Javelin Software
Encyclopedia
Javelin Software Corporation (1984-1988) was a company in Cambridge
, Massachusetts
which developed an innovative modeling
and data analysis
product, also called Javelin, and later Javelin Plus. Seen as the successor technology to spreadsheet software in reviews of the time, and rival to the then-dominant Lotus 1-2-3
, Javelin won numerous industry awards, including besting Microsoft's new Excel for the InfoWorld Software Product of the Year award.
Javelin Software fell on difficult times when their Initial public offering
had to be cancelled due to it being scheduled for only a few days after the stock market crash of 1987
. The company's assets were later purchased by Information Resources, Incorporated (IRI), which sold enhancements to Javelin until 1994 when IRI was itself purchased by Oracle Corporation
, who promptly discontinued the product.
Unlike models in a spreadsheet
, Javelin models are built on objects called variables, not on data in cells of a report. For example, a time series
, or any variable, is an object in itself, not a collection of cells which happen to appear in a row or column. Variables have many attributes, including complete awareness of their connections to all other variables, data references, and text and image notes. Calculations are performed on these objects, as opposed to a range of cells, so adding two time series automatically aligns them in calendar time, or in a user-defined time frame.
Data are independent of worksheets—variables, and therefore data, cannot be destroyed by deleting a row, column or entire worksheet. For instance, January's costs are subtracted from January's revenues, regardless of where or whether either appears in a worksheet. This permits actions later used in pivot table
s, except that flexible manipulation of report tables is but one of many capabilities supported by variables. Moreover, if costs are entered by week and revenues by month, Javelin can allocate or interpolate as appropriate. This object design enabled variables and whole models to reference each other with user-defined variable names, and to perform multidimensional analysis and massive, but easily editable consolidations.
Javelin encourages viewing data and algorithm
s in various self-documenting ways, including simultaneous multiple synchronized views. For example, users can move through the connections between variables on a diagram while seeing the logical roots and branches of each variable. This is an example of what is perhaps its primary contribution—the concept of traceability of a user's logic or model structure through its twelve views. Among its dynamically linked views were: diagram, formulas, table, chart, QuickGraph, worksheet, notes, errors, macro, graph. A complex model can be dissected and understood by others who had no role in its creation, and this remains unique even today. Javelin was used primarily for financial modeling, but was also used to build instructional models in college chemistry courses, to model the world's economies, and by the military in the early Star Wars project. It is still in use by institutions for which model integrity is mission critical.
Javelin received multiple awards, including: "Best of 1985" for technical excellence from PC Magazine
; "Most Significant Product" from PC Week
; and "Software Product of the Year".
'The Infoworld award apparently created some consternation in the top ranks of number two Microsoft:'
Javelin was conceived and designed by co-founders Rob Firmin, Chairman and CEO, and Stan Kugell, President. The Javelin development team was led by Christopher Herot, Vice President of Engineering, and included Charles Frankston, brother of spreadsheet co-inventor Bob Frankston
, Arye Gittleman, John R. Levine
, Louise Cousins (Pathe), and Peter Pathe.
Some parts of Javelin's approach were later used by other products such as Lotus
's Improv
and Quantrix Modeler. Lotus essentially copied two of Javelin's features (named data arrays and pivot tables) onto a NeXTSTEP
-based and later Windows
-based GUI
to create Improv.
Since Improv was not based on 1980s MS-DOS technology, it suffered less memory-based limitations than Javelin.
While its business failure has been attributed to the infancy of business GUI software at the time, as well as an ill-conceived marketing plan that placed it head to head with the popular spreadsheet 1-2-3,
enterprise-wide financial models converted into Javelin models strained the PC resources of the day. Simply put, most desktop PCs were simply not powerful enough for large Javelin models and all its capabilities. Despite this, it remained a standard for financial modeling and econometrics for several years after it was discontinued by Oracle.
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
which developed an innovative modeling
Business model
A business model describes the rationale of how an organization creates, delivers, and captures value...
and data analysis
Data analysis
Analysis of data is a process of inspecting, cleaning, transforming, and modeling data with the goal of highlighting useful information, suggesting conclusions, and supporting decision making...
product, also called Javelin, and later Javelin Plus. Seen as the successor technology to spreadsheet software in reviews of the time, and rival to the then-dominant Lotus 1-2-3
Lotus 1-2-3
Lotus 1-2-3 is a spreadsheet program from Lotus Software . It was the IBM PC's first "killer application"; its huge popularity in the mid-1980s contributed significantly to the success of the IBM PC in the corporate environment.-Beginnings:...
, Javelin won numerous industry awards, including besting Microsoft's new Excel for the InfoWorld Software Product of the Year award.
Javelin Software fell on difficult times when their Initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
had to be cancelled due to it being scheduled for only a few days after the stock market crash of 1987
Black Monday (1987)
In finance, Black Monday refers to Monday October 19, 1987, when stock markets around the world crashed, shedding a huge value in a very short time. The crash began in Hong Kong and spread west to Europe, hitting the United States after other markets had already declined by a significant margin...
. The company's assets were later purchased by Information Resources, Incorporated (IRI), which sold enhancements to Javelin until 1994 when IRI was itself purchased by Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation
Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that specializes in developing and marketing hardware systems and enterprise software products – particularly database management systems...
, who promptly discontinued the product.
