When trying to install said hotfix installer, one gets an error message saying: 'Installer encountered an error: 0x80096002'. Even when downloading Microsoft's still available hotfix, there is no way to regain access to that useful assistant.

But through Windows 7, 8 and 10 prior to that dreadful latest major update, which played havoc with many of my installed programs, there was a way around that particular 'deprecation' by downloading and installing a hotfix, using MsAgent 2.0 among other things. Since Windows 7 (whose demise I very much regret because I found it far more stable and less prone to problems than Windows 10), the Office Assistant had been 'deprecated' (to use Microsoft's quaint euphemism). I am still using an old version of Word (installed when I was still running on XP SP3) - simply because I am used to it and do not like the so-called bells and whistles coming with the newer Office. Since the most recent major Windows 10 update, nothing but trouble and annoyances at several levels.Ī galling one is the total disappearance of the well-know MS Office Assistant (whether or not using the animated figures like the paperclip, wizard, etc.).

Microsoft setup assistant