What Early Software Was Influential Enough To Deserve Acclaim? 704
theodp writes "That his 28-year-old whip-smart, well-educated CS grad friend could be unaware of MacWrite and MacPaint took Dave Winer by surprise. 'They don't, for some reason,' notes Winer, 'study these [types of seminal] products in computer science. They fall between the cracks of "serious" study of algorithms and data structures, and user interface and user experience (which still is not much-studied, but at least is starting). This is more the history of software. Much like the history of film, or the history of rock and roll.' So, Dave asks, what early software was influential and worthy of a Software Hall of Fame?"
Re:Why would CS study history? (Score:4, Funny)
_why_ modern tools aren't all in XML with back end databases
...because vestiges of sanity inexplicably remain?
Re:You know you've got a killer app when.... (Score:5, Funny)
You know you've got a killer app when a demo causes members of your target market to realize how much your software is going to change their lives, and they burst into tears.
Especially when your target market is a bunch as prone to emotional outbursts as accountants.
If C compiler becomes the most valuable program .. (Score:5, Funny)
... I'll nominate the punch cards as the most solid stack ever
Re:You know you've got a killer app when.... (Score:4, Funny)
You know you've got a killer app when a demo causes members of your target market to realize how much your software is going to change their lives, and they burst into tears.
Sometimes you burst into tears when management tells you they want you to adopt Lotus Notes, or Novel Netware. That doesn't make either of those a Killer app...