Ability (1985) 7 Word Processor Spreadsheet Presentations Communications Database Windows

Originally released in 1984 by the Canadian company Xanaro that went bankrupt, and then by Migent, Ability is an integrated office suite for DOS that includes word processor, spreadsheet, database, telecommunications, business graphing, presentation graphics capabilities, and built in file management. It features good integration between the different components, with the ability to import, share, and dynamically update data between them. It was advertised as a very easy to use and a quick to learn system.

• 1.5 for Windows
• 2000
• 2002

America Online (1992) 13 Web Browser Chat DOS Windows

America Online was a proprietary dial-up online service that eventually grew to offerer Internet access. In the mid 1990s AOL was very heavily promoted. Every month or two, you were sure to get a free AOL floppy disk or CD-ROM in the mail. AOL originated as PC-Link.

• 1.x
• 2.x
• 3.0

AOL Instant Messenger (1998) 1 Chat Windows

AOL Instant Messenger is a once-popular messaging client popularized by America Online.

• 1.0

Borland Office (1994) 4 Word Processor Spreadsheet Presentations Database Windows

Borland Office is an office suite published by Borland built around WordPerfect, Paradox, and Quattro Pro. It competed unsuccessfully against Microsoft Office. It was later acquired by Novell and renamed "PerfectOffice", and then later became "Corel Office".

• 2.0

CA-Compete (1991) 2 Spreadsheet Financial Windows

CA-Compete! is a graphical, object-based, multi-dimensional modeling and data viewing tool that is as easy to use as a spreadsheet and as powerful as a decision support system (DSS) or executive information system (EIS). Compete! looks and works like a spreadsheet, but is object-based. In other words, you define the names that Compete! uses to identify and locate data in a model. A Compete! model can also contain many more dimensions than the spreadsheet norm of two or three.

• 4.x

Cakewalk (1993) 7 Audio Windows

Cakewalk is a MIDI music authoring and editing tool. The earlier versions are considered among the best MIDI tools that ever existed. Microsoft Windows. limited music notation and a built-in scripting language called CAL (Cakewalk Application Language). limited functionality OEM-bundled "Express" editions.

• 2.x
• 3.x

ClarisWorks (1991) 11 Word Processor Spreadsheet Presentations Graphics Publishing Database Windows MacOS

ClarisWorks is an all-in-one Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Database, Graphics Editor, and Presentations tool from Claris. In 1998, after version 5.0.2, ClairsWorks was purchased by Apple and re-branded under the "AppleWorks" name. It is not related to the Apple II AppleWorks product.

• 1.x
• 2.x
• 3.x
• 4.x

GoldWave Audio Editor (1995) 1 Audio Windows

Audio editor for Windows GoldWave is a digital audio editor for Windows 3.1. It has realtime oscilloscopes, intelligent editing, and numerous effects such as echo, flange, distortion, mechanize, and reverse. The intuitive user interface makes GoldWave easy to learn and use.

• 3.x

IBM Small Business Suite (2000) 1 Word Processor Spreadsheet Presentations Graphics Server Database Windows Linux

IBM Small Business Suite for Linux V1.6 is a Development Platform with a Set of Personal Productivity Tools. It was intended to simplify businesses transitioning to "e-business" by providing a foundation on which users could “webify” their businesses. It includes IBM and Lotus middleware products for Linux and Productivity tools for Windows.

• 1.x

Lotus SmartSuite (1992) 65 Word Processor Spreadsheet Presentations PIM Database Windows

IBM/Lotus SmartSuite is an office suite from Lotus software for Windows and OS/2. SmartSuite includes SmartCenter, 1-2-3, Word Pro, Freelance Graphics, Approach, Organizer, and ScreenCam.

• 1.x
• 2.x
• 3.x
• 4.0
• 96
• 97
• 9.0
• 9.1
• 9.5
• 9.6
• 9.7
• 9.8

Microsoft Exchange (1996) 7 Chat PIM Server Windows

Exchange is a proprietary e-mail and groupware server software from Microsoft for Windows Server. The first version publicly sold was Exchange Server 4.0. The number 4.0 was used as it was a replacement for Microsoft Mail 3.x. At release, unlike other desktop/lan e-mail solutions it featured client/server communications rather than using file sharing, used a powerful messaging protocol, and stored all message and address book information in a database. It eventually evolved to include scheduling and many other functions. The Exchange Client (later Microsoft Outlook) supported rich text formatting, and the ability to create such things as e-mail forms.

• 4.0
• 5.5
• 2000

Quattro Pro (1987) 42 Spreadsheet Windows DOS

Quattro Pro, initially just named "Quattro", is a spreadsheet application from Borland International. It competed against Lotus 1-2-3 and Excel, and had several advantages including tabbed sheets, and the ability to handle up to a million rows. Quattro Pro was the subject a lawsuit by Lotus, simply because because Quattro Pro copied their menu user interface, but Lotus claimed this was not allowed. This also affected The Twin and VP-Planner.

• 1.0 (Win)
• 5.x
• 6.x (Win)

SharePoint (2009) 5 Chat PIM Server Database Windows

Microsoft SharePoint is a Windows Server hosted collabaration tool allowing for document management, custom lists, workflows, wiki-style editing within an organization, web applications and plugins, extranets and intranets.

• 2010

Ulead MediaStudio (1996) 2 Graphics Video Audio Windows

MediaStudio is a suite of multimedia editing tools. It includes a video editor, video capture tool, image editor, sound editor, and morphing tool. Also supports video conversion, batch mode operation, and overlays.

• 2.0

Winamp (2007) 4 Audio Media Player Windows

A media player for Windows. It really whips the Llama's ass.

• 5.x

Windows Media Center (2004) 39 Video Audio Media Player Windows

Windows Media Center was a full-screen media player and video recorder designed for use on home theater PCs. It competed against digital recording devices like the Tivo.

• 6.1 (7)
• 2005 (XP)

Windows Media Player (1998) 8 Video Audio Media Player Windows

The media player built-into Windows

• 5.2
• 11

WinPlay (1997) 3 Audio Media Player Windows

WinPlay3 was the first real-time MP3 audio player for PCs running Windows.

• 2.3b5

Xerox Globalview (1992) 5 Word Processor Spreadsheet Presentations Graphics Publishing Communications Database Windows

Xerox Globalview is a desktop environment and office suite originally developed for the Xerox Star. It was developed in the MESA programming language on the Xerox Star, and ported to Sun Solaris, OS/2, and Windows 3.1 (The OS/2 version requires a MESA emulator card).

• 2.1 for Windows
• 2.3 for Windows