Bill, You're No Mr. Keating,
But You're All Right...

REDMOND, WASH., June 18, 1996 -- In a closed-door meeting yesterday, Microsoft CEO Bill Gates discussed the future of computers and technology with six of America's brightest and creative minds. The "power meeting" lasted forty minutes and wrapped up with a milk and cookie break...the six meeting participants were 6-11 years old and grand prize winners of the "Imagine the Magic" contest, which asked kids to describe what they thought the "coolest" computer could do.

-- Microsoft Press Release

GATES (confidently): So, kids, ah -- we've got a little time here, and we can talk about anything you want. Microsoft computer games, Microsoft educational software, Microsoft applications for the home, Microsoft...

JIMMY (Age 8): How about Microsoft's failure to comply with the Justice Department ruling -- you know, by giving away Internet Explorer?

GATES (nervously): We've got plenty of milk...cookies too. There's peanut butter, oatmeal raisin, chocolate chip...

BECKY (Age 7): Jimmy's right, Bill. There's no argument here, none at all. If a web browser were really an integral part of the operating system, like you say, then it would be shipped WITH the operating system, not separately...

ROBBIE (Age 6): Yeah! You'd NEVER make customers obtain important core components of the operating system INDEPENDENT of the initial purchase...

DANNY (Age 9): Except for Microsoft Plus, ha-ha!

LARRY (Age 10): But seriously, Bill. Don't you think Microsoft has overreacted to all this web hype? I mean, not EVERYONE is in love with the web, and not everyone wants to stare at a browser-like interface all day. We LIKE toolbar buttons. Why are you going to make us use hyperlinks?

BECKY (severely): It seems to me you're putting all your eggs in one basket by making Microsoft operating systems and Office 97 applications look and feel like web apps!

DONNIE (Age 11): Maybe that's cause Bill's an Egg Head!

BECKY: No, that's because Bill's a WEB head!

GATES: Now come on, kids, you KNOW the web is one of the most exciting things to happen to personal computers since...

JIMMY (gleefully): The Macintosh?

DONNIE (chiming in): No, Windows 1.0!

DANNY (heartily): No, Microsoft Bob!

ROBBIE (cheerfully): No, Windows Pen Computing!

GATES (thumbing awkwardly through his notes): Now wait, just hold on. What about this "coolest computer" thing? It says here one of you "imagined a computer that would make yucky food taste better by injecting kids' favorite flavors into it" -- like Bubble Gum Broccoli and Nacho Spinach...

BECKY: Naw, the publicity people made that up.

GATES (curiously): Well...what DO you really want?

BECKY: Full-featured directory services on NT...and I DON'T want to wait for 5.0!

JIMMY: And I want NON-PROPRIETARY extensions to HTML!

SUSIE: And I want a REAL commitment to other microprocessor platforms besides Intel!

BECKY (thoughtfully): And...what do YOU want, Bill?

GATES (resignedly): I want my mommy.