Excel-lent Adventures

      Spreadsheets are dull, but they helped put a PC on every desk. "Why would I need a computer?" asked many a business manager back when Apple was just getting started. Apple's most compelling answer? VisiCalc.  

Seen here in all its garish green glory.

     This grand-daddy of all electronic spreadsheet programs was dreamed up by a Harvard Business student who wanted to avoid the drudgery of performing repetitive calculations by hand. He soon learned that everyone who crunched numbers for a living wanted the same thing. VisiCalc sold a lot of Apple II computers, and a clone called Lotus 1-2-3 drove sales of IBM PCs. Personal computers have been office-ubiquitous ever since. 

     Excel has been the dominant spreadsheet tool for decades now. The head of Microsoft says that Excel formulas are the most popular computer code in the world...but does anyone find it exciting?

     Some people do, and they are trying to turn competitive Excel into the next big e-sport. That's how we get the Microsoft Excel World Championships in Las Vegas. Spreadsheet battles have even been featured on ESPN, complete with wrestling-style hype men and highly agitated commentary.

      Most e-sports involve hi-octane thrills like gunning down your enemies, so competitive Excel will have a hard time going mainstream...but it's remarkable to see that a type of software designed to reduce work has now become a medium of play.