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Pour one out for Visicalc, the precursor to Excel/Lotus and the 'killer app' of 1979 for the Apple II! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VisiCalc https://en.wikipe

Pour one out for Visicalc, the precursor to Excel/Lotus and the 'killer app' of 1979 for the Apple II! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VisiCalc https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VisiCalc Flash forward to 1997, and a key part of the deal for MS investing in Apple is...you guessed it, Excel on the mac. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxOp5mBY9IY&t=2m0s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxOp5mBY9IY&t=2m0s Funny to think about next time some engineer is telling you how this or that new cloud software will 'totally replace spreadsheets.' Spreadsheets powered the personal computing revolution - single handedly determined the winner of the OS wars (when people fled to first DOS and then windows after MSFT build Lotus into Excel). Like em or hate em, spreadsheets are here to stay.

fulafel 6y ago
> Like em or hate em, spreadsheets are here to stay. Bold predicion!
davidwihl 6y ago
I’ve seen Dan Bricklin in the local Whole Foods on several occasions. I want to yell out: “see that guy! He changed the world!” but then I let him pick an avocado in peace.
agumonkey 6y ago
the infamous talk.. what a special spot on the timeline of mainstream tech
mmphosis 6y ago
Microsoft released the first version of Excel for the Macintosh on September 30, 1985, and the first Windows version was 2.05 (to synchronize with the Macintosh version 2.2) in November 1987. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Excel#Early_history https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Excel#Early_history I remember there being dozens of different spreadsheet programs in the 1980's. Flash forward to 2020, and there is primarily Microsoft Excel, it's imitation LibreOffice Calc, Apple Numbers, and Google Sheets.