434:, despite needing to use complex command-line commands, were able to repurpose databases for whatever uses they needed. They could even make stand-alone applications which used databases with the package. Macros could also be developed which automated many complex or repetitive tasks. Cornerstone, though it had many built-in convenience functions, wasn't programmable. Some repetitive and complex tasks needed to be carried out by hand. Also, any operations on its databases needed to be carried out within the application; Cornerstone had no facilities for creating stand-alone specially purposed applications.
239:
351:. Despite the overwhelming success of its numerous game titles, the original founders of Infocom were still intent on developing serious titles. In addition, business software was seen as more lucrative than game titles since business traditionally paid thousands of dollars for each copy of software applications. After some deliberation, Infocom's board of directors decided to develop a relational database application for business users.
393:" for its interactive titles had been a huge boon: since all the games were written in an intermediate language (called ZIL), the company could release one title for every major platform simultaneously. The developers hoped to do the same for Cornerstone and its subsequent products. The existing VM proved unsuitable for the database application, so a new one was written for the product. The developers produced the VM for the
66:
25:
161:
450:
copies. This may not have mattered to the company had game sales remained strong, but the industry downturn also affected
Infocom's game sales. Their sales performance was not as good as projected and the revenue provided by games was not enough to cover the development costs of the database. Though the company's revenue for the year was over
449:
These failings may not have proved fatal were it not for the climate in which the product was released. In 1985, the computer industry took a downturn and many businesses that may have been potential customers were reluctant or unable to justify the purchase of the program. Cornerstone sold 10,000
420:
Infocom's use of a VM affected performance. For simple operations, Cornerstone's performance was fine. However, for intensive operations, such as importing text files and sorting, Cornerstone dragged, especially when compared to the dominant database available at the time of
Cornerstone's release,
412:
columnist wrote, "Cornerstone is the best program I have ever used... the program is so easy to use, explaining its use is almost redundant. If you need a relational database, buy
Cornerstone." One significant achievement noted by reviewers was that Infocom was able to contain the entire program on
346:
was a natural choice as a first product because it was practically complete and didn't require much up-front funding. The enormous success of the game and its "sequels" (which were actually the other portions of the original mainframe game, which had been split into pieces that early personal
405:
When
Cornerstone was released in 1985, it was widely hailed as a giant leap forward in usability. All commands were menu-driven, an innovative feature at the time. Many powerful features never before seen were available, such as command-completion and context-sensitive help. One
365:, required complex command-line commands even for the simplest operations. The Cornerstone developers were determined to make ease-of-use their chief priority. Dozens of people were hired in programming, marketing and other areas to swell Infocom's ranks to over 100 employees.
445:
had emerged as the dominant business computer. While portability was still important for games, a business application could be successful running only on the PC. The product's slow operation due to the VM was too great a disadvantage compared to other current offerings.
710:
377:. Profits from their interactive fiction titles were diverted to help fund Cornerstone, a move that disturbed many employees of the game division and led to an adversarial attitude towards the business division among some.
331:
Games were only considered a "jumping off" point for
Infocom. It was originally established as an outlet to develop "serious" products. Before forming the company, several of the founders had created the game
323:. Initially hailed upon release in 1985 for its ease of use, a series of shortcomings and changes in the market kept Cornerstone from achieving success. It is considered a key factor in Infocom's demise.
477:. Activision paid off Infocom's outstanding debt as part of the deal. While the acquisition kept Infocom afloat for a few more years, poor management decisions led Activision to close Infocom in 1989.
457:
Additionally, the industry's slump led several of
Infocom's creditors to call in their loans early. Infocom's recently burgeoning ranks of employees suffered waves of layoffs and pay reductions.
437:
While
Infocom's use of a VM was a boon in some ways, the most significant advantage of its use – easy portability – was no longer an issue. During Cornerstone's development, the
347:
computers could handle) led to the development of more interactive titles, due in large part to the highly portable technology the company developed for intelligent
171:
1192:
804:
853:
1207:
385:
One development decision that proved fateful for the product—and the company as a whole—was the decision to make
Cornerstone run via a
373:
While development of
Cornerstone was going well, it required an enormous amount of capital. Infocom borrowed heavily and used a sole source of
182:
1096:
359:
Database applications contemporary with
Cornerstone were fairly inaccessible to non-programmers. The leading database application of the day,
427:. One review noted that after waiting over three hours for a single text file to be imported, all similar benchmark tests were abandoned.
