[Discuss] Frustration with SQL and Spreadsheets

[Kent Borg]

On 4/15/26 6:55 AM, Dan Ritter wrote:
> It was invented in 1984:
>
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Javelin_Software

Spreadsheets were a hack, one that succeeded unduly, and they have 
cursed our world ever since.

It sounds like Javelin was a clean design, but its advantages were 
underappreciated by would be users while being overappreciated by its 
creators. I suspect it cost more than Excel and Lotus 123 ("Because it's 
better!") when it needed to cost less. (*And* be better.)

There is so much cool computer stuff that has been forgotten…


-kb