Windows 7 was totally my idea

The wraps have been lifted off the Windows 7 global advertising campaign and apparently Windows 7 was totally my idea. The New York Times has a video clip of one of the ads in the series produced by Crispin Porter + Bogusky and the message is quite simple – Windows 7 is everything customers wanted. And what did we want? Less waiting. Less clutter. Less clicks. Faster. Easier. Leaner. Meaner. Safer. Cleaner. Simplerrrrrr. And Microsoft apso-frickin-lutely agreed.

Also as a fun fact, one of Microsoft employees featured in the video is Chaitanya Sareen, a program manager on the team responsible for developing the new Windows 7 taskbar.

Update: More ads in the series embedded below.

Pretty cool ad campaign I must admit.

39 insightful thoughts

  1. Ironically, I downloaded 5 different Linux distributions this week…really can’t handle most of the “reported” changes….the ones that just do what Windows has done since 3.1 but people never figured out. Like “Show windows side-by-side” or desktop one click toolbars. Changes like getting rid of the half baked way they converted Control Panel to in Vista I can handle, but having 4 copies of Vista will likely make me hold out for V 8.0. Oh and if Windows 7 was my idea, well Apple wouldn’t really have the ammo they do!

  2. Well, the crazy thing about these ads is that they are real! If you think about what we have done on your Taskforce site?! 🙂

    Oh and did I mentioned that the progress bar in the Taskbar buttons was my idea? *hehe

  3. I seriously hope they use these adverts here in Australia. The whole “I’m a PC and Windows 7 was my idea” concept adds a feeling of inclusion or ‘togetherness’ with everyone participating to create Windows 7. I like it.

  4. Like Duh… why do you think people have been flocking to the ipod and Mac platform in droves… because it’s cleaner and simpler…

    Mac = buy one computer and get all the software the majority of consumers need for their digital life styles for free, plus it’s relatively easy to use for the uninitiated

    iPod = it plays MP3 and you can easily buy MP3 via a simple interface from an online store or rip your own CDs… it’s easy period.

    Yes Windows 7 is easier, cleaner, simpler… but in the world did it take them nearly 7 years since XP was launched to get there… to be honest I actually find that appart from a number of quirks XP is still a pretty clean OS. I am running it both virtualised and natively without any headaches… I can’t say the same for Vista… and have already come across a number of quirks in Windows 7 that where I just want to throw the machine across the room.

    Don’t get me wrong… I am not saying Macs / iPod etc are better… Xbox 360 and Xbox were pretty simple and straightforward products… why couldn’t Microsoft borrow from their own departments and get this out of the door a little earlier?

    Also wonder why if Crispin Porter + Bogusky is still a Mac only shop…

  5. Just think if they did this for Vista. I’m sure noone would be saying “Windows Vista was my idea”.

  6. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better than the stupid commercials with the little girl!

    First of all, they are right-on with adopting customer feedback on the release.

    Second, they really do a great job exposing features and qualities of the new OS.

    Third, they don’t resort to trash talking the competition… they let the product sell itself, and as pointed out by Amazon, it’s doing exactly that!

  7. @tom,

    Flocking to Apple, eh? Guess that explains the report this week that despite a 17% sales/market increase at Apple, it still only gives them 9.1% of the US market share and 3.86% of the global share.

    Let me fill you in on a little secret that fits 99% of things in life… Better does not equal Good. Being better than a cup holder just makes you better than a cup holder, not the greatest thing ever. And despite the fact that Apple is simple to the point of stupidity, apparently a majority of the world still thinks PC’s are at LEAST good enough or better for what they really want to accomplish.

  8. Windows 7 isn’t my idea. Maybe it was your idea, but there was a number of things I wanted that didn’t appear.

    I want 3 or more power plans to show up in the popup when i click the tray icon. 2? wtf.
    I want native ISO mounting.
    I want native support for mkv and metadata.
    I want metadata for ALL file types (tags everywhere).
    I want multi-lingual support in the Home Premium edition, not just Ultimate.
    There are probably more too.

  9. I’m certainly a PC but Windows XP was my idea. I lived it for 8 years. Now the dream’s slowly turning into an annoyance (with Windows 7) but still glad XP is dominant with 60%++.

  10. Well, I have to give one to Microsoft on this. They are not steeping low to the level the competition, and they actually listen, and that is what you have in Windows 7. I know for a fact with the competition that users feedback are unwelcome and are deemd stupid. Apple never have a fault but the user.

    Let the product sell itself. Well done Microsoft!

  11. The ad also features Dave Matthews (guy with the beard and blonde curly hair) – he’s the program manager who helped build Aero Snap and Aero Peek.

  12. I began with MAC and win98.
    Dropped MAC for XP and ran for 8 years. Totally loved it.
    Tried Vista (hated it) and skipped it.
    I think that I must have dreamt Windows 7 and sent it to Microsoft.
    It is everything and more that I ever wanted in a computer.
    Not in a MAC or a PC – in a computer.
    I am in love.
    With a Windows 7 PC.
    I am PC and born again with Windows 7
    Dreamer me

  13. Nice Advertisements with a positive feeling
    IMO;MUCH better than the negative FUD spreading mac ads.

  14. You want an operating system that actually WAS built by the community? Then go with Ubuntu and stop wasting your money.

  15. but why do the actors change in the middle of the commercials? When they have their “aha” moment, like when the girl says “my pc should be safer” the actress is different for the ‘memory’ shot. Weird.

  16. One of the ads was saying about a feature that’s been in NT since NT 3.1/3.5 i think !! So much for “my idea” then 🙂

  17. “The whole “I’m a PC and Windows 7 was my idea” concept adds a feeling of inclusion or ‘togetherness’ with everyone participating to create Windows 7. I like it.”

    Except it’s just marketing nonsense. Microsoft is still clinging to a proprietary model, which means locking users out, not including them.

    There’s another OS that uses a marketing strategy which promotes a sense of ‘inclusion and togetherness’ – Ubuntu (Ubuntu is an African word that loosely means ‘community,’ or more specifically means “I am what I am because of who we all are”). However Ubuntu’s marketing strategy is actually backed up by what Ubuntu is- an OS for which you don’t have to pay licencing fees to use, and which you are free to alter and tweak as much as you want. And there is a massive on-line community of users from which any individual user can get tech support for free. We are Linux, and Ubuntu WAS our idea.

  18. “Windows 7 is everything customers wanted. And what did we want? Less waiting. Less clutter. Less clicks. Faster. Easier. Leaner. Meaner. Safer. Cleaner. Simplerrrrrr.”

    Oh, so Windows 7 was Mac’s idea? I mean, that’s a description of Mac compared to Windows. I just want to be clear.

  19. Just a thought;if Windows 7 was my idea,how come i did not get paid for it?!

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