“ As co-creator of VisiCalc, the fi rst computerized spreadsheet, Dan Bricklin literally created the PC industry. BRICKLIN To a student of software, VisiCalc is the embodiment of so many novel and important ideas in software, “ Few have contributed more than Dan to making computing technology a part of our everyday lives. lessons which are still relevant today.” This book is rich in history — fi lled with the stories and unique insights of a software pioneer whose BRICKLIN groundbreaking work was a key catalyst of the PC revolution. Although he describes himself simply as a —Joel Spolsky, Joel on Software ‘toolmaker,’ Dan’s work over the years, and his understanding of the relationship between people and machines, show him to be one of the master craftsmen of the information age.” “ Nobody knows more than Dan about what technology is, where it’s been and where it’s going. If I only had one —Ray Ozzie, Chief Software Architect, Microsoft book of technology in my library, this would be it.” —Doc Searls, coauthor, The Cluetrain Manifesto “ Dan Bricklin was one of the fi rst programmers to focus more on what’s in the user’s head than on what’s in the programmer’s head. VisiCalc foreshadowed the single most important idea: Don’t ‘tell’ the computer what you want; show it! Dan Bricklin . is still showing rather than telling, and in this anecdotal yet insightful book, he does another excellent job of it. .” —Esther Dyson, EDventure Holdings ON TECHNOLOGY “ Fascinating history, fascinating insights, fascinating perspective — all solidly grounded in what makes technology work for normal human beings. Bricklin gives you a good foundation for thinking about your own tech.” —Jakob Nielsen, Principal, Nielsen Norman Group Author, Designing Web Usability: The Practice of Simplicity “ Dan Bricklin was at the heart of the personal computer revolution, and he kept learning and participating in technology’s ongoing evolution. Now, with his new book, he helps us understand the most important part of this change: Humanity is creating a collaborative sphere of vast power and scale.” —Dan Gillmor, Director of the Knight Center for Digital Media Entrepreneurship at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Arizona State University Inventor, entrepreneur, and longtime blogger Dan Bricklin explores a diverse collection of subjects in this book. BRICKLIN From the personal conversations of commuters heading home to those of warriors guiding missiles . from music to gesture recognition on the Apple iPhone . from the American Revolution to today’s political conventions . from nuclear power plants to simple tools used by millions . this is technology at the human level. Author photo: © Louis Fabian Bachrach, Background images: Computer © Creatas/Jupiter; Diagram © Dan Bricklin ON TECHNOLOGY Visit our Web site at www.wiley.com/compbooks Programming / General $29.99 US/$35.99 CAN DAN BRICKLIN 02375ffirs.indd 2 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM Bricklin on Technology 02375ffirs.indd 1 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM 02375ffirs.indd 2 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM Bricklin on Technology Dan Bricklin 02375ffirs.indd 3 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM Bricklin on Technology Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 10475 Crosspoint Boulevard Indianapolis, IN 46256 www.wiley.com Copyright © 2009 by Daniel Bricklin All Rights Reserved. Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada ISBN: 978-0-470-40237-5 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bricklin, Dan, 1951– Bricklin on technology / Dan Bricklin. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 978-0-470-40237-5 (paper/website) 1. Computers and civilization. 2. Information technology. 3. System design. 4. Technological innovations. I. Title. QA76.9.C66B75 2009 303.48’34—dc22 2009004137 No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, the author, or authorization through payment of the appropri- ate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748- 6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions. Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher and author are not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional ser- vices. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an organization or Web site is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the organiza- tion or Web site may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Web sites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read. For general information on our other products and services please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (877) 762-2974, outside the United States at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002. Trademarks: Wiley and the Wiley logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates, in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. Dan Bricklin’s is a registered trademark of Daniel S. Bricklin. Software Garden and wikiCalc are registered trademarks of Software Garden, Inc. SocialCalc is a registered trademark of Socialtext, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc. is not asso- ciated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. 02375ffirs.indd 4 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM To my father and mother, Baruch and Ruth Bricklin 02375ffirs.indd 5 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM 02375ffirs.indd 6 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM About the Author Daniel Bricklin, a software developer and entrepreneur, is best known as the cocreator of VisiCalc, the first electronic spreadsheet. Dan was born in 1951 and started programming while still in high school in the mid-1960s. He attended college at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and received a B.S. in Electrical Engineering/Computer Science in 1973. While attending school, he also worked at MIT’s Laboratory for Computer Science, programming various interactive systems. It was there that he met Bob Frankston. After MIT, Dan worked at Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), where he was involved in computerized typesetting and some editing hardware. He was project leader of the initial WPS-8 word processing software (later sold as part of the DECmate system), helping to specify and develop one of the first stand-alone screen-based word processing systems. In 1976, he left DEC and worked at FasFax Corporation, a small maker of microprocessor-based electronic cash registers. He returned to school in 1977, this time receiving an M.B.A. from Harvard in 1979. It was during his tenure as a graduate student that he conceived of the idea and design for the electronic spreadsheet, teaming up with his friend Bob Frankston to do the programming. Together, they founded Software Arts, Inc., in 1979, where Dan served as chairman from 1979 to 1985. His next venture was as president of Software Garden, Inc., a small company with headquarters in his home. There Dan developed a product called “Dan Bricklin’s Demo Program,” a program for prototyping and simulating other pieces of software, which won the 1986 Software Publishers Association Award for “Best Programming Tool.” A new version of the product, “Dan Bricklin’s Demo II Program,” was announced in December of 1987 and won the 1987 award. In 1989 he released “Dan Bricklin’s PageGarden Program” for facilitat- ing repetitive printing on laser printers. In early 1990, Dan cofounded a venture-capital-funded software develop- ment company, Slate Corporation, along with other personal computer industry veterans. Slate’s mission was to develop applications software for pen comput- ers. With the lackluster sale of pen computers, Slate closed its doors after four years, and Dan returned to Software Garden. 02375ffirs.indd 7 3/26/09 2:31:54 AM viii About the Author Upon returning to Software Garden, Dan developed “Dan Bricklin’s OverAll Viewer,” a tool for displaying data visually, published by Software Garden, and “Dan Bricklin’s demo-it!,” a new program for demonstrating software on Microsoft Windows, published by Lifeboat Publishing. In late 1995, Dan founded another company, Trellix Corporation, which became the leading provider of private-label web site publishing technology and managed hosting services to top online providers for small-business and personal web sites. Its main product was Trellix Web Express, a server-based web site authoring system private labeled by web communities and hosting services.