing feature a different character, a dog named Spike that barks as the alert is displayed. This is a rare glimpse of what one of Microsoft Bob's predecessors looks like. The following programs are what could be considered Bob's "descendants." |
 Bob LIVES! Microsoft Encarta 96 World Atlas (1995) In the same spirit Microsoft Bob uses "personal guides" for help, Microsoft Encarta 96 World Atlas employs the help of "Cosmo," an animated character representing a world globe. Complete with bullet-listed balloon help options, Cosmo is always ready to offer a helping tip in every feature of this program. The menu for this program is built into Cosmo's "platform." When you click on Cosmo, he will get rained on by a cloud overhead, juggle an apple and an orange and then eat them, play with a paddle ball racket, sneeze and fall through a "hole" in the map -- then come back and erase it, get caught up in a fall wind, gaze affectionately at a crescent moon that floats by, get a phone call and answer it, dance to a congo-like tune, jump up and spin then land again, have a continent "peel" then push it back down, etc. One feature Microsoft Encarta 96 World Atlas has that Microsoft Bob doesn't is a button on Cosmo's "platform" that will make him appear or go away. This was the only version of Microsoft's World Atlas software to have a "Bob-like" animated help character. |
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Bob LIVES! Microsoft Greetings Workshop 1.0 (1996) Microsoft Greetings Workshop 1.0 is actually the next version of Microsoft Great Greetings that was created to run solely on Microsoft Bob. Instead of requiring Microsoft Bob to run, many aspects of Microsoft Bob are built into Microsoft Greetings Workshop and it runs independently on Windows 95. This program even has a "sign in" just like Microsoft Bob's "Front Door," complete with default guest account. This program also contains the same sound effects from Microsoft Bob -- mouse clicks, error warnings, etc. There are also balloon help prompts on clickable items, and even a rendition of Microsoft Bob's "EXIT" sign. Upon starting Greetings Workshop, the program's only "personal guide," the term also used in Microsoft Bob, called "Rocky," comes bounding into the "room" interface and barks a couple of times. The filename installed on your computer, however, is named "Rover," referring to Microsoft Bob's Rover! Rocky positions himself in the lower right corner of the screen and uses text balloons to offer bullet-listed program options -- the exact same way Microsoft Bob does. Upon exiting the program, Rocky turns stage-right and starts running, the carpet bunching up underneath him, then bounds off the screen. Microsoft Greetings Workshop's "Rocky" is not boisterous like Microsoft Bob's "Rover." If the program sits idle for a few minutes, Rocky will yawn, point his nose into the air and sniff, pant, blink his eyes, look around every once in a while, and wags his tail -- all silently. Rocky doesn't "pester" you the way Microsoft Bob's Rover does. If you click on Rocky, a gloved hand will appear and pet him a couple of times, then disappear. That's it. Even Rocky's "text balloon" is called the "Bob Balloon" in Greetings Workshop's main EXE file code! Here are some items taken from a hex dump of GWORKSHP.EXE: 61490 - 614A0: 06F.H6F.Bob Balloon............. 615F0 - 616F0: BobMouseEnter, BobMouseLeave, BobShowErrorTip, BobShowResumeTip In 1999, "Rocky" was included as one of the "assistants" in Microsoft Office 2000 and continued to be included in later Office versions. |
 Bob LIVES! Microsoft Office 97 (1996) Microsoft Bob lives on in Microsoft Office as animated assistants. In 1996, the concept of Microsoft Bob's "The Dot" and "Will" personal guides were incorporated into Microsoft Office 97. The style of Microsoft Office 97's "assistant" help interface is pure Microsoft Bob -- right down to the yellow, bulleted text balloons and bold title questions. A search engine is added to the interface. But instead of being transparent over the Office 97 application in use (Word, Excel, etc.), the "assistants" are enclosed in a small window with a textured background. The window enclosure is unique to Office 97. Later Office versions have the "assistants" transparent against the active program, as the personal guides are in Microsoft Bob. Microsoft learned a bruising lesson with some of Microsoft Bob's over-zealous "friends." In Microsoft Office 97 and other "Bobbitized" programs, they toned down the activity of their "assistants" and gave the user the options to mute their sounds and toggle on or off their animation and other features. These are the first "assistants" to grace the Microsoft Office productivity suite: - Clippit: A two-eyed paper clip that can transform itself into various shapes - The Dot: The same "Dot" from Microsoft Bob! The Dot gets a promotion! - The Genius: A really smart character, new to the scene. A virtual "Einstein," relatively speaking. - Hoverbot: This "pod" looks like a cross between the Jetsons and a Cylon Centurion - Office Logo: Just that ... the logo for Microsoft Office. - Mother Nature: An environmentally-aware assistant. - Power Pup: "There's no need to fear, Power Pup is here!" Red cape and all. - Scribble: This "cat" is a heap of pasted paper scraps. - Will: The same Will from Microsoft Bob! He still has his brown "platform" from Microsoft Bob! |
