Launched in March 2001, Office XP was a big improvement over the previous version, Office 2000. It included the addition of a Safe Mode so users could still open Office apps when they might not otherwise Many users were happy that Office XP ditched "Clippit", the animated paper clip that was supposed to help users with Office 2000 features. Instead it became a huge annoyance and has been mocked and satirized even today. Office XP was also the first Office product to require a product activation feature to help combat the piracy of the software.

Microsoft has of course moved on with more advanced versions (Office 2003, Office 2007 and Office 2010). The next version of the Office suite is Office 2012 which is due for release in, naturally, 2012. Microsoft has also recently launched Office 365, a web based version of its Office software.