Clippy Campaign: Difference between revisions

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Rossmann has subsequently released further videos addressing the accomplishments that participants have made, the current progress made in different areas, and what members can continue to do in the future to protect people from further overreach by these companies, and [[Bose_SoundTouch_end_of_life_treatment|even reverse them]]. His channel has a long history of videos which point out a great number of incidents in which companies have mistreated paying customers, and they have provided members of the movement with valuable information and motivation to change things for the better. Rossmann emphasizes the importance of many people working together, and has pointed out that the Clippy campaign has been much more successful than he has been on his own.<ref name="do the work 2026">{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-QDbZZYIxk |title=DO THE WORK! |date=4 Feb 2026}}</ref>

=="Clippy" profile pictures==

A core element of the movement is using a "Clippy" profile picture, which is an image that resembles the "Clippit" avatar from Office Assistant. Many users modify their avatars to show their commitment to the causes they want to support, resulting in many personalized avatars.

===Comparison to "slacktivism"===

Another key concept emphasized by Rossmann is preventing the movement from succumbing to [[wikipedia:Slacktivism|''slacktivism'']]—in general, the concept refers to proponents of a featured social or political cause doing very little actual work to support what they say they are supporting. The term is a pejorative portmanteau of ''slacker'' and ''activism'', and as such implies a negligible level of commitment.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.academia.edu/34753295/Activism_or_Slacktivism_The_Potential_and_Pitfalls_of_Social_Media_in_Contemporary_Student_Activism | title=(PDF) Activism or Slacktivism? The Potential and Pitfalls of Social Media in Contemporary Student Activism | date=2017}}</ref> Many of Rossmann's videos are focused on ways people can help, because providing examples can provide additional information members can leverage, as well as more motivation on top of that which is garnered through encouraging commentary. Avoiding slacktivism would become a [[Clippy_Campaign#Characteristics|recurring theme]] throughout future videos (whether named or not).

===Clippy as a symbol of escalating overreach===

Rossman uses Clippy to show how technology used to work purely for its intended purpose, in contrast to [[Dark pattern|dark patterns]] that are now widespread.

[https://youtu.be/2_Dtmpe9qaQ?t=68 Change your profile picture to clippy. I'm serious 1:08]

<blockquote>Whether or not you like Clippy, [...] the one thing that you could say—unlike Facebook, who is trying to profit off of young girls that feel suicidal: Clippy simply wanted to help.

He might have been annoying, but he just wanted to help.

There were no ulterior motives.

If you told Clippy you were having a bad day, he wasn't going to use that information to try and figure out which advertiser to sell you to, nor was he trying to steal your personal data to get you to purchase other Microsoft products.

He had no ulterior motives, he was simply there to help.

[...] Clippy wouldn't even read the contents of your letter.</blockquote>

The quote demonstrates that Rossmann's choice of using a "Clippy" is a subversion of the increasingly normalized narrative that companies should be able to exploit their customers without it being classified as exploitation. "Clippy" comes from an older era of Microsoft products and services—the Office Assistant software was designed to be helpful above all else, even if users initially had mixed views on it. When compared to Microsoft's current trajectories, "Clippy" stands out in that it never collected user data to sell to advertisers or track people with, while almost all of Microsoft's products and services today do exactly that, and to an increasingly great extent.

===Historical parallels===

During World War II, in Norway, paperclips were worn like jewelry as a symbol of resistance to German occupation and Norwegian collaboration.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Schlesinger |first=Joe |date=August 5, 2011 |title=Breivik, Quisling and the Norwegian spirit |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/breivik-quisling-and-the-norwegian-spirit-1.1064817 |access-date=13 Sep 2025 |website=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation{{!}}CBC}}</ref> They symbolized unity, proclaiming that "we are bound together," much as Rossmann noted that while one paperclip alone is weak, many paperclips (Clippy members) working together are strong together.