 Microsoft Bob on a Macintosh? Even Apple can't escape the wrath of Bob... The characteristic Bob interface is duplicated in near-perfect format in this Macintosh version -- yellow, bulleted text balloons, bolded title questions and search engine. This Macintosh version of Microsoft Office features one "assistant" encased in a window very similar to the PC Microsoft Office 97 version. Except this "assistant" is an animated classic Mac with legs and feet. |
 Bob LIVES! Microsoft Home Publishing 99 Not to be confused with Microsoft Publisher, Home Publishing 99 is a newer version of the "Hallmark connections" software series -- two versions after Microsoft Greetings Workshop 1.0. Now called a desktop publisher instead of a greeting card maker, Home Publishing 99 gives the impression that Microsoft ended the "Bob interface" in these programs. In reality, Microsoft Bob still "lives" inside Home Publishing 99 -- the only major difference is there is no "personal guide" in this version. Many aspects of the Microsoft Bob interface are evident in this program. The familiar yellow, bulleted option windows with features not available in the main menu replace the "text balloons" associated with Microsoft Bob's "personal guides." Not quite Bob, but still Bob, nonetheless. Also present are automatic help "tips" that pop up every time you open a new feature or type text out of its printable area. These tips automatically appear and there is no option to disable them. They pop up repeatedly during the creation of a project and actually prolong the time it takes to make a project. And when you click to save a project, a little yellow tip box appears in the lower left corner of the screen while the file is writing that says, "Hold on a moment..." This is typical Microsoft "Bobbitizing" of a product. As evidenced in Microsoft Greetings Workshop 1.0 above, Microsoft Home Publishing 99's main executable program file also contains a wealth of "Bob" variable names visible by doing a hex dump of the file HOMEPUB.EXE. Here are some examples: C4600-C47F0: BobShowModalTip, BobRegisterDialog, BobHideTip, BobGetPalette, BobShowTip C7B20-C7B40: CBobControlContainer, CBobDialog 11E530-11E5A0: BobButton1, BobButton2 1AE670-1AE680: BobCheckBox1 Internal program name: Microsoft Graphics Studio Home Publishing & Greetings |
 Bob LIVES! Microsoft Office 2000 (1999) Microsoft Bob lives on in Microsoft Office as animated assistants. Microsoft Bob's legacy lives on in Microsoft Office 2000. After four years, "The Dot" is the only original surviving "personal guide" from Microsoft Bob. In addition to certain options retaining the blue bullet lists, the "Bob interface" changed slightly in Office 2000. Other options in the yellow text balloons have "idea" light bulbs for bullets. "Assistants" are no longer confined in a window. They are transparently superimposed upon the active program. Re-casting the "crew," a major "assistant shakeup" takes place in Microsoft Office 2000: - The Dot, The Genius, and Mother Nature are all transferred in their original likeness. - Clippit gets a new look, and sits atop a yellow legal pad sheet. - Office Logo rearranges its color pattern. - Rocky is promoted from Greetings Workshop to Office 2000, and "Power Pup" gets the boot. - F1 is introduced to the assistant lineup, replacing the Jetsons-looking "Hoverbot." - Links is also a newcomer, replacing the paper-puzzled "Scribble." - Will is simply let go. "And so, farewell." |
 Bob LIVES! Microsoft Windows XP (2001) Six years after Microsoft Bob's release, Microsoft introduced the "assistant" into the graphical shell of the Windows XP operating system. "The more things change, the more they stay the same." In Windows XP, the text balloon interface now changes color to match the current color scheme, has multiple styles of bullets for options, list item show/hide buttons, and a vertical scroll bar when the window is too short to hold all the option items. "Rover," the default "guide" for Microsoft Bob, is now the default "assistant" for Windows XP's "Files and Folders Search" feature in Windows XP Professional and XP Home Edition. Better rendered in textured 3D, Microsoft must have taken Rover to training school. He is much more docile than in his earlier years. But if you leave the search idle for five minutes, Rover will scratch himself with an audible sound -- prompting you to do something, just like he did in Microsoft Bob! To view the "assistants" in Microsoft Windows XP, please click the links below.
Microsoft Windows XP's "assistants" have advanced graphics and motion technology for a better multimedia experience. 
And those yellow "balloon prompts" that pop up above the System Tray in Windows Me, 2000 and XP when a new device is detected,
a network cable is unplugged, etc.? That's "Bob!"
