Business and enterprise software, and other applications that help a business run

When the idea of the personal computer finally hit it big, it seemed like there were a hundred companies, all with different ideas and systems, competing to be the winner of the race. I owned / built twenty or so of them. It was software called MS-DOS and mainframe maker IBM that came up with the wining combination. Finally, the market had something to unify around, and it did that with a vengeance. Although I sometimes ask what he has done for us lately (Vista?), we have Bill Gates to thank, in large part, for the personal computer revolution.

With one operating system (Windows) in command of the overwhelming majority of desktops, business could finally embrace this new technology. They did so in such huge numbers that the rule of Moore’s law could be realized via the economy of scale. Soon, almost all business desktops sported an IBM PC or clone, running Windows and Word, able to share files of all kinds. Doing business with a PC was a reality and we have not looked back since.

Now the PC(or a Mac) is the gateway to all computing. I remember well a stint I spent as a director for Visa International. I was responsible for the group that wrote desktop programs for Visa employees. Back in the bowels of the corporate data center were mainframes that processed millions of visa charges per day from all around the world. While I was there, I could see the two worlds creeping closer and closer together, and served on several committees devoted to making that happen. Now, fifteen years later, the marriage is complete, with the Web thrown in for good measure.

All of these levels of computing still exist in varying degrees. Each level is still involved in the business processes that we all interact with every day. This column will do its best to cover the entire grand sweep of the business software marketplace. If we get off track, or stuck on one level for too long, remind us of our mission. If you want to know about something related to business software at any level of computing, please ask us; we will do our best to point you at the best answer for you.

This column is about BestBizWare: the best in business software. We will do our best to cover the whole market for you. When we are missing something you want to know about, ask us. That’s what we’re here for.