Unlike models in a spreadsheet
Spreadsheet
A spreadsheet is a computer application that simulates a paper accounting worksheet. It displays multiple cells usually in a two-dimensional matrix or grid consisting of rows and columns. Each cell contains alphanumeric text, numeric values or formulas...
, Javelin models are built on objects called variables, not on data in cells of a report. For example, a time series
Time series
In statistics, signal processing, econometrics and mathematical finance, a time series is a sequence of data points, measured typically at successive times spaced at uniform time intervals. Examples of time series are the daily closing value of the Dow Jones index or the annual flow volume of the...
, or any variable, is an object in itself, not a collection of cells which happen to appear in a row or column. Variables have many attributes, including complete awareness of their connections to all other variables, data references, and text and image notes. Calculations are performed on these objects, as opposed to a range of cells, so adding two time series automatically aligns them in calendar time, or in a user-defined time frame.
Data are independent of worksheets—variables, and therefore data, cannot be destroyed by deleting a row, column or entire worksheet. For instance, January's costs are subtracted from January's revenues, regardless of where or whether either appears in a worksheet. This permits actions later used in pivot table
Pivot table
In data processing, a pivot table is a data summarization tool found in data visualization programs such as spreadsheets or business intelligence software. Among other functions, pivot-table tools can automatically sort, count, total or give the average of the data stored in one table or spreadsheet...
s, except that flexible manipulation of report tables is but one of many capabilities supported by variables. Moreover, if costs are entered by week and revenues by month, Javelin can allocate or interpolate as appropriate. This object design enabled variables and whole models to reference each other with user-defined variable names, and to perform multidimensional analysis and massive, but easily editable consolidations.
Javelin encourages viewing data and algorithm
Algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is an effective method expressed as a finite list of well-defined instructions for calculating a function. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning...
s in various self-documenting ways, including simultaneous multiple synchronized views. For example, users can move through the connections between variables on a diagram while seeing the logical roots and branches of each variable. This is an example of what is perhaps its primary contribution—the concept of traceability of a user's logic or model structure through its twelve views. Among its dynamically linked views were: diagram, formulas, table, chart, QuickGraph, worksheet, notes, errors, macro, graph. A complex model can be dissected and understood by others who had no role in its creation, and this remains unique even today. Javelin was used primarily for financial modeling, but was also used to build instructional models in college chemistry courses, to model the world's economies, and by the military in the early Star Wars project. It is still in use by institutions for which model integrity is mission critical.
Javelin received multiple awards, including: "Best of 1985" for technical excellence from PC Magazine
PC Magazine
PC Magazine is a computer magazine published by Ziff Davis Publishing Holdings Inc. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009...
; "Most Significant Product" from PC Week
EWeek
eWeek is a weekly computing business magazine published by Ziff Davis Enterprise.The magazine consists of a print publication and web site covering enterprise topics and is targeted at IT professionals rather than hobbyists.-Audience:The eWeek audience is actively involved in buying enterprise...
; and "Software Product of the Year".
'The Infoworld award apparently created some consternation in the top ranks of number two Microsoft:'
Javelin was conceived and designed by co-founders Rob Firmin, Chairman and CEO, and Stan Kugell, President. The Javelin development team was led by Christopher Herot, Vice President of Engineering, and included Charles Frankston, brother of spreadsheet co-inventor Bob Frankston
Bob Frankston
Robert M. Frankston is the co-creator with Dan Bricklin of the VisiCalc spreadsheet program and the co-founder of Software Arts, the company that developed it....
, Arye Gittleman, John R. Levine
John R. Levine
John R. Levine is an Internet author and consultant specializing in email infrastructure, spam filtering, and software patents. He chairs the Anti-Spam Research Group of the Internet Research Task Force , is president of CAUCE , was a member of the ICANN At-Large Advisory...
, Louise Cousins (Pathe), and Peter Pathe.
Some parts of Javelin's approach were later used by other products such as Lotus
Lotus Software
Lotus Software is a software company with headquarters in Westford, Massachusetts...
's Improv
Lotus Improv
Lotus Improv was a spreadsheet program from Lotus Development that attempted to re-define the way a spreadsheet should work. Instead of treating the grid as the system for referencing data, Improv made all data exist in named ranges. Operations on the data then referred to these names, rather than...
and Quantrix Modeler. Lotus essentially copied two of Javelin's features (named data arrays and pivot tables) onto a NeXTSTEP
NEXTSTEP
NeXTSTEP was the object-oriented, multitasking operating system developed by NeXT Computer to run on its range of proprietary workstation computers, such as the NeXTcube...
-based and later Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
-based GUI
Gui
Gui or guee is a generic term to refer to grilled dishes in Korean cuisine. These most commonly have meat or fish as their primary ingredient, but may in some cases also comprise grilled vegetables or other vegetarian ingredients. The term derives from the verb, "gupda" in Korean, which literally...
to create Improv.
Since Improv was not based on 1980s MS-DOS technology, it suffered less memory-based limitations than Javelin.
While its business failure has been attributed to the infancy of business GUI software at the time, as well as an ill-conceived marketing plan that placed it head to head with the popular spreadsheet 1-2-3,
enterprise-wide financial models converted into Javelin models strained the PC resources of the day. Simply put, most desktop PCs were simply not powerful enough for large Javelin models and all its capabilities. Despite this, it remained a standard for financial modeling and econometrics for several years after it was discontinued by Oracle.