874:
134:
554:
106:
76:
38:
523:, a report with a very detailed examination of Infocom's creative successes and marketing failures, including Cornerstone from
524:
113:
1160:
417:, a bonus provided by their use of their custom virtual machine (in addition to other facilities, it compressed text).
120:
955:
218:
200:
52:
288:
762:
102:
91:
1134:
923:
1187:
881:
703:
547:
44:
797:
983:
825:
783:
776:
518:
175:
that states a Knowledge editor's personal feelings or presents an original argument about a topic.
127:
839:
790:
178:
87:
1182:
1146:
902:
888:
625:
540:
1197:
769:
632:
1074:
909:
895:
818:
474:
470:
451:
8:
317:
305:
293:
832:
83:
442:
1202:
1079:
860:
811:
276:
1120:
386:
374:
1127:
1109:
1018:
1013:
993:
671:
397:
first, planning to write VMs for other platforms after the initial PC release.
238:
1176:
1039:
1034:
1153:
1008:
639:
1114:
916:
737:
657:
454:
10 million, it was short of what was needed to keep the company solvent.
414:
1069:
1049:
1003:
998:
948:
867:
730:
677:
466:
320:
246:
1140:
988:
664:
423:
390:
65:
1103:
1044:
846:
361:
563:
408:
348:
313:
251:
438:
394:
309:
281:
587:
334:
172:
personal reflection, personal essay, or argumentative essay
532:
520:
Down From the Top of Its Game: The Story of Infocom, Inc.
339:
316:, a company best known in the 1980s for developing
1174:
1193:Desktop database application development tools
1097:Classic Text Adventure Masterpieces of Infocom
854:Nord and Bert Couldn't Make Head or Tail of It
548:
338:on mainframes while attending or working at
92:introducing citations to additional sources
53:Learn how and when to remove these messages
555:
541:
237:
354:
219:Learn how and when to remove this message
201:Learn how and when to remove this message
875:Sherlock: The Riddle of the Crown Jewels
82:Relevant discussion may be found on the
1208:Proprietary database management systems
1175:
514:
512:
510:
536:
508:
506:
504:
502:
500:
498:
496:
494:
492:
490:
342:. When they joined to form Infocom,
805:The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
460:
154:
59:
18:
380:
13:
1161:Zork: The Undiscovered Underground
487:
14:
1219:
956:Quarterstaff: The Tomb of Setmoth
465:In 1986, Infocom was acquired by
34:This article has multiple issues.
159:
75:relies largely or entirely on a
64:
23:
763:Arthur: The Quest for Excalibur
42:or discuss these issues on the
326:
16:Relational database for MS-DOS
1:
1135:The Lost Treasures of Infocom
711:Leather Goddesses of Phobos 2
480:
389:(VM). The use of Infocom's "
400:
7:
704:Leather Goddesses of Phobos
562:
263:; 39 years ago
103:"Cornerstone" software
10:
1224:
368:
1088:
1062:
1027:
976:
969:
933:
754:
747:
720:
693:
649:
614:
579:
570:
287:
275:
257:
245:
236:
840:A Mind Forever Voyaging
430:Additionally, users of
1147:Zork: Grand Inquisitor
882:James Clavell's Shōgun
355:Contemporary databases
181:by rewriting it in an
1075:Legend Entertainment
88:improve this article
1188:Activision Blizzard
318:interactive fiction
306:relational database
294:Relational database
233:
833:The Lurking Horror
231:
183:encyclopedic style
170:is written like a
1170:
1169:
1058:
1057:
965:
