How do we approach the challenge of helping non-programmers build software? Do we throw up our hands at today's complexity and say, "Just let an AI do it." Or, do we make tools so *compelling* a novice can build something interesting almost by accident. We had that once. Let's see what was lost.
There was a time when society was hell-bent on getting "computers in the classroom." It was going to utterly transform learning! The drive fell short of that goal, but it did deliver us a sharp little word processor as a side effect.
Obsession takes many forms. Some of us sift through decades of ancient software for a blog, while others spend decades reinventing the same software repeatedly. Outliner software seems to attract the latter, but can this genre win over the former?
Computing history is full of "what if" scenarios. What if Babbage built a working analytical engine? What if IBM adopted CP/M over DOS? What if Atari delivered their promised TT line on time and became Hollywood's go-to for SFX?
In 1978, Dan Bricklin and Bob Frankston took out a loan to fund development of "Calcu-ledger," the very tool that could project if taking out a loan were fiscally prudent. In 2025, VisiCalc still has the necessary precision to express the hundreds of billions in spreadsheet profits generated since.
In the 70s and 80s, the "office of the future" remained tantalizingly close, ever slightly out of reach, but definitely almost here. I'll commandeer the family C64 and rebuild my business into a "paperless office," if a certain surprise mystery villian doesn't foil my plan. (dramatic musical sting!)
A disillusioned filmmaker turned beach bum turned a hobby project into millions by creating the first word processor for home computers. His creation was so compelling a jewelry salesman reinvented himself as a software publisher just to keep it alive. Let's see what all the fuss was about.
Back when EA was cool, they packaged their software in album-style sleeves and promoted their developers like rock stars. I was a Dan Silva groupie.
A blog about the productivity software of the 8/16-bit era. No games, just work.