Mitchell Kapor Produces Lotus 1-2-3, the first "Killer App" for the PC

1982 to 1/23/1983
The original IBM-type floppy discs holding the Lotus 123 software.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
The original IBM-type floppy discs holding the Lotus 123 software.
Page opening in the Lotus 123 User's Manual.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
Page opening in the Lotus 123 User's Manual published in 3-ring binder form.
Cloth-covered binder and cloth-covered slipcase for release 1A of Lotus 123.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
Cloth-covered three-ring binder and cloth-covered slipcase for release 1A of Lotus 123.
Mitchell Kapor
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org

Mitchell Kapor

The "Millenium Edition" of Lotus 1-2-3 issued for Windows 2000.
Image Source: www.amazon.com

The "Millenium Edition" of Lotus 1-2-3 issued for Windows 2000.

Detail map of Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States Overview map of Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

A: Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

First page of User's Manual for release 1A of Lotus 123.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
First page of User's Manual for release 1A of Lotus 123.

In 1982 Mitchell Kapor, previously head of development at Visicorp, and Jonathan Sachs, with backing from Ben Rosen, founded Lotus Development Corporation in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Kapor, who had been a teacher of Transcendental Meditation, named the company after 'The Lotus Position' or "Padmasana.''

On January 26, 1983 Lotus Development Corporation released Lotus 1-2-3. An integrated spreadsheet, graphics package, and database manager, it became the first "killer app" for the PC. In 1983 sales of 1-2-3 reached $54,000,000, making Lotus the largest independent software vendor in the world at that time.

Timeline Themes

Computer & Calculator Industry
Software
Data Processing / Computing
Accounting / Business Machines
The original IBM-type floppy discs holding the Lotus 123 software.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
The original IBM-type floppy discs holding the Lotus 123 software.
Page opening in the Lotus 123 User's Manual.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
Page opening in the Lotus 123 User's Manual published in 3-ring binder form.
Cloth-covered binder and cloth-covered slipcase for release 1A of Lotus 123.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
Cloth-covered three-ring binder and cloth-covered slipcase for release 1A of Lotus 123.
Mitchell Kapor
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org

Mitchell Kapor

The "Millenium Edition" of Lotus 1-2-3 issued for Windows 2000.
Image Source: www.amazon.com

The "Millenium Edition" of Lotus 1-2-3 issued for Windows 2000.