964:
695:Leather Goddesses
689:
688:
461:Impact on Infocom
299:
298:
229:
228:
221:
211:
210:
203:
153:
152:
138:
57:
1215:
1089:Related articles
1080:Westwood Studios
974:
973:
861:Plundered Hearts
812:Hollywood Hijinx
752:
751:
580:Original trilogy
577:
576:
557:
550:
543:
534:
533:
527:
516:
381:Design decisions
277:Operating system
271:
269:
264:
241:
234:
230:
224:
217:
206:
199:
195:
192:
186:
163:
162:
155:
148:
145:
139:
137:
96:
68:
60:
49:
27:
26:
19:
1223:
1222:
1218:
1217:
1216:
1214:
1213:
1212:
1173:
1172:
1171:
1166:
1121:Legends of Zork
1084:
1054:
1023:
961:
929:
743:
716:
685:
645:
610:
566:
561:
531:
530:
517:
488:
483:
463:
403:
387:virtual machine
383:
375:venture capital
371:
357:
329:
267:
265:
262:
258:Initial release
225:
214:
213:
212:
207:
196:
190:
187:
179:help improve it
176:
164:
160:
149:
143:
140:
97:
95:
81:
69:
28:
24:
17:
12:
11:
5:
1221:
1211:
1210:
1205:
1200:
1195:
1190:
1185:
1168:
1167:
1165:
1164:
1157:
1150:
1143:
1138:
1131:
1128:Return to Zork
1124:
1117:
1112:
1107:
1100:
1092:
1090:
1086:
1085:
1083:
1082:
1077:
1072:
1066:
1064:
1060:
1059:
1056:
1055:
1053:
1052:
1047:
1042:
1037:
1031:
1029:
1025:
1024:
1022:
1021:
1019:Brian Moriarty
1016:
1014:Steve Meretzky
1011:
1006:
1001:
996:
994:Michael Berlyn
991:
986:
980:
978:
971:
967:
966:
963:
962:
960:
959:
952:
945:
937:
935:
931:
930:
928:
927:
920:
913:
906:
899:
892:
885:
878:
871:
864:
857:
850:
843:
836:
829:
822:
815:
808:
801:
794:
787:
780:
773:
766:
758:
756:
755:Text adventure
749:
745:
744:
742:
741:
734:
726:
724:
718:
717:
715:
714:
707:
699:
697:
691:
690:
687:
686:
684:
683:
675:
668:
661:
653:
651:
647:
646:
644:
643:
636:
629:
621:
619:
612:
611:
609:
608:
607:
606:
601:
596:
583:
581:
574:
568:
567:
560:
559:
552:
545:
537:
529:
528:
485:
484:
482:
479:
462:
459:
402:
399:
382:
379:
370:
367:
356:
353:
328:
325:
297:
296:
291:
285:
284:
279:
273:
272:
259:
255:
254:
249:
243:
242:
227:
226:
209:
208:
167:
165:
158:
151:
150:
86:. Please help
72:
70:
63:
58:
32:
31:
29:
22:
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
1220:
1209:
1206:
1204:
1201:
1199:
1196:
1194:
1191:
1189:
1186:
1184:
1183:1985 software
1181:
1180:
1178:
1163:
1162:
1158:
1156:
1155:
1151:
1149:
1148:
1144:
1142:
1139:
1137:
1136:
1132:
1130:
1129:
1125:
1123:
1122:
1118:
1116:
1113:
1111:
1108:
1106:
1105:
1101:
1099:
1098:
1094:
1093:
1091:
1087:
1081:
1078:
1076:
1073:
1071:
1068:
1067:
1065:
1061:
1051:
1048:
1046:
1043:
1041:
1040:Bruce Daniels
1038:
1036:
1035:Douglas Adams
1033:
1032:
1030:
1026:
1020:
1017:
1015:
1012:
1010:
1007:
1005:
1002:
1000:
997:
995:
992:
990:
987:
985:
982:
981:
979:
975:
972:
968:
958:
957:
953:
951:
950:
946:
944:
943:
939:
938:
936:
932:
926:
925:
921:
919:
918:
914:
912:
911:
907:
905:
904:
900:
898:
897:
893:
891:
890:
886:
884:
883:
879:
877:
876:
872:
870:
869:
865:
863:
862:
858:
856:
855:
851:
849:
848:
844:
842:
841:
837:
835:
834:
830:
828:
827:
823:
821:
820:
816:
814:
813:
809:
807:
806:
802:
800:
799:
795:
793:
792:
788:
786:
785:
781:
779:
778:
774:
772:
771:
767:
765:
764:
760:
759:
757:
753:
750:
746:
740:
739:
735:
733:
732:
