But despite many people believing they were welcome little distractions¹ from whatever task you were supposed to be doing, the makers² of Microsoft Windows say they were actually developed to teach people how to use computers.

 

While many believe that Solitaire was designed to flaunt³ an interactive⁴ digital deck of cards, the game was actually created to familiarize computer users with the 'drag and drop' feature of the mouse.

 

Solitaire is a card game that has existed since the late 1700s and is the oldest Windows game and dates back to the 3.0 version released in 1990.

 

Minesweeper, the logic-based game, originally made its first appearance in the late 1960s but was introduced on the Windows 3.1 version in 1992.

 

Microsoft say that Windows developers wanted users to develop speed and precision when using the mouse and making left and right clicks a natural habit.

 

Hearts, introduced on 1992's Windows for Workgroups 3.1 - the first version built for networks - was there to get people introduced in networking: you could communicate with other Hearts clients on a LAN.

 

According to Mental Floss, the games not only taught people how to use the computer without realizing it, but they also saw users become familiar with the operating system.

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