Is Microsoft's decision to back Apple's FireWire technology instead of USB 2.0 a sign that the Redmond Giant is getting-- dare we say it-- less execrable? We know, we know, it's a brain-twister even to consider the possibility. We're naturally inclined to consider the FireWire thing an accident, a massive fluke, a datum way off the bell curve... but in light of another recent move, now we're not so sure. For you see, in a startling display of lucidity and attention to customer sentiment, Microsoft has axed Clippy.

Those of you blessed with a primarily Wintel-free lifestyle may not even know who Clippy is, and you should number yourselves among the fortunate few. Clippy is that appalling animated paper clip with eyes that is supposed to be your "friendly and engaging" assistant in recent versions of Office for Windows. You can barely type the letters W-H-I without Clippy popping up and saying, "It looks like you're typing 'whippet.' Would you like me to finish that for you?" If you've used Office 98 on the Mac, think of that little Mac Classic with legs in the help system and then multiply its annoyance factor by, say, thirty. That's Clippy.

But what's this? According to the New York Times, Microsoft has killed Clippy in the upcoming Office XP-- or at least stuffed him under the hood, only to be called forth when the user is in the mood for a little pain. What's more, the company has launched a $500,000 online advertising campaign for Office XP based entirely upon how annoying the character is. In a series of Flash-based animations (and yes, there are even Mac downloads-- spooky!) Clippy is voiced by none other than Gilbert Gottfried. If that's not the ultimate acknowledgment that Clippy inspires annoyance and rage, we don't know what is-- except for maybe the bit where Clippy claims to be friends with Microsoft Bob.

We hate to admit it, but we felt ourselves slipping. Has Microsoft finally created something that the AtAT staff likes, even if it's an ad campaign slamming the company's own lame and mediocre products? Something is clearly amiss. The self-denigrating attitude over at the official Clippy web site has us wondering if Bill Gates has finally come up with his own artificial Reality Distortion Field. Don't worry, though-- we're hard at work on an antidote. So far revisiting the whole "Redmond Justice" antitrust saga seems to be a fairly effective treatment...