Microsoft has included the game as part of the Windows
operating system since Windows 3.0, starting from 1990. The game was
developed in 1989 by then intern Wes Cherry, who famously received no
royalties from his work. The card deck itself was designed by Macintosh pioneer
Susan Kare.
Microsoft intended Windows Solitaire "to soothe people
intimidated by the operating system", and at a time where many users were
still unfamiliar with graphical user interfaces, it proved useful in
familiarizing them with the use of a mouse, such as the drag-and-drop technique
required for moving cards.