==Campaign origins==

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Line 91:

Rossmann concludes the video by stating that if Microsoft does not reverse its course by the 16th, then he would hold on the 18th a public event on behalf of the FULU Foundation, where users can get their computers upgraded, learn how to install free software, and try out Linux (a free operating system) for themselves.<ref name="second Rossmann silhouette">{{Cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NVtg1tkgSQ | title=Microsoft went too far | date=10 Oct 2025}}</ref> Rossmann stated that the goal was to encourage people to help other members of their community, learn new ways of keeping their technology safe from viruses, and prevent computers from populating landfills (because many people have to throw out their old computers which are unable to run Windows 11, but replacing Windows with Linux prevents this).

~~==Why Clippy==~~

~~===Clippy as a symbol of escalating overreach===~~

~~Rossman uses Clippy to show how technology used to work purely for its intended purpose, in contrast to [[Dark pattern|dark patterns]] that are now widespread.~~

~~[https://youtu.be/2_Dtmpe9qaQ?t=68 Change your profile picture to clippy. I'm serious 1:08]~~

~~<blockquote>Whether or not you like Clippy, [...] the one thing that you could say—unlike Facebook, who is trying to profit off of young girls that feel suicidal: Clippy simply wanted to help.~~

~~He might have been annoying, but he just wanted to help.~~

~~There were no ulterior motives.~~

If you told Clippy you were having a bad day, he wasn't going to use that information to try and figure out which advertiser to sell you to, nor was he trying to steal your personal data to get you to purchase other Microsoft products.

~~He had no ulterior motives, he was simply there to help.~~

~~[...] Clippy wouldn't even read the contents of your letter.</blockquote>~~

During World War II, in Norway, paperclips were worn like jewelry as a symbol of resistance to German occupation and Norwegian collaboration.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Schlesinger |first=Joe |date=August 5, 2011 |title=Breivik, Quisling and the Norwegian spirit |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/breivik-quisling-and-the-norwegian-spirit-1.1064817 |access-date=13 Sep 2025 |website=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation{{!}}CBC}}</ref> They symbolized unity, proclaiming that "we are bound together," much as Rossmann noted that while one paperclip alone is weak, many paperclips (Clippy members) working together are strong together.