728:
727:
725:
723:
719:
713:
712:
708:
706:
705:
701:
700:
698:
696:
692:
682:
680:
676:
674:
673:
669:
667:
666:
662:
660:
659:
655:
654:
652:
648:
642:
641:
637:
635:
634:
630:
628:
627:
623:
622:
620:
617:
613:
605:
602:
600:
597:
595:
592:
591:
590:
589:
585:
584:
582:
578:
575:
573:
569:
565:
558:
553:
551:
546:
544:
539:
538:
535:
526:
522:
521:
515:
513:
511:
509:
507:
505:
503:
501:
499:
497:
495:
493:
491:
486:
478:
476:
472:
468:
458:
455:
453:
447:
444:
440:
435:
433:
428:
426:
425:
418:
416:
411:
410:
398:
396:
392:
388:
378:
376:
366:
364:
363:
352:
350:
345:
341:
337:
336:
324:
322:
319:
315:
311:
307:
303:
295:
292:
290:
286:
283:
280:
278:
274:
260:
256:
253:
250:
248:
244:
240:
235:
223:
220:
205:
202:
194:
184:
180:
174:
173:
168:This article
166:
157:
156:
147:
136:
133:
129:
126:
122:
119:
115:
112:
108:
105: –
104:
100:
99:Find sources:
93:
89:
85:
79:
78:
77:single source
73:This article
71:
67:
62:
61:
56:
54:
47:
46:
41:
40:
35:
30:
21:
20:
1198:DOS software
1159:
1154:Zork Nemesis
1152:
1145:
1133:
1126:
1119:
1102:
1095:
1009:Dave Lebling
984:Tim Anderson
977:Implementers
954:
947:
941:
940:
934:Other titles
922:
915:
908:
901:
894:
887:
880:
873:
866:
859:
852:
845:
838:
831:
824:
817:
810:
803:
796:
789:
782:
775:
768:
761:
736:
729:
721:
709:
702:
694:
678:
670:
663:
656:
640:Spellbreaker
638:
631:
624:
615:
603:
598:
593:
586:
571:
519:
464:
456:
448:
436:
431:
429:
422:
419:
407:
404:
384:
372:
360:
358:
343:
333:
330:
312:released by
301:
300:
247:Developer(s)
215:
197:
188:
169:
141:
131:
124:
117:
110:
98:
74:
50:
43:
37:
36:Please help
33:
1115:InvisiClues
942:Cornerstone
924:The Witness
917:Wishbringer
784:Bureaucracy
777:Border Zone
748:Other games
738:Stationfall
658:Beyond Zork
415:floppy disk
327:Development
321:video games
302:Cornerstone
232:Cornerstone
1177:Categories
1070:Activision
1050:Joe Ybarra
1004:Amy Briggs
999:Marc Blank
949:Fooblitzky
868:Seastalker
791:Cutthroats
731:Planetfall
722:Planetfall
481:References
469:, a large
467:Activision
114:newspapers
39:improve it
1141:Z-machine
1063:Companies
989:Bob Bates
903:Suspended
889:Starcross
672:Anthology
665:Zork Zero
626:Enchanter
616:Enchanter
475:publisher
471:developer
432:dBase III
424:dBase III
401:Reception
391:Z-machine
191:July 2010
144:July 2010
84:talk page
45:talk page
1104:Get Lamp
1045:Al Vezza
847:Moonmist
798:Deadline
770:Ballyhoo
633:Sorcerer
604:Zork III
441:and its
362:dBase II
1203:Infocom
910:Trinity
896:Suspect
826:Journey
819:Infidel
618:trilogy
599:Zork II
564:Infocom
409:PC Week
369:Funding
349:parsing
314:Infocom
266: (
252:Infocom
177:Please
128:scholar
970:People
594:Zork I
443:clones
439:IBM PC
395:IBM PC
310:MS-DOS
282:MS-DOS
130:
123:
116:
109:
101:
1028:Other
681:books
650:Other
304:is a
135:JSTOR
121:books
1110:Grue
679:Zork
588:Zork
572:Zork
473:and
452:US$
413:one
344:Zork
335:Zork
308:for
289:Type
268:1985
261:1985
107:news
525:MIT
340:MIT
90:by
1179::
489:^
48:.
556:e
549:t
542:v
270:)
222:)
216:(
204:)
198:(
193:)
189:(
185:.
146:)
142:(
132:·
125:·
118:·
111:·
94:.
80:.
55:)
51:(
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
