Brochureware was a term used to describe "simply listing products and services on a Web site."[1] To emphasize what's lacking, Advertising Age referred to "static brochureware"[2] - it just stands there and "is little more than a brochure."[3]

Overview

The New York Times wrote that it's "not the kindest of terms."[3] IBM's initial online annual report was "standard brochureware: sticking the print annual report on the Web;" the third year they made it "easy to navigate" and added features to enable viewers to "create charts slicing the company's figures any number of bean-counting ways."[4] In 1999 The Economist referred to "stodgily designed billboards, known in the business as brochureware which do little more than ..."[5] Pre-Y2K political websites were described as "bland brochureware."[6]

History

'Get us on the internet'[7] was the mandate at a time when low dial-up speeds[8] did not allow much use of computer graphics, and interactive features were minimal. "They put us on the internet" was a praiseworthy accomplishment.[9][10][11]

Even after Y2K it was considered news to headline "Toyota Elevating Its Site From Brochureware."[12] Technology was not the only obstacle. In 1997, it was still the case that "Federal financial disclosure regulations still favor paper over electrons"[4] (something not scheduled to be remedied by SEC rule changes until 2021).[13] Even brochureware was not that simple: "brochureware that works in multiple languages" was needed.[14]

The computer industry's trade shows were described as hype, crowds, and "bags of brochureware."[15] Concurrently, half of the advertising field's top 10 agencies were shoeless shoemakers, and Advertising Age wrote: "Three of the top agencies have pages that boast a full site will be coming…"[16]

xWare

Earlier than brochureware was the use of the word vaporware. Based on an alleged 1982 coining of the word following Ann Winblad's investigating Microsoft Xenix's non-future,[17] Esther Dyson publicized the word in 1983: the first time it appeared in print. By 1985, Computerworld used the word in a survey.[17] A still earlier xWare-related word is FUD: Fear, uncertainty, and doubt.[18]

Shelfware is a computer-industry term still in use.[19]

References

  1. ↑ Douglas Frantz (March 29, 2000). "To Put G.E. Online Meant Putting a Dozen Industries Online". The New York Times.
  2. ↑ "More companies look to redesigns to drive Net leads". Advertising Age. June 1, 1997.
  3. 1 2 David Kirby; Henry Fountain (March 29, 2000). "Myms, Pings and Vortals". The New York Times.
  4. 1 2 Pamela Mendels (April 28, 1997). "Measuring Growth of Annual Reports Online". The New York Times.
  5. ↑ "Business and the Internet: The net imperative". The Economist. June 24, 1999.
  6. ↑ "Internet's Role in Campaigns Still Limited". The Los Angeles Times. October 28, 1998.
  7. ↑ Ted Dekker (2014). The Lost Books Collection. ISBN 978-0-7180-3180-0. You need to get us on the Net.
  8. ↑ "IDT first offered dial-up services in 1994."Patricia Fusco (May 25, 1999). "IDT Launches Prepaid Bilingual Internet Service".
  9. ↑ "Take your appetite to Sperryville". The Washington Post. August 27, 1997. 'They put us on the Internet, and now we have ...'
  10. ↑ "Faces of Cooper: Professor Jeff Hakner". December 7, 2015. One of my first .. was to get us on the internet.
  11. ↑ "Cynthia Samuels--Ethics of the Internet Presentation". .. shortly after I put us on the net in 1994.
  12. ↑ "Toyota Elevating Its Site From Brochureware". InformationWeek. September 6, 2000.
  13. ↑ VanGuard, 042020
  14. ↑ "What to expect when going global online". Computerworld.
  15. ↑ "The glory that was Comdex". Computerworld.
  16. ↑ "Interactive: Brochure domiates in survey". Advertising Age.
  17. 1 2 "Lecture 7: Anticompetitive practices".
  18. ↑ "The search for self". Clothes. New York, NY, USA: PRADS, Inc. 10 (14–24): 19. October 1, 1975. Retrieved June 10, 2011. […] One of the messages dealt with is FUD—the fear, uncertainty and doubt on the part of customer and sales person alike that stifles the approach and greeting. […]
  19. ↑ "Why You Can't Afford to Ignore Software Asset Management". InformationWeek. May 7, 2019. unused 'shelfware' that cuts into the bottom line
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