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> Microsoft, then a tiny fraction of what it is now, took $400 million from IBM in co-developing OS/2 and put the profit from that money into Windows 3.0

The timing didn't happen the way you're describing it. There are numerous accounts of the tale of how David Weise and Murray Sargent got Windows running properly in protected mode as an unauthorized, personal side-project.

https://news.microsoft.com/2000/09/10/i-found-a-cool-little-...

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I didn't say anything about protect mode and the URL you included mentions Windows 2.1, which was NOT a commercial success. But Windows 3.0 was the first time that traction was truly gained in the market. That they added protected mode was great, but that didn't directly affect the MS Office juggernaut.

I actually read the whole article, which is a pretty good read. It specifically mentions windows 3.0 multiple times. Not 2.1.

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