Microsoft eXtreme - Volume 5: Fall 1999

Video Description

TAPE 5/5 The last tape I have for this series - although later segments are confirmed to exist as I'll discuss later here. The show cuts straight to the chase much like the third segment by introducing Tom Bailey again, along with some others who make a return, this time talking about a pre-release version of Windows 2000, NFL Fever 2000, Expedia Streets & Trips 2000, Picture It! 2000, Home Publishing 2000, Encarta 2000, the new Microsoft Works suite, Money 2000, and much more. Near the beginning, they show one of many series of clips where they ask random people on the street what they know about Windows and other computing topics. When they show various people common icons of the operating system, one humorously thinks the Windows Help icon (the purple ? book) is an ice cream sandwich. Another thinks the kind of "windows" definition they're referring to is spying on others while in the bathroom. That pretty much sums up these cutaway segments. Oh, and there's also a guy screaming in terror at a "mouse". Bob Visse then gives a demonstration of Windows 2000, mentioning that the launch date is in fact February 17th of the following year. He demonstrates a prominent feature known as Windows File Protection, where if a file is accidentally or deliberately deleted, it will cache the file in question and restore it back to its original directory. A step up in security and integrity, but it can also work against you if you're trying to modify any critical system files for your own personal use. A person by the name of Jeff Price sends Bob the background for the setup of Windows 2000 asking his thoughts on the new setup screen. Although, the finalized background was already present by Release Candidate 1 - here its shown to be in higher color, which is typically not the case when running a clean installation or upgrading from a previous build. Perhaps one more bizarre little detail is that Bob Visse's email address has only one S in his last name. Beyond that, the other stuff shown here in 2000 is the same routines and layout which carries over from Windows 9x. John Rodman then returns to demonstrate a finalized version of NFL Fever 2000, whereas in the previous segment, it was a pre-release version. After another segment of asking random people, Lisa Stratton uses Expedia Streets & Trips 2000 in tandem with a handheld Windows CE device from HP in the aid of helping uses with getting directions to their destination. As a surprise, they then show a sneak preview clip from the latest James Bond movie "The World Is Not Enough", which was in theaters around this time (it first premiered in Los Angeles), featuring a pretend high-tech Windows CE handheld device to try and defuse a bomb. Picture It! takes the spotlight as Michelle Kline takes the stage, with a photo of protesters disappointed that FrontPage 2000 isn't shown here (more on that later). Much like the first segment of eXtreme, its mainly used as a basic editing tool such as being used to put tropical backdrops in front of an otherwise gloomy sky or doctoring the picket signs to show praise for the product, which they make fun of bigtime. Also, in line with the first segment, the demonstration isn't complete without showing baby pictures (albeit less embarrassing this time) and GIFs of splashing in an inflatable pool. Rob McIntosh shows off Home Publishing 2000 for formatting documents to give them that slice of life, all in a calm tone of voice. It's got everything from webpages with sound effects, wacky templates, audible watch beeping, and even more edits of the FrontPage 2000 protesters, replacing Picture It! with Home Publishing this time while adding a soft white gradient frame. Susan Kittleson, the product manager of the Encarta Reference Suite, then takes charge of using Encarta 2000 revealing the tweaked user interface. In particular, she demos the visual bar at the top with a collage of photos pertaining to the subject. Other features include a 360-degree view of popular locations, much in a similar fashion to CarPoint. I'd love to point out more things they show here, like Arlene Huff demoing Works Suite 2000, Joana Fuller using Money 2000, a promotional ad for SideWinder featuring Half-Life, or the free inclusion of Links LS 2000 for attendees with a coupon for extra golf courses, but I'm running out of space for the description. While this is the last tape I have of the eXtreme series, there are indeed later shows that premiered afterwards, namely on April 8th, 2000 where they demonstrated Windows Me, Pocket PC, and FrontPage 2000. Looks like the protesters got their way that time. It also could've been streamed at one point in time, but the servers hosting it have long since been gone by now. Given the date, this would've been segment six of the show. There was also another show hosted in 2001 with various XP-based products.