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The Enchanted Office

Madeline, our CEO, burns the midnight oil at her desk. As she drifts off to sleep, visions of bad software and dwindling revenue cloud her dreams¡­ (Madeline awakes dressed as a princess in a fairy tale realm. She sees signs that the kingdom has fallen on hard times. In this world, cubicles are intermixed with trees in a magical Office forest.)

I'd better go see my advisors¡­ Jensen and Julie (advisors dressed as wizards) We have foreseen your coming, Madeline. You require some serious productivity help. Rather than another top ten list on the benefits of our software¡­ ¡­We've fashioned the new Microsoft Office user interface onto this ribbon for you.

Oooh! Have you tested it?

Yes, millions of people have tested it. The user interface reflects many of their choices. Jensen (makes Yoda-like gesture) Be your guide it will.

Thanks, Jensen and Julie! Wow, it looks so easy to use - and so professional! But how will my people know what to do with it?

Use the power of the ribbon - the new central place to get work done in Office 2007. Trust in it, and your ideas will illuminate the kingdom!

Will this whizamajig make me dinner, too?

Well, kiss my frog! I see that in Word alone, we've gone from 1,500 hard-to-find commands to a simple way of finding stuff! Why did you create it?

We'd get owl mail asking us for features that were already in the software! People were lost.

Share this I must. Forest creatures (working at computer terminals) This is so easy! I'm getting better results, faster! Does this make me look fat?

Heeeey, Rumple. How's it going. (sigh) Listen, I'm, ah, going to need you to come in on Sunday¡­and try out the new Microsoft Office. Rumple (a human information worker) Not now - I'm setting up my fantasy leagues.

Seriously, Rumple, just give it a try. Did you know all the commands will now have keyboard shortcuts?

Hmm¡­ intriguing. But I'd still have to learn a brand new interface. I've mastered the old ways.

Rumple, your tricks still work. You just have more of them! Like Smartart!

Turn me into a pumpkin! You made that chart in under five clicks! Will you seek the I.T. Department? They're under a strange spell¡­

Great lords of COBOL! Lee, what happened to you?

Alas, the specter of doubt turned me into a frog. What if we don't gain enough productivity from the new Office to justify the roll out costs?

I had similar, less warty, doubts until we realized huge productivity gains. And there are tools likes this map that show people where to find new commands based on where they might've gone before.

Impressive. This dynamic UI makes me feel all¡­ tingly! I bet the help desk will get fewer calls from subjects wondering where to go to find word count, watermarks¡­ therapy. (Lee turns from a frog to a man after he kisses the ribbon.)

The ribbon brought the sexy back, Baby!

A real I.T. manager would rather have a pizza and Buffy. (On her way to a Board Meeting¡­) I smell a big ad campaign. Maybe some butterflies or dinosaurs. (Madeline runs into a large, striped pant leg with a claw for a foot.)

Gracious! May I pass? Inertia (a dinosaur dressed in business attire) Impudent fool! I'm here to destroy you. I don't like change.

Don't you understand, Inertia? This change will save the company!

I helped build this kingdom with my bare claws! What we have is good enough. (Madeline takes out a paperclip with a face known as "Clippy" from a prior release of Office. She takes the clip out of a bag labeled "Old Bag of Tricks. She throws the clip at the dinosaur.)

Take that!

Oh my God - they killed Clippy!

Ouch!! Methinks I'm about to become a royal snack. What would Jensen do?

Use the ribbon. Trust your instincts. Research has shown that most people create better looking documents in less time. It only takes 2-3 days to get up to speed. Go forth with confidence.

Pay attention to me! Resistance is futile!

Progress won't be stopped, Inertia! You're no match for the increased teamwork and productivity of Office. (At the Board Meeting¡­) A Royal Stakeholder Is the royal mini-bar open yet?

No sir, but there is a mini toolbar that appears when you need easy access to functions such as Bold, Change Font, etc.

Well, that's hot. Continue.

As you can see from the Excel conditional formatting, our new four-crop rotation system has resulted in a whopping 80% boost in market share. We recommend increased profit sharing for the workers who made this possible. (Flash to a town square scene.)

With your help, the Princess has vanquished the innovation doubters. Prosperity and job satisfaction for all!

Get your office T-shirts here! (T-shirt message: I Want My New Office) (Princess Madeline looks over her now prosperous kingdom from her castle window. In the next frame, Madeline wakes up in the "real world." She has an idea and picks up the phone. She is holding a box of software.)

Hello, Lee? I have a little something that's going to make you the hero of our company's success story. Check out http://www.trymicrosoftoffice.com!

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