chuq%plaid@Sun.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) (07/31/87)
It was reported in the San Jose Mercury News today that Microsoft is buying Forethought, Inc., a Sunnyvale based Mac software house. Forethought has two well received products -- a slide/presentation graphics package and FileMaker+, a database/report generator. Microsoft says that this will fill a hole in their product line. Forethought will be run as an independent subsidiary and will remain in Sunnyvale. Most employees will be kept on board. Editorial comments: The hole that Microsoft is talking about is the long out of date and forgotten "Microsoft File 1.0." Since I'm a happy user of Filemaker+, (and an ex user of File) I don't think Microsoft could have bought a better package in the low end database market. So I think this marriage is good for Microsoft. I also think it is good for Forethought. It'll (I would assume) give them capital for development [hey! maybe they can fix the FM+ laserwriter 4.0 bug now!] and to put together new programs. My guess is that the people on the wrong side of the "Most employees" are probably things like shipping and accounting -- functions likely to be moved to existing groups in Washington. Problems: I don't see any major ones offhand -- Forethought seems to have been profitable, their products were selling well and well received by the market and the reviewers, and it looks to be a friendly relationship. chuq Chuq Von Rospach chuq@sun.COM Delphi: CHUQ We live and learn, but not the wiser grow -- John Pomfret (1667-1703)