web-based-software

Paul Graham recounts the founding of Viaweb in 1995 and the pioneering decision to run software on web servers rather than desktops, anticipating the rise of web-based applications or Application Service Providers (ASPs). He argues that web-based software offers significant advantages for users, including ease of use, mobility, automatic updates, and data safety, while also transforming software development into a complex, multi-component system akin to designing a city rather than a building. The chapter highlights the shift from owning software and data on personal computers to accessing applications and data remotely via the web, predicting this as the future of software.

In this chapter, Paul Graham recounts how he and Robert Morris founded Viaweb, the first web-based application for building online stores, primarily written in Lisp. He argues that Lisp's power and rapid development capabilities gave them a decisive competitive advantage, enabling faster feature deployment and better software than rivals using more conventional languages. Graham also introduces the 'Blub Paradox,' explaining why more powerful languages like Lisp are underused due to programmers' habitual mindsets and the slow evolution of programming language adoption.