Editing Framework (office suite) (section)

== History ==
=== Background ===
[[Epson QX-10#ValDocs|ValDocs]], an even earlier integrated suite, and actually comparable to the [[Macintosh 128K|original Macintosh]] of 1984 and [[Apple Lisa]] of 1982, was produced by [[Seiko Epson|Epson]], a complete integrated work station that ran on the previous-generation [[Zilog Z80]] CPU and [[CP/M]] operating system, with a [[graphical user interface]] (GUI) and "[[WYSIWYG]]" typography on the monitor and printing. Despite several iterations, ValDocs was too slow on the hardware that it was released on.

A few months before Framework, its close rival [[Lotus Symphony for DOS|Lotus Symphony]] was released.

Framework offered all of the above ValDocs' functionality in the first all-in-one package to run on any PC platform.

''Programmers at Work'' credits [[Robert Carr (Programmer)|Robert Carr]] as the designer and principal developer of Framework.<ref>{{cite book| first=Susan M | last=Lammers | title=Programmers at Work | publisher=[[Microsoft Press]] |year=1986 | page=208 |chapter = Bob Carr |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/programmersatwor00lamm_0/page/208/mode/2up |chapter-url-access=registration |isbn=0-914845-71-3}}</ref>

=== Forefront Corporation ===
[[Robert Carr (Programmer)|Robert Carr]] and [[Marty Mazner]] founded [[Forefront Corporation]] to develop Framework in 1983. In July of that year, they approached [[Ashton-Tate]] to provide the [[Capital (economics)|capital]] and to later market the product.  Together with a team of six other individuals, Carr and company released the original Framework.

The initial release of Framework included about a dozen or so frame types (identified by a [[FRED (programming language)|FRED]] function, @frametype). Frame types included containers which could be filled up with other frames, empty frames which could become other type of frames based on user input, formulas embedded in them or program output targeting them, [[word processor]] frames, flat-[[database]] frames and [[spreadsheet]] as well as graphic frames.

The product proved successful enough, that in 1985, Ashton-Tate bought Forefront{{sfn|Lammers|1986|p=207}} a year sooner than planned.

=== Ashton-Tate era ===
[[File:Framework-II-floppy-disk-for-IBM-PC.jpg|alt=Framework-II-floppy-disk-for-IBM-PC|thumb|upright=1|A floppy disk for Framework II version 1.1, published by Ashton-Tate in 1985.]]

The original team, now working for Ashton-Tate, continued to enhance the product.{{sfn|Lammers|1986|p=216}}

Later Framework versions included a frame type that can hold compiled executable code.
Beginning with Framework II (1985), the company also produced the Framework II Runtime and the Framework II Developer's Toolkit.  These products allowed application developers to create business applications using the built-in [[FRED (programming language)|FRED]] programming language.
Novel MHS Electronic Mail<ref name="MHS Electronic Mail">{{cite web |last1=GREENBLATT |first1=BRUCE |title=Integrating MHS Services with Other Novell Products |url=https://support.novell.com/techcenter/articles/ana19951003.html |website=novell.com |publisher=Micro Focus |access-date=11 September 2022 |ref=[5]}}</ref> was integrated into Framework and a MailBox cabinet was added to the desktop.

Framework III was produced in 1988–1989,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hergert |first1=Douglas |last2=Kamin |first2=Jonathan |title=Mastering Framework III |publisher=Sybex |year=1989 |isbn=0-89588-513-1}}.</ref> and in 1991, Framework IV emerged as the last [[Ashton-Tate]]-released version.

Although Ashton-Tate humorously advertised, that "[[Lotus Cars|Lotus]] uses Framework",<ref name="byte198507">{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1985-07/1985_07_BYTE_10-07_Computers_and_Space#page/n101/mode/2up |title=Lotus Uses Framework. |magazine=BYTE |date=July 1985 |access-date=27 October 2013 |pages=94–95 |type=advertisement}}</ref> Framework failed to gain more than a fraction of the market share needed to become a workplace standard. [[Lotus 1-2-3]] was able to successfully capture most of the spreadsheet market, and after a number of setbacks regarding [[Ashton-Tate]]'s flagship product '''[[dBase|dBASE]]''', [[Borland]] bought Ashton-Tate, and later sold Framework to [[Selections & Functions]], Inc.

=== Selections and Functions, Inc ===
Beginning with Framework V (Framework 5), Selections and Functions introduced only a few features — mainly features required to prevent the office suite from becoming out-of-date.

For example, Framework VII (Framework 7) introduced long file names, the Euro symbol and the ability to display pictures in Framework.

Framework VIII (Framework 8) introduced the ability to display JPEG and .BMP files and to load such files into Framework databases.

Of particular importance, all of the Selections and Functions' versions of Framework added the ability to share "cut and paste" (memory buffer data) between Windows and Framework. For detailed feature lists and screen shots see the Framework homepage listed below.

Selections and Functions continues to sell Framework — though no price is available publicly.