Meet Siri's great grandfather

Siri is the most recognizable face -- er, voice -- of Apple's faux sentient virtual assistants these days, but let's take a moment to remember one of the company's best efforts at voice recognition from yesteryear. He didn't ever seem to have a name aside from simply "Macintosh," but he lived in the corner of your screen and could to a number of nifty things, including opening files and shutting down the computer.

For a look at the little man in action, check out this Macintosh ad from the mid-nineties, and be sure to listen for the short, robotic "Goodbye" at the end. You may even gain a greater appreciation for the faceless assistant that lives inside your iPhone.