1983

September: The first version of Microsoft Word 1.0 for MS-DOS is released. It
becomes the first word processor to make extensive use of the computer mouse.

Word 1.0 for MS-DOS

1985

January: Microsoft Word 1.0 for Macintosh and Word 2.0 for DOS are released.

September: Microsoft Excel 1.0 for Macintosh is released. It is designed to take

advantage of the enhanced power of the Macintosh. Excel offers features such as
interactive spreadsheet linking and two-way file compatibility with Lotus 1-2-3.

Excel 1.0 for Mac box shot

Excel 1.0 for Mac screen shot

1986

September: Microsoft announces Microsoft Works for Macintosh, which integrates

word processing, spreadsheet, database, communications, and drawing functions
into a single program.

October: Microsoft Word 3.0 for Macintosh (there was no version 2.0) and Word 3.0
for DOS are released.

Word 3.0 screenshot

1987

July: Microsoft Corp. acquires Forethought, the original application software

company behind PowerPoint 1.0, for $1.4 million.

September: Microsoft PowerPoint 1.0 for Macintosh is announced. In its first year of
sales, PowerPoint 1.0 for Macintosh hits $1 million.

1988

May: Microsoft ships PowerPoint 2.0 for Macintosh.

PowerPoint 2.0 for Macintosh ad

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1989

June: Office 1.0 for the Macintosh debuts on both standard disks and CD-ROM. It
includes newly available Word 4.0, Excel 2.2 and PowerPoint 2.01. This release is a
significant step toward the seamless application integration that becomes the
hallmark of later versions of Office.

Office 1.0 box shot

1990

May: PowerPoint 2.0 for Windows is announced. This first version for Windows offers
color options.

October: Office 1.0 for Windows is available and includes Excel 2.0, Word 2.1 and
PowerPoint 2.0.
Microsoft becomes the first personal computer software company to exceed $1
billion in sales in a single year, with revenues of $1.18 billion.

1991

January: Microsoft announces the availability of Microsoft Excel for Windows 3.0 —
the first major release to include toolbars.

October: Word 2.0 for Windows is the first version to offer drag-and-drop
capabilities.

Word 2.0 box shot

1992

August: Office 3.0 for Windows is available and includes recently released Microsoft
PowerPoint 3.0 in combination with Microsoft Word for Windows 2.0 and Microsoft
Excel 4.0.

November: Microsoft Access 1.0 for Windows is announced at Fall COMDEX. The
new full-featured and fully relational database management system (DBMS)
provides transparent access to data, usability-tested tools and a robust
development cycle.

Access 1.0 screenshot

Access 1.0 box shot

1993

September: The millionth copy of Access ships. Access 1.1 leads retail sales for PC
databases for Windows, according to PC Magazine.

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November: Office 4.0 for Windows ships. The integrated suite includes new versions
of Excel and Word as well as new wizards that give users step-by-step guidance
through difficult tasks.

By the end of the year, there are more than 10 million Word users worldwide.

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1994

May: Access 2.0 for Windows is the first desktop database to bridge the gap
between user and developer needs.

Office 4.3 Professional for Windows is available, featuring the new Access 2.0.

1995

August: Office 95 is the first complete suite of 32-bit applications available for
Windows 95. This is the first time all the products are on the same development
schedule with the same milestones. This is the first time all the core Microsoft Office
products share the same development and release cycle.

Office 95 box shot

By the end of the year, more than 30 million people worldwide now use Microsoft
Excel, making it the most popular spreadsheet of all time. This figure averages
more than five new users of Microsoft Excel per minute since the product’s
introduction in 1985.

1996

April: Exchange Server 4.0 is released. This is the original version of Exchange
Server and was introduced as an upgrade from Microsoft Mail 3.5.

1997

January: Microsoft Outlook 97, code-named “Ren and Stimpy,” is available.

