Vector Space Inc.

TM1 Origins — the Prequel

Writing about the origins of TM1, I realized that I knew very little about the developments that led up to the invention and introduction of this seminal tool. So I decided to take a detour in this account of the origins of spreadsheet OLAP. I called Manny Perez, who filled in some of the details, as follows:

In the mid-80s, Manny was managing a departmental IT group at Exxon International Company. Oil supply and demand planning were an overwhelmingly manual process, with paper, pencil and calculators. The only computer assistance was a rudimentary mainframe system that helped add up numbers from different offices.

The system was expensive and had few features; it seemed to Manny that it could be improved. With a degree in mathematics, it was clear to him that this was a multidimensional problem, and he started to play with solutions. At first, he thought a relational database might work, but it soon became apparent that there was no way to attain the necessary speed by simply manipulating relational tables. The data could be stored in a relational model, but to perform calculations it needed to reside in memory.

Using the advanced technology of the time, Manny put together a solution using IBM’s Time Sharing Option (TSO), which made it unnecessary to get the full use of the mainframe. He wrote it in PL/1, a high-level language supporting sophisticated data structures. Manny’s program kept the data in memory, and allowed users to pivot the “cube” and get the necessary totals. There was no spreadsheet component – the spreadsheet had not yet been invented – and the system was more of a productivity aid than a complete solution. Nonetheless, this in-house system was certainly one of the first OLAP systems ever implemented.

Innovation blues

The users liked the new system, which was much more flexible, easy to use and cheaper to run than the existing system. But to Manny’s surprise, the his own IT department opposed it. The data model was unorthodox. Relational databases were the tool of choice. He had created a nameless beast without precedent, which had no place in the corporate IT world. A conflict ensued between the users and the IT department. The users prevailed and the system went into production.

This was Manny’s first experience with the political landscape that TM1 was to inhabit for many years. An in-memory multidimensional model was the right tool for the job. But it was outside of the mainstream, unblessed by research labs and universities, unknown to IBM and other large vendors. Self-respecting IT departments wanted nothing to do with it. But users, eager for useful tools to assist their work, embraced it and found every possible way to bring it in to their organizations.

Manny was not the first or the last inventor to face such challenges. These are the eternal challenges of innovators; probably the first person to tame fire was driven from the communal cave. The inventors of the relational database went through a similar time in the wilderness. Institutions are conservative and skeptical of the new, no matter how apparent the benefits.

The apple on the head

Manny, though, saw the usefulness of this new model and the users’ enthusiasm. Frustrated with the opposition in his job, Manny got the idea that this could be his way to become an entrepreneur. He could create a similar system on TSO elsewhere, and sell it to others. But mainframe time, even time-shared, was too expensive and the risks were high. The plunge would be very difficult.

Just then, Manny saw Visicalc, and he saw his opportunity. The spreadsheet was the logical front-end for his database. What is more, it ran on the new microcomputers, which were cheap enough that he could develop on one. And he could sell his product to microcomputer users. Even where these users were part of large organizations, they had a freedom to choose software that other computer users did not have. They just might buy the product.Manny bought an early IBM PC with 256K of RAM and two floppy disks. He programmed the first version in Microsoft Pascal.

It had a spreadsheet of its own linked to a multi-dimensional database, and a cube browser. It allowed the user to create multiple cubes and share dimensions. With this product he started Sinper Corporation, and the rest has followed.

Manny says that from that point until now, everything else has been driven by user demand. We have to accept his word for this, but it diminishes nothing. The ability to listen to, understand and respond to users is a rare skill.