Watch Bill Gates in a 1994 orientation video for new Microsoft workers
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You will often be given a brief history of the company and its culture when you begin a job. However, this information doesn’t usually come from someone who is the most wealthy on the planet.
Microsoft was founded in 1994. orientation video for new employeesThat prominently features cofounder Bill GatesGates, then 39 years old and already incredibly wealthy. Gates, who was then still Microsoft’s CEO, was valued at $9.35 Billion according to the Time. Forbes. Today that number is more than $136 billion.
In the roughly 15-minute video, which was restored and uploaded to YouTube by the Computer History Archives Project in November, Gates welcomes new Microsoft employees into the fold by recapping the company’s founding story and some of its signature moments — and even offering surprising praise for rival tech giant Apple.
He also highlighted Microsoft as an important part of the future tech. Gates says to his workers in video that he believes there is an incredible opportunity and it will be exciting.
Below are some highlights from the video:
Microsoft: The origin story
Microsoft’s origin story is not well-known. However, hearing it from Gates directly is worth the cost of the video’s zany 90s music and sound effects.
In the early 1970s, Gates and co-founder Paul Allen, who attended the same Seattle-area high school, discussed computer software — even as Gates studied pre-law at Harvard University. Gates states that Allen anticipated great technology advances in the future, largely due to microprocessor technology.
Allen suggested that such leaps might be very rare or quite dramatic. Gates recalls this. Gates claims that he once asked Allen, “Are your serious?”
It was. In 1975, MITS, an Albuquerque-based company, released the Altair 8800 personal computer. Gates and Allen jointly developed the Altair’s BASIC programming language. Gates left Harvard in order to keep the work going.
The pair initially took up jobs at MITS. In the following year they were married. formed a partnershipThey called them “Microsoft.” It was history from there.
A mouse ‘mistake’
Gates states that an now-ubiquitous feature of personal computing took over a year to realize its full potential.
Is this the product? Microsoft launched a PC-compatible mouse in 1983. Gates said that Microsoft made the mouse a profitable part of its business but it seemed like they had made mistakes at first.
Gates noted that the initial order of 50,000 units was placed by the company, and it took over a year for its stock to be sold. He says that the mouse became popular as Microsoft continued to improve the design of the mouse, giving it a more sleek appearance.
He says that today, “We sell many, many hundred thousand in a monthly” in the 1994 video. Microsoft spokeswoman, though she declined to give today’s figures but told CNBC Make It that mouse sales “remain a major business” for the company.
Apple is credited for the’very, very important milestone’
Microsoft and Apple share a long history. complicated historyAs both collaborators fierce rivals.
Microsoft was one of Apple’s top software developers in the 1980s. Gates’ team developed Microsoft software, specifically designed for Macs new to the market. This included Microsoft Word.
A 1996 documentary. Jobs calledSome of Microsoft’s first Apple applications were “terrible” and criticised Microsoft for having “no taste.” Gates, however, has nothing but positive comments about the Macintosh computer in his 1994 video to new Microsoft employees. It first appeared in 1984.
Gates states that the Macintosh is a significant milestone. Not only did it establish Apple as an important player in helping to define new ideas for the personal computer, but also because of its impact on other industries. [space]It was also because of its introduction of a graphical interface.”
GUI (graphical user interface) is what he refers to. It allows Macintosh screens to show icons and images, instead of long lines of text. Gates states that initially the tech sector was resistant to GUI. However, Apple placed a bet on it.
Apple was right to make this bet: The simplicity of clicking icons and images on a home computer is preferred by users. Gates explained that Gates was involved early in the development of Macintosh applications. We believed they were correct, and it was the reason we placed our trust in them.
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