New software takes the drudgery out

Information Processing

Data Processing

New software takes the drudgery out

Business Week

December 13, 1982

A salesman hovers over a middle-aged businessman working intently on a personal computer displayed at a San Francisco ComputerLand store. The computer responds by splitting its videoscreen into three sections. A column of numbers appears in one section, bar and pie charts pop up on another, while a neatly arranged block of type fills up a third. "What do you think?" asks the salesman. "Jeez, that's better than Pac-Man," says the customer, grinning.

It may never be as much fun as computer games, but a new generation of business software is about to take much of the drudgery and frustration out of using a personal computer. These products, called integrated software, combine many formerly separate software packages into one program so that users can handle financial models, graphics, written reports, and other tasks without having to go through cumbersome and time-consuming software changes.

'A bend in the road'

Because these integrated software packages will make personal computers so much easier to use, they are expected to become the critical element for success in this highly competitive market. Moreover, this trend toward these powerful packages will undoubtedly winnow out legions of companies selling personal computers and associated software, predicts David L. Ferris, a San Francisco software consultant. He likens the trend to "a bend in the road," because, he says, "companies that make the turn will stay in business, and those who do not will lose their way."

Since personal computers were introduced in the mid-1970s, great strides have been made in perfecting separate programs for such jobs as accounting and word processing. But users have to change software each time they want to perform a different task. Even worse, neither the data entered into the computer nor the results calculated during one task can be transferred easily to another program. Combining numbers and text to create a report is also difficult.

The new all-in-one software, however, makes such combined chores a breeze. "Integrated software is a godsend for decision makers who have to access, manipulate, and communicate information," says William T. Dippel, manager for market analysis and strategic planning at Anchor Hocking Corp. in Lancaster, Ohio. Dippel uses MBA, a $695 program from Context Management Systems in Torrance, Calif. For example, he uses MBA's communications program to get a producer price index for glass containers from an outside commercial data base and to tap Anchor Hocking's own computer for corporate sales data on the same containers. These new figures are then automatically transferred to a financial analysis program so that Dippel can compare Anchor's growth with the industry norm and project sales.

The new programs make it easy to keep track of simultaneous operations by dividing the video screen into sections, or windows. This permits Dippel to leave the raw numbers in one window while he graphs comparative trends in another. In a third window, he can implement the word processing software to write several paragraphs explaining the graphs. Finally, Dippel can easily combine the words, numbers, and graphs to print out a report. Like other managers who have started using the new integrated software, Dippel says that it has doubled his productivity on the computer.

Changing the pecking order

Because of this power, integrated software promises to change the microcomputer from a merely useful tool for a few specialized tasks into "an indispensable management work station," says Mitchell D. Kapor, the 31-year-old president of Lotus Development Corp. and a former teacher of transcendental meditation. His first integrated software product, 1-2-3, is so impressive that Benjamin M. Rosen, a veteran industry analyst and venture capitalist, got together $1 million in first-round financing for the company. "I've seen [lots of] software," comments Rosen, "but this is the first one that I've invested in."

Dozens of other companies are also investing in integrated software because of the promise of explosive growth. Creative Strategies Inc., the San Jose (Calif.)-based market research company, estimates that the integrated software market will grow from essentially nothing this year to $3.8 billion in 1987. In fact, VisiCorp, a San Jose (Calif.)-based company best-known for its highly successful financial modeling program, VisiCalc, (page 76), is betting that "in one or two years, integrated software will take over from stand-alone programs," says Chairman Daniel H. Fylstra.

Such a dramatic shift could cause a change in pecking order of the independent software industry by creating a two-tier market. VisiCorp, for one, hopes to establish its VisiOn integrated software, introduced on Nov. 29, as an industry standard for which smaller software companies would produce add-on applications programs.

Hastened obsolescence

Integrated software could also have a profound effect on hardware makers. Almost all of the new multifunction programs are being written for the newer, more powerful personal computers that process information in chunks of 16 bits. This will undoubtedly hasten the obsolescence of older 8-bit machines. One early winner among the hardware manufacturers appears to be International Business Machines Corp., because virtually all of the second-generation software is designed to run on its 16-bit Personal Computer.

Perhaps most threatened by the new software is Apple Computer Inc., whose highly successful Apple II 8-bit computer is nearing the end of its production life. There is intense speculation in the industry that Apple's next big product, a sophisticated 16-bit personal computer -- code-named "Lisa" -- would offer integrated software. But Lisa's introduction is already a year late, according to industry observers, and it will not even be announced until January. By the time Lisa reaches the market, the new integrated software products could steal its thunder.

But as the competition heats up, price may become as important as features in distinguishing the market pioneers in the new software. To that end, MicroPro International Corp., a software market leader in San Rafael, Calif., has deliberately kept the price of its Starburst all-in-one program under $500. And Business Solutions Inc., of Kings Park, N.Y., is selling its JACK program, one of the few programs written for an 8-bit machine, at $79 -- far below cost. "Price will go to the heart of the matter," predicts Marian L. Murphy, vice-president for operations at ComputerLand Inc. The Hayward (Calif.)-based chain of 370 computer retail stores carries 2,500 separate software programs, and Murphy says that ComputerLand's experience has shown that "if a program is cheap enough, a lot of people will try it."

GRAPHIC: Picture, Lotus's Kapor: Turning the microcomputer into "an indispensable management work station.", Richard Howard