Office Assistant

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Clippit asking whether the user needs help.

The Office Assistant was a Microsoft Office feature to assist users by way of an interactive animated character, which interfaced with the Office help content. It used technology initially from Microsoft Bob and later Microsoft Agent, offering advice based on Bayesian algorithms. In Microsoft Office for Windows, it was included in versions 97 to 2003. In Microsoft Office for Mac, it was included in versions 98 to 2004. The default assistant in the English version was named Clippit, nicknamed Clippy,^[1] after a paperclip. The character was designed and animated by Steven Dovas.^{[citation needed]}

The feature evoked a strong negative response from many users.^[2][3] Microsoft turned off the feature in Office XP, acknowledging its unpopularity in an ad campaign spoofing Clippit.^[4] The feature was removed altogether in Office 2007 and Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac.

[edit] Overview

The Office assistant was enabled by default in early Microsoft Office versions. It popped up when the program determined the user could be assisted with using Office wizards, searching help, or advising users on using Office features more effectively. It presented tips and keyboard shortcuts. For example, typing an address followed by "Dear" would cause Clippit to pop up and say, "It looks like you're writing a letter. Would you like help?"

Other Office assistants were available, such as The Dot (a shape-shifting and colour-shifting smiley-faced red ball), Hoverbot (a robot), The Genius (a caricature of Albert Einstein), Office Logo (a jigsaw puzzle), Mother Nature (a globe), Scribble (an origami-esque cat), Power Pup (a superhero dog) and Will (a caricature of William Shakespeare). In later versions of Microsoft Office for Windows, the Hoverbot, Scribble and Power Pup assistants were replaced by F1, Links and Rocky (a robot, a cat and a dog respectively). The cat, Links, meowed and purred when a woman's hand scratched its head. It would groom itself, curl up and sleep, or roll over on its side. In many cases the Office installation CD was necessary to activate a different Office assistant character, so the default character, Clippit, remains widely known. An assistant named Max, in the shape of a Macintosh Plus, served as the default on Mac versions of Office (although Clippit was available).

The Microsoft Office XP Multilingual Pack had two more assistants, Saeko Sensei (冴子先生^?) (an animated secretary) and a version of Monkey King (孫悟空^?) for Asian language users in non-Asian Office versions.^[5] Native language versions provided additional representations such as Kairu the dolphin, in Japanese. Clippit inspired parody software such as Vigor, a version of the vi text editor with a paperclip.

The helpers from Office 2003: Top, left to right: Clippit, The Dot, F1, Office Logo;
Bottom, left to right: Merlin, Mother Nature, Links, and Rocky.

[edit] Additional assistants

Since their introduction, more assistants have been released.^[6][7]

• Bosgrove (a butler)
• Genie (a genie)
• Kairu the Dolphin (available for East Asian editions, downloadable for Office 97)^[8]
• Max (a Macintosh Plus computer) (Macintosh)
• Peedy (a parrot)
• Robby (a robot)

The 1997 assistants can be downloaded from the Microsoft website.^[9]

[edit] Later versions

Starting in Office 2000, Microsoft Agent (ACS) replaced the Microsoft Bob-descended Actor (ACT) format as the technology supporting the feature. Users can add other assistants to the folder where Office is installed for them to show up in the Office application. Microsoft Agent-based characters have richer forms and colors, and are not enclosed within a boxed window.

As of Office 2007/2008, Microsoft replaced the Office assistant with a new online help system.

[edit] Criticism and parodies

The program was widely reviled among users as intrusive and annoying,^[10][11] and was criticized even within Microsoft. Smithsonian Magazine called Clippy "one of the worst software design blunders in the annals of computing".^[12] Office Assistant was codenamed TFC (The Fucking Clown) during development.^[13]

In July 2000, the online comic strip User Friendly ran a series of panels featuring clippy.^[14] In 2001, a Microsoft advertising campaign for Office XP included the (now defunct) website officeclippy.com, which highlighted the disabling of Clippit in the software. It featured the animated adventures of Clippit (voiced by comedian Gilbert Gottfried, in an annoying voice) as he learned to cope with unemployment ("X...XP...As in, ex-paperclip?!") and parodied behaviors of the Office assistant. Curiously, one of these ("Clippy Faces Facts") uses the same punchline as one of the User Friendly comic strips.^[15] These videos are still viewable at YouTube — [1], [2], [3] — and can be downloaded at Internet Archive)

There is a Clippit parody in the Plus! Dancer application included in Microsoft Plus! Digital Media Edition which is later included as Windows Dancer in Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005. The dancing character Boo Who? is wearing a ghost outfit, roughly having the shape of Clippit's body, with a piece of wire visible underneath. Occasionally, the white sheet slips, and reveals the thin curve of steel. The description mentions "working for a short while for a Redmond, WA based software company, where he continued to work until being retired in 2001". Clippit is also included as a player character in Microsoft Bicycle Card Games and Microsoft Bicycle Board Games.

Demitri Martin parodied Clippit in his stand up special Demetri Martin. Person. when he said, "I think it would be cool if you were writing a ransom note on your computer, if the paper clip popped up and said, "Looks like you're writing a ransom note. Need help? You should use more forceful language, you'll get more money."^[16]

College Humor also parodied Clippy in the Clock Suckers' 9th episode, Abe-Hole, appearing in an action movie trailer where his annoying remarks are actually useful, which contrasts with most other parodies.

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• Ms. Dewey
• Tafiti
• Talking Moose

[edit] External links

• Clippit discontinued in Office 12
• Customizable Clippy simulator
• Download additional Agents Office 97 (Quiet Office Logo, Kairu, Earl, F1)
• Guile 3D Studio Photo-Realistic MSAgents
• Luke Swartz — Why People Hate the Paperclip — Academic paper on why people hate the Office Assistant
• Microsoft Agent Ring - download more unofficial characters
• Microsoft.com
• Vigor — Vigor Assistant, a comical addon to Unix editor vi.