Microsoft's sidewalk memorial to Encarta, Money and other fossils |
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Microsoft's sidewalk memorial to Encarta, Money and other fossils
Walking through Microsoft's campus the other day, I came across a place I hadn't visited for several years, and realized how much it's starting to feel like a graveyard.
For anyone who's never been there, the company has this great old courtyard in Redmond where for many years it placed plaques in the sidewalk for nearly every piece of software it shipped. Taken as a whole, the hundreds of markers tell the story of the company's rise to the top of the software industry in the 1980s and 1990s.
Each plaque, engraved in classic Microsoft font, was originally placed in the ground in celebration. Windows, Office and other hit products are represented well. But the recent discontinuation of some of Microsoft's best-known consumer brands -- combined with plaques for others that never amounted to much -- make other sections feel like a memorial to fallen products. Click through the pages below for pictures of some of the Microsoft relics commemorated in the courtyard.
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Reads the plaque at the front of the courtyard: "Every time a product ships, it takes us one step closer to the vision: A computer on every desk and in every home. In recognition of the many Microsoft people who have designed, built, and supported our products."
This altruistic message actually omits a significant part of the original mission. Extra credit to anyone who can say what's missing.
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About Todd Bishop
Todd Bishop is co-founder and managing editor of TechFlash. He has covered Microsoft and the technology industry for more than five years, most recently as a daily newspaper reporter and blogger based in Seattle.
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