Outlook 97 screenshot

March: Exchange Server 5.0 is released. Introduces Web-based e-mail through

Exchange Web Access (the younger generation of Outlook Web Access), two
varieties — standard or dedicated.

November: Office 97 becomes the fastest-selling business application in PC history.

In less than one year, Office 97 sells more than 20 million licenses, at an average
rate of 60,000 per day.

November: Clippy, the helpful paperclip, is introduced as part of Office 97.

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1998

January: Office 98 Macintosh Edition is the first suite to fully integrate the ease of
intelligent application with Web functionality for Macintosh customers. Office 98
includes Word 98, Excel 98, PowerPoint 98 and Outlook Express.

March: Outlook 98 is introduced.

May: More than 1 million people have Outlook 98 on their PC.

1999

March: Access 2000 is released. Highlights include data access pages, a

fundamental technology breakthrough allowing HTML pages to be bound to data,
and Access client/server capability (enabling integration with Microsoft SQL Server).

June: Microsoft Office 2000 is launched. It takes users beyond the desktop and
brings an unprecedented level of Web integration to the desktop suite.

2000

October: Exchange 2000 Server is released. Server consolidation rate of 25 percent

benefits IT pros and unified messaging integrates e-mail, voice mail and fax.

2001

March: Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal Server 2001 is released to the market as a
way for information workers to create corporate Web portals with document
management, enterprise content indexes and team collaboration features.

SharePoint 2001 box shot

May: Microsoft Office XP launches, promising to unlock hidden knowledge and

unleash the next wave of productivity gains.

2003

October: Microsoft launches Office 2003, with Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal
Server 2003. Microsoft Office OneNote and Microsoft Office InfoPath are introduced
as part of the Office 2003 system. In addition, Windows SharePoint Services is
offered as a free addition to Windows Server 2003.

October: Microsoft updates the Office Logo from the puzzle to its current form.

October: Exchange Server 2003 is released. Features Outlook Mobile Access support
and offers customers improved disaster recovery and remote connectivity.

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2005

March: Microsoft Live@edu, a new hosted e-mail service, begins a pilot program
with five institutions: Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland, Indiana University
Alumni Association, Ball State University in Indiana, South Dakota State University,
and University of Texas - Pan American.

April 2005, Microsoft completes the Groove Acquisition. Announces plans to add
Groove’s collaboration software products to the lineup of Microsoft Office System
products, servers and services.

2006

April: Microsoft Live@edu is made available to students at all higher education

schools in the United States.

December: Exchange Server 2007 is released. Offers employees a single universal

inbox from which to access all their important communications — including voice
mail, fax and e-mail.

2007

January: Microsoft Office 2007 is available to consumers. It includes a new

redesigned “ribbon” interface and Office SharePoint Server 2007.

2008

March: Microsoft Office SharePoint Server becomes one of the fastest growing
products in the company’s history. It reaches the milestone of a $1 billion (U.S.)
business with 100 million licenses sold.

March: Microsoft announces the worldwide availability of Office Live Workspace

beta. Customers get immediate access to the new service that extends Microsoft
Office, provides anywhere access to documents and enables sharing functionality.
Video Link:

July: Microsoft Live@edu becomes available to students at all K–12 institutions.

September: Only six months after public availability, the beta release of Microsoft
Office Live Workspace reaches the 1 million customer signup milestone.
Video Link

October: Microsoft announces plans to deliver Office Web applications — lightweight

versions of Office — through Web browsers. This flags off a companywide shift
toward Web-based solutions.
Video Link

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2009

February: More than 3 million people are now using Microsoft Office Live Workspace
to share, store and work together. (In all, 4 million are using Office Live services.)
The service is now available in 28 languages.

February: Live@edu services is expanded to include faculty and staff. Exchange

Labs is renamed Outlook Live.

April: Exchange 2010 is launched into beta. Represents a new generation of

Microsoft server technology that is built from the ground up as an on-premises and
an online service. Includes a new e-mail archive and features to battle inbox
overload.

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