SPEED: Still on the job after 30 years!

Rumors of the demise of SPEED are incorrect. Although new development of SPEED based applications has stopped, the joining of Genesistems, Inc. and TOM Software has provided a new upgrade available to the SPEED product. While ongoing development has stopped on the SPEED applications, “We could not let down our VARs who are using and selling SPEED every month,” said Eric Muench, President of of Genesistems, Inc. Genesistems’ joining with TOM Software allows additional enhancements to be added to the venerable SPEED product. A new release of SPEED will be out this Fall to add additional features to the product. A number of SPEED VARs have vertical packages written using SPEED and have been selling them for 26 or more years. We must continue to support our VARs using this product. Although all new development of applications is now done using SPEED, VARs that are still selling the original SPEED systems today can be assured we will continue to make the product available.

Historically SPEED started back in the late 70’s. SPEED was first introduced by TOM Software to replace TOM#1, the first parameter driven accounting software. Charles Knox, past president of TOM Software, recalls, ”We needed something more robust". The second generation product called SPEED was developed for Bardahl Oil Specialty Products and used an object method of files and fields. It was event driven and ran on Wang 2200. Today it can operate on basically any DOS, Windows, UNIX, or Linux operating system, either networked or stand-alone. “I challenge you to name any other Fourth Generation language product that has been around this long and is still selling new systems every month,” states Eric Muench.

SPEED was always on the forefront of innovations and was the first true multi-user system able to host up to 247 users at a time, accomplishing this feat in the early-80’s when computers were few and far between. By the mid-80’s features like Search and Alternate Indexing arrived and TOM paved the way from Wang to DOS/Novell/UNIX-based systems. By the end of the decade SPEED data files had become native operating files.

The 90's have seen the launch of FourD, an extremely enhanced derivative product with a clear upgrade path from the SPEED product line. The new SPEED was designed as the obvious next step for SPEED users wanting to grow beyond the original capabilities of SPEED. Converting to the new SPEED is done easily without ever losing any data or custom code. SPEED, with almost a decade under its belt, is clearly set as the product of choice for growing businesses that need a long-term software solution.

For information on upgrading your system contact your Authorized TOM VAR.