Office procrastinators the world over owe Wes Cherry a drink, or at least some gratitude. He’s the guy who made one of the most popular computer games of all time, Windows Solitaire.
According to Great Big Story, Wes was an intern at Microsoft when, in a moment of inspired boredom, he created Solitaire for Windows. This was a big deal back when desktop computer games and personal computer ownership were both rare, and the cover story for including the game as part of the Windows operating system was that it could be used to teach people how to use the mouse.
As we all know, the real purpose of the game was to waste time, and Cherry notes that “right after Solitaire was released, in 1990, there was a worldwide recession.” He also points out that he was never paid for Solitaire since he made it as an intern, and that he now owns and operates a cidery.
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