==Impact==

@@ Line 9: / Line 9: @@
 Rossmann has subsequently released further videos addressing the accomplishments that participants have made, the current progress made in different areas, and what members can continue to do in the future to protect people from further overreach by these companies, and [[Bose_SoundTouch_end_of_life_treatment|even reverse them]]. His channel has a long history of videos which point out a great number of incidents in which companies have mistreated paying customers, and they have provided members of the movement with valuable information and motivation to change things for the better. Rossmann emphasizes the importance of many people working together, and has pointed out that the Clippy campaign has been much more successful than he has been on his own.<ref name="do the work 2026">{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-QDbZZYIxk |title=DO THE WORK! |date=4 Feb 2026}}</ref>
+=="Clippy" profile pictures==
+A core element of the movement is using a "Clippy" profile picture, which is an image that resembles the "Clippit" avatar from Office Assistant. Many users modify their avatars to show their commitment to the causes they want to support, resulting in many personalized avatars.
+===Comparison to "slacktivism"===
+Another key concept emphasized by Rossmann is preventing the movement from succumbing to [[wikipedia:Slacktivism|''slacktivism'']]—in general, the concept refers to proponents of a featured social or political cause doing very little actual work to support what they say they are supporting. The term is a pejorative portmanteau of ''slacker'' and ''activism'', and as such implies a negligible level of commitment.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.academia.edu/34753295/Activism_or_Slacktivism_The_Potential_and_Pitfalls_of_Social_Media_in_Contemporary_Student_Activism | title=(PDF) Activism or Slacktivism? The Potential and Pitfalls of Social Media in Contemporary Student Activism | date=2017}}</ref> Many of Rossmann's videos are focused on ways people can help, because providing examples can provide additional information members can leverage, as well as more motivation on top of that which is garnered through encouraging commentary. Avoiding slacktivism would become a [[Clippy_Campaign#Characteristics|recurring theme]] throughout future videos (whether named or not).
+===Clippy as a symbol of escalating overreach===
+Rossman uses Clippy to show how technology used to work purely for its intended purpose, in contrast to [[Dark pattern|dark patterns]] that are now widespread.
+[https://youtu.be/2_Dtmpe9qaQ?t=68 Change your profile picture to clippy. I'm serious 1:08]
+<blockquote>Whether or not you like Clippy, [...] the one thing that you could say—unlike Facebook, who is trying to profit off of young girls that feel suicidal: Clippy simply wanted to help.
+He might have been annoying, but he just wanted to help.
+There were no ulterior motives.
+If you told Clippy you were having a bad day, he wasn't going to use that information to try and figure out which advertiser to sell you to, nor was he trying to steal your personal data to get you to purchase other Microsoft products.
+He had no ulterior motives, he was simply there to help.
+[...] Clippy wouldn't even read the contents of your letter.</blockquote>
+The quote demonstrates that Rossmann's choice of using a "Clippy" is a subversion of the increasingly normalized narrative that companies should be able to exploit their customers without it being classified as exploitation. "Clippy" comes from an older era of Microsoft products and services—the Office Assistant software was designed to be helpful above all else, even if users initially had mixed views on it. When compared to Microsoft's current trajectories, "Clippy" stands out in that it never collected user data to sell to advertisers or track people with, while almost all of Microsoft's products and services today do exactly that, and to an increasingly great extent.
+===Historical parallels===
+During World War II, in Norway, paperclips were worn like jewelry as a symbol of resistance to German occupation and Norwegian collaboration.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Schlesinger |first=Joe |date=August 5, 2011 |title=Breivik, Quisling and the Norwegian spirit |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/breivik-quisling-and-the-norwegian-spirit-1.1064817 |access-date=13 Sep 2025 |website=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation{{!}}CBC}}</ref>  They symbolized unity, proclaiming that "we are bound together," much as Rossmann noted that while one paperclip alone is weak, many paperclips (Clippy members) working together are strong together.
 ==Campaign origins==
@@ Line 61: / Line 91: @@
 Rossmann concludes the video by stating that if Microsoft does not reverse its course by the 16th, then he would hold on the 18th a public event on behalf of the FULU Foundation, where users can get their computers upgraded, learn how to install free software, and try out Linux (a free operating system) for themselves.<ref name="second Rossmann silhouette">{{Cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NVtg1tkgSQ | title=Microsoft went too far | date=10 Oct 2025}}</ref> Rossmann stated that the goal was to encourage people to help other members of their community, learn new ways of keeping their technology safe from viruses, and prevent computers from populating landfills (because many people have to throw out their old computers which are unable to run Windows 11, but replacing Windows with Linux prevents this).
-==Why Clippy==
-===Clippy as a symbol of escalating overreach===
-Rossman uses Clippy to show how technology used to work purely for its intended purpose, in contrast to [[Dark pattern|dark patterns]] that are now widespread.
-[https://youtu.be/2_Dtmpe9qaQ?t=68 Change your profile picture to clippy. I'm serious 1:08]
-<blockquote>Whether or not you like Clippy, [...] the one thing that you could say—unlike Facebook, who is trying to profit off of young girls that feel suicidal: Clippy simply wanted to help.
-He might have been annoying, but he just wanted to help.
-There were no ulterior motives.
-If you told Clippy you were having a bad day, he wasn't going to use that information to try and figure out which advertiser to sell you to, nor was he trying to steal your personal data to get you to purchase other Microsoft products.
-He had no ulterior motives, he was simply there to help.
-[...] Clippy wouldn't even read the contents of your letter.</blockquote>
-During World War II, in Norway, paperclips were worn like jewelry as a symbol of resistance to German occupation and Norwegian collaboration.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Schlesinger |first=Joe |date=August 5, 2011 |title=Breivik, Quisling and the Norwegian spirit |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/breivik-quisling-and-the-norwegian-spirit-1.1064817 |access-date=13 Sep 2025 |website=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation{{!}}CBC}}</ref>  They symbolized unity, proclaiming that "we are bound together," much as Rossmann noted that while one paperclip alone is weak, many paperclips (Clippy members) working together are strong together.
 ==Impact==