"It can happen to you, or it can happen with you, but it will happen." — Mark Tauschek, The Age Of Exponential IT Is Here

First, let me acknowledge the influence of the late Mogambo Guru with the appearance of "freaking" in this article's title. I considered it an appropriate amplifier. I hope you will, too.

Up until roughly 1980, Information Technology (IT) was regarded as a black box by those not working in it. Companies ran on numbers, and big boxes like the IBM 370 mainframe and those who conversed with it provided the numbers. To outsiders within the company the whole business of computing was opaque and weird. They just wanted their numbers.

At about the same time, desktop computers—otherwise known as microcomputers or personal computers—were receiving growing attention. They were sold to the general public as a way to have a computer in their homes. Though they couldn't run a company's general ledger, with the addition of a "killer" spreadsheet application they could aid accountants in their work, and some companies decided to try a few. Non-computer types were still perplexed at how they worked, but they could now get results on their own—at home, if they wished, because they were affordable.

With the advent of graphical user interfaces, mice, high-speed modems, hi-res displays, and personal printers, along with their continuous improvement, information workers were becoming more productive. A new industry supporting this cohort was growing fast. Microsoft and Apple were already competing and growing, and programmers such as Peter Norton were on the cusp of fame, fortune, and in Norton's case, philanthropic activity.