Spreadsheets were a key selling point of personal computers in the 1980s and 1990s because they provided a quick, simple, and accurate way to fill out reports and track data. One of the first spreadsheets was VisiCalc on the Apple II (also available on other 8-bit machines), becoming one of the main selling points of Apple’s second computer. Since PCs from the 70s, such as the Apple II, often used monochrome, today the program is often viewed in black and green. That said, you can see the foundations of modern software like Excel or Google Sheets (which still have their differences) starting to form here. Alphabetic columns and numbered rows are present and formulas started with a + instead of =.
What you’ll notice is the lack of traditional “windows”, with graphical desktop interfaces being a hot-button issue for much of the late 80s and early 90s, before modern operating systems fully figured it out. Windows and Mac OS had not yet solidified the mainstream desktop environment. This is why VisiCalc’s killer, Lotus 1-2-3, although much more advanced than its competitor, still looks like a raw output from a terminal. This is what graphical user interfaces were before standardization.
Microsoft Excel is the best, but meet the others
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Lotus 1-2-3 reigned supreme for years, becoming the dominant spreadsheet program for the rest of the 1980s. Others appeared, including SuperCalc and Multiplan, the precursor to Microsoft’s Excel. This all stems from the VisiCalc and Lotus 1-2-3 design philosophy, which was one of the main reasons Lotus took over. With more features, but a similar interface to VisiCalc, getting users on board was pretty simple.
Once graphical user interfaces became more mature, the software available became much more readable. One element missing from early spreadsheets is readability. Everything still needs to be organized in columns and rows, but there are no rows or visual indicators for easy reading. Even the menus “hovered” above. However, Lotus could not retain the crown forever, as Microsoft developed its successor to Multiplan.
The real “winner” of the spreadsheet war did not appear until 1985, with the debut of Excel on Mac, then on Windows in 1987. Excel immediately gained popularity thanks to its clean user interface and various features not seen on Lotus 1-2-3 or Multiplan. Here, the overall look of the spreadsheet has effectively been finalized, with the only major redesigns coming to Microsoft’s ribbon menus with Office 2007, which remains an inconvenience for some users.
