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Discuss the following questions.

a) What does “killer app” stand for? What does this jargon mean? b) What killer apps do you know?

2. Read the text about the History of Spreadsheets. Why was the VisiCalc program discontinued?

Spreadsheets have been used by accountants for hundreds of years. Computerized or electronic spreadsheets are of much more recent origin. Information Systems oral history and some published newspaper and magazine stories celebrate Dan Bricklin as the "father" of the electronic spreadsheet. In 1978, Harvard Business School student, Daniel Bricklin, came up with the idea for an interactive visible calculator. Dan Bricklin and Bob Frankston then co-invented or co-created the software program VisiCalc. We can look back and recognize that VisiCalc was the first "killer" application for personal computers.

What is a spreadsheet? In the realm of accounting jargon a "spread sheet" or spreadsheet was and is a large sheet of paper with columns and rows that lays everything out about transactions for a business person to examine. It spreads or shows all of the costs, income, taxes, etc. on a single sheet of paper for a manager to look at when making a decision.

An electronic spreadsheet organizes information into software defined columns and rows. The data can then be "added up" by a formula to give a total or sum. The spreadsheet program summarizes information from many paper sources in one place and presents the information in a format to help a decision maker see the financial "big picture" for the company.

Beginning of Visi Calc.By the autumn of 1978, Bricklin had programmed the first working prototype of his concept in integer basic[1]. The program helped users input and manipulate a matrix of five columns and 20 rows. Dan Bricklin wanted a program where people could visualize the spreadsheet as they created it. His metaphor was "an electronic blackboard and electronic chalk in a classroom." Frankston created the production code with faster speed, better arithmetic, and scrolling. He also expanded the program and "packed the code into a mere 20k of machine memory, making it both powerful and practical enough to be run on a microcomputer".

During the autumn of 1978, Daniel Fylstra, founding Associate Editor of Byte Magazine, joined Bricklin and Frankston in developing VisiCalc. Fylstra was "marketing-oriented" and in May 1979 they began marketing "VisiCalc" with a teaser ad in Byte Magazine. The name "VisiCalc" is a compressed form of the phrase "visible calculator".

What came after VisiCalc?The market for electronic spreadsheet software was growing rapidly in the early 1980s and VisiCalc stakeholders were slow to respond to the introduction of the IBM PC that used an Intel computer chip. Beginning in September 1983, legal conflicts between VisiCorp and Software Arts distracted the VisiCalc developers, Bricklin and Frankston. During this period, Mitch Kapor developed Lotus and his spreadsheet program quickly became the new industry spreadsheet standard.



What is Lotus 1-2-3? Lotus 1-2-3 made it easier to use spreadsheets and it added integrated charting, plotting and database capabilities. Lotus 1-2-3 established spreadsheet software as a major data presentation package as well as a complex calculation tool. Lotus was also the first spreadsheet vendor to introduce naming cells, cell ranges and spreadsheet macros. Kapor was the VisiCalc product manager at Personal Software for about six months in 1980; he also designed and programmed Visiplot/Visitrend which he sold to Personal Software (VisiCorp) for $1 million. Later Kapor offered Personal Software (VisiCorp) his initial Lotus program. Supposedly VisiCorp executives declined the offer because Lotus 1-2-3's functionality was "too limited". Lotus 1-2-3 is still one of the all-time best selling application software packages in the world.

In 1985, Lotus Development (the company founded by M. Kapor and J.Sachs) acquired Software Arts and discontinued the VisiCalc program. A Lotus spokeperson indicated at that time that "1-2-3 and Symphony are much better products so VisiCalc is no longer necessary."

What about Microsoft Excel and Bill Gates?The next milestone was the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Excel was originally written for the 512K Apple Macintosh in 1984-1985. Excel was one of the first spreadsheets to use a graphical interface with pull down menus and a point and click capability using a mouse pointing device. The Excel spreadsheet with a graphical user interface was easier for most people to use than the command line interface of PC-DOS spreadsheet products. Many people bought Apple Macintoshes so that they could use Bill Gates' Excel spreadsheet program.

By the late 1980s many companies had introduced spreadsheet products. Spreadsheet products and the spreadsheet software industry were maturing. But since 1989 and for nearly 3 years, Excel remained the only Windows spreadsheet program and it has only received competition from other spreadsheet products since the summer of 1992. In the late spring of 1995, IBM acquired Lotus Development and Microsoft Excel has been the spreadsheet market leader since then.

 

3. Give definitions of the following words using English-English dictionary.Realm, transaction, stakeholder, executive, milestone.

4. Explain the meaning of the following words.A teaser ad,a point and click capability, a mouse pointing device, a pull down menu.

 

 

5. Answer the questions.What was the first “killer” application for personal computers?What does VisiCalc mean? What did Dan Bricklin want their program to be like?

Why did Lotus 1-2-3 become the new industry spreadsheet standard? What spreadsheet was the first to introduce naming cells/pull down menus?

How long has Microsoft been the spreadsheet market leader?

 


Date: 2016-01-03; view: 950


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