Spreadsheet Programs Besides Excel
INTRODUCTION
The invention of the micro computer brought about an increase in interest and demand for personal computers. It gave the many enthusiasts the opportunity to get up close with a machine they had only dreamt of seeing. Through the decades various ground breaking inventions, application-wise, have resulted from the use of these personal computers.
A major one was the spreadsheet application, the very first, Visicalc which was developed in the year 1979. Today, the most popular spreadsheet can be said to be Microsoft Excel which was developed in the 1980’s. The purpose of this term-paper is to introduce at other spreadsheets other than Microsoft Excel.
VISICALC
This is the first electronic spreadsheet to be made available on personal computers. The idea originated from Dan Bricklin, a business administration student at Harvard University. He desired a better way in dealing with financial processes instead of using the traditional manual spreadsheets (paper and board). He met with a fellow student, Bob Frankston, a computer science student, and their work together resulted in the development of the visible calculator.
*Bricklin and Frankston.
In 1979, the software was developed by their company Software Arts, and distributed by VisiCorp (which was named Personal Software at the time). It was first demonstrated in June, 1979 at the National Computer Conference, and the Apple II version was shipped in October the same year and was sold for $100.
It was a huge success, as there was increasingly a high demand for the program. Initially, microcomputers/personal computers were just hobby-tools for computer enthusiasts. But the innovation of the visible calculator not only attracted interests in the program, but also in personal computers as people acquired the computer systems mainly for the purpose of using VisiCalc.
The Model I VisiCalc was described as a ‘Business Management Software’ as it substituted the calculator, pencil, and paper/board in
The invention of the micro computer brought about an increase in interest and demand for personal computers. It gave the many enthusiasts the opportunity to get up close with a machine they had only dreamt of seeing. Through the decades various ground breaking inventions, application-wise, have resulted from the use of these personal computers.
A major one was the spreadsheet application, the very first, Visicalc which was developed in the year 1979. Today, the most popular spreadsheet can be said to be Microsoft Excel which was developed in the 1980’s. The purpose of this term-paper is to introduce at other spreadsheets other than Microsoft Excel.
VISICALC
This is the first electronic spreadsheet to be made available on personal computers. The idea originated from Dan Bricklin, a business administration student at Harvard University. He desired a better way in dealing with financial processes instead of using the traditional manual spreadsheets (paper and board). He met with a fellow student, Bob Frankston, a computer science student, and their work together resulted in the development of the visible calculator.
*Bricklin and Frankston.
In 1979, the software was developed by their company Software Arts, and distributed by VisiCorp (which was named Personal Software at the time). It was first demonstrated in June, 1979 at the National Computer Conference, and the Apple II version was shipped in October the same year and was sold for $100.
It was a huge success, as there was increasingly a high demand for the program. Initially, microcomputers/personal computers were just hobby-tools for computer enthusiasts. But the innovation of the visible calculator not only attracted interests in the program, but also in personal computers as people acquired the computer systems mainly for the purpose of using VisiCalc.
The Model I VisiCalc was described as a ‘Business Management Software’ as it substituted the calculator, pencil, and paper/board in