VisiCalc

Infobox Software
name =


caption = An example VisiCalc spreadsheet on an Apple II.
developer = VisiCorp
latest_release_version = VisiCalc Advanced Version
latest_release_date = 1983
operating_system = Apple II, CP/M, Atari 8-bit family, Commodore PET, DOS
genre = Spreadsheet
license = Proprietary EULA
website = [http://www.danbricklin.com/ www.danbricklin.com]

VisiCalc was the first spreadsheet program available for personal computers. It may well be the application that turned the microcomputer from a hobby for computer enthusiasts into a serious business tool. VisiCalc sold over 700,000 copies in six years. ["Secrets of Software Success: Management Insights from 100 Software Firms Around the World", ISBN 1578511054 (1999)]

Origins

Conceived by Dan Bricklin, refined by Bob Frankston, developed by their company Software Artscite web
last =Hormby
first =Thomas
authorlink =
coauthors =
title =VisiCalc and the rise of the Apple II
work =
publisher =Low End Mac
date =2006-09-22
url =http://lowendmac.com/orchard/06/0922.html
format =
doi =
accessdate =2007-03-02 ] , and distributed by Personal Software in 1979 (later named VisiCorp) for the Apple II computer, it propelled the Apple from being a hobbyist's toy to being a much-desired, useful financial tool for business. At the time, most microcomputers suffered from lack of storage space and display limitations that made them poor competitors in the word processing and database markets.Fact|date=June 2008 The spreadsheet, however, did not depend on powerful displays or storage media, and so was an ideal fit for microcomputer technology available at the time.Fact|date=June 2008 This likely motivated IBM to enter the PC market which they had been ignoring until then. After the Apple II version, VisiCalc was also released for the Atari 8-bit family, the Commodore PET, TRS-80, and the IBM PC.

According to Bricklin, he was watching his university professor at Harvard Business School create a financial model on a blackboard. When the professor found an error or wanted to change a parameter, he had to tediously erase and rewrite a number of sequential entries in the table, triggering Bricklin to realize that he could replicate the process on a computer using an "electronic spreadsheet" to view results of underlying formulaecite web
last =Coventry
first =Joshua
authorlink =
coauthors =
title =Interview with Dan Bricklin, Inventor of the Electronic Spreadsheet
work =
publisher =Low End Mac
date =2006-11-02
url =http://lowendmac.com/coventry/06/1107.html
format =
doi =
accessdate =2007-03-02 ] .

uccessors

Charles Babcock of "InformationWeek" argues that in perspective, “VisiCalc was flawed and clunky, and couldn't do many things users wanted it to do.” [ [http://www.techweb.com/article/showArticle.jhtml?articleId=191901844&pgno=1 What's The Greatest Software Ever Written? - Technology News by TechWeb ] ] Soon, more powerful clones of VisiCalc were released, including SuperCalc (1980), Lotus 1-2-3 (1981), Microsoft's MultiPlan (1982), and the spreadsheet module in AppleWorks (1984). With Microsoft Excel (introduced for the Macintosh in 1985 and for Windows 2.0 in 1987), a new generation of spreadsheets was born. Due to the lack of a patent, none of the developers of the VisiCalc clones had to pay any royalties to VisiCorp.

The idea was prominent enough that an entire spreadsheet was shipped as C source code as a mere application "sample" of Borland's Turbo C compiler: the TurboCalc.

References

ee also

*Triumph of the Nerds, A documentary hosted by Robert X. Cringley that featured the creators of VisiCalc and their contribution as the first killer app for the personal computer.
*Timeline of computing 1950–1979

External links

* [http://www.danbricklin.com/visicalc.htm Dan Bricklin's Own VisiCalc Website] – With history information as well as downloadable PC version
* [http://www.frankston.com/?name=ImplementingVisiCalc "Implementing VisiCalc"] – By Bob Frankston, on his website
* [http://www.pcworld.com/resource/printable/article/0,aid,116166,00.asp Three Minutes: Godfathers Of The Spreadsheet] – "PC World" interview with the creators of VisiCalc
* [http://techdirt.com/articles/20050812/1835229_F.shtml Techdirt: What If VisiCalc Had Been Patented?]