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"Rover," that mangey little mutt, went from "old yeller" to "new feller" and took on a whole new look. Microsoft Bob's 1995 Rover is a 2-D sprite graphic with a cartoonish "flat" look. Windows XP's Rover is a 3-D rendered model with textured "skin" and more realistic motion. In 2001, Microsoft gave Rover a new life in Windows XP -- six years after being introduced in Microsoft Bob. I wonder how many people who see Rover in Windows XP know his true origin? |
"This is my brother Earl, and this is my other brother, Earl..." Microsoft has an "assistant" named Earl in Windows XP's File search utility. "Rover," mentioned earlier, is the default assistant, but there are three others, Earl among them, to choose from. Microsoft Office for Mac OS X also has an "office assistant" named Earl. It doesn't look anything like XP's Earl, however. But, just as there are different human beings named Earl, there are two completely different "Earls" in these items -- and both "descendants" of Microsoft Bob. NOTE: The Earl picture from Microsoft Office for Mac OS X was sent to D2CA by Emme D. Thanks, Emme! |
 Bob LIVES! Microsoft Office XP (2002) Microsoft Bob's presence continues in Microsoft Office XP -- 7 years later. The yellow, bulleted text balloon interface lives on. The venerable old diehard, "The Dot," survives in yet another version of Microsoft Office. Yet another "assistant turnover" takes place in Microsoft Office XP: - Clippit, The Dot, F1, Office Logo, Mother Nature, Links, and Rocky retain their same identities. - Merlin pulls triple-duty in Windows Me's setup, Microsoft Office, and Windows XP to replace "The Genius." |
 Bob LIVES? Microsoft Bob in Visio 2002? Close, but not quite. Yet close enough to scare any BOBophobe. This, Microsoft's second version of Visio to carry its name, but the first fully released by Microsoft, has a subtle hint of "Bob" included in the form of a help "search." In place of a Microsoft Office animated "assistant," is a search field that offers options in the form of a drop-down list. This list has the same blue-bulleted hyperlink options and same font style as the "Bob-style" text in Microsoft Office. Apparently, even Microsoft knew not to "Bobbitize" Visio too much. Giving it animated "assistants" and balloon-text captions would have changed its perception from a serious diagramming system to a Romper Room "Etch-a-Sketch" toy. |
This is the first version of MSN Messenger to have "emoticons" -- little pictures expressing emotions for use in instant message correspondence. One of these "emoticons" goes by the name of "Nerd smiley." It is actually BOB operating under an alias! Once again, Microsoft sneaks Bob into a new program's features. |
While looking a lot like the textured 3-D "wizards" in Microsoft Windows Me's startup process, Windows XP, and Microsoft Office, "Kris Dancer" is not a "wizard" or "assistant" that is part of a process to help in a program like Bob's "friends" or Microsoft Office's or Windows XP's "assistants." Kris Dancer is more closely related to the Internet-famous "Dancing Baby" program of the mid-1990's because, like the Dancing Baby program, it is merely an animated audio/visual entertainment program. Like Dancing Baby, Kris Dancer dances to music and that's all. The original Dancing Baby program was created in 1996 with 3DStudio Max and Character Studio with demo files that shipped with the product and has animation by Michael Girard, Robert Lurye & Ron Lussier. Dancing Baby is Copyright © 1996 Burning Pixel Productions & Ron Lussier. Microsoft saw a popular program and had to create "dancers" of their own. In addition to dancing to music, Microsoft adds special effects such as costume changes and extra visual aids. |
 Bob LIVES! Microsoft Windows Vista (2007) After more than a decade after Microsoft Bob's "birth," Bob lives on in yet another version of Microsoft Windows -- Windows Vista. The colors have changed. The fonts are different. And there are colorful icons added to Vista's message "balloons." But this is still the legacy of Microsoft Bob living on in Windows Vista. But, unlike Microsoft Windows XP, there are no animated "assistants" in Windows Vista. Rover, Merlin, Earl, and Courtney were not called back to work in Windows Vista. Will you miss them? |
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Microsoft Bob will live on.
Microsoft has been determined not to let Bob "die." Since 1996 they have kept the concepts of Microsoft Bob "alive" by including them in several of their successful products -- Microsoft Office, Microsoft Windows XP, MSN Messenger, etc. Microsoft has profited more from Microsoft Bob's concepts integrated into these other software programs than they ever could have with Microsoft Bob alone. While many consumers may not have purchased Microsoft Bob, if they purchased Microsoft Office 97 or later or are using a computer running Windows XP Home or Professional Edition, they are, in fact, using "Bobbitized" Microsoft products. From 1996 on, as new users came into Microsoft's customer base, many of them not being familiar with Microsoft Bob would not know these "new" features in Microsoft Office and other Microsoft products evolved from Microsoft Bob. This did, in fact, happen. Many people did not know that these "assistants" were not truly "new" concepts for these products. That is why these Web pages are here. To show the world what Microsoft Bob really is, and to tell of how Microsoft refused to let Bob "die" by incorporating his legacy into several of their more successful software products and operating systems. Regardless of the new product Microsoft may incorporate Microsoft Bob's concepts into, may we always remember where these "new" features truly originate from. |
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Do you know of other programs that Microsoft Bob lives on in? Please tell me! << PREV |
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Updated last on 01/10/2008.
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