Applied Data Research

Software Products Division

Records, 1959-1987

CBI 154

Collection size: 8.5 cubic ft. in 29 boxes

Creator:  Applied Data Research, Software Products Division.

Prepared by:  Carrie Seib, Matthew James Buell, and Josh Knatterud-Hubinger, January 2002; revised by Carrie Seib, July 2003.

Acquisition:  The records were given to the Charles Babbage Institute by Martin A. Goetz in February 2001 and July 2003.

Access:  Access to the collection is unrestricted.

Copyright:  The Charles Babbage Institute holds the copyright to all materials in the collection, except for items covered by a prior copyright (such as published materials). Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provisions of the copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code).

Preferred Citation:  Applied Data Research, Software Products Division Records (CBI 154), Charles Babbage Institute, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.

Historical Note

Applied Data Research (ADR) was founded in 1959 by seven former UNIVAC I programmers: Martin Goetz, Sherman Blumenthal, Ellwood Kauffman, Dave McFadden, Bernard Riskin, Robert Wickenden, and Stephen Wright.  Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, the company provided independent contract programming to companies including RCA, Bendix, and Sperry Rand, as well as to the United States government. 

In 1965, ADR established its Proprietary Software Division (renamed the Software Products Division in 1973) and released AUTOFLOW, an automatic computer documentation system which produced flow charts.  With the release of AUTOFLOW, ADR became the first company to sell a software product commercially, independent of hardware.  Martin A. Goetz headed the Proprietary Software Division from its inception and in 1968 was awarded the first U.S. patent for a software computer program for his “Sorting System.”  Although the patent was assigned to ADR, the program was never developed as an ADR product.  Goetz received a second patent in 1970 for his “Automatic System for Constructing and Recording Display Charts,” the computer program behind the ADR product AUTOFLOW.  Other ADR software products included Vollie (an online programming tool), ROSCOE (Remote OS Conversational Operating Environment, an online programming tool with a timeshare facility), MetaCOBOL (a COBOL programming aid), Librarian (a source program retrieval and maintenance system), and IDEAL (Interactive Development Environment for an Application’s Life-cycle, an application development tool).

ADR filed a civil antitrust suit against International Business Machines (IBM) in April 1969, accusing IBM of limiting competition in the computer industry and specifically noting IBM’s bundling practices.  The ADR suit was one of a series of similar suits filed against IBM in 1968 and 1969, including Programmatics, Inc. (a subsidiary of ADR) v. IBM, Control Data Corporation v. IBM, and Data Processing Financial & General Corp. v. IBM.  These four cases were consolidated for pre-trial proceedings and discovery in the District of Minnesota in July 1969.  One year later, ADR was awarded a temporary restraining order against IBM which prohibited IBM from offering free distribution of CRJE, a bundled IBM software product in direct competition with ADR’s proprietary product ROSCOE. Three of the four consolidated cases were eventually settled and dismissed, including ADR v. IBM, which was settled out-of-court in August 1970 for two million dollars.  The U.S. Justice Department also filed suit against IBM for antitrust violations in 1969, starting a case that lasted thirteen years.  In June 1969, while involved in these cases, IBM announced that, with the exception of its operating systems, starting in January 1970 it would unbundle its software from its hardware.

Ameritech acquired ADR as a wholly owned subsidiary in 1986.  In 1988, Computer Associates purchased ADR and integrated the company into its Systems Products Division and new Information Products Division.

CEOs and Presidents of ADR:

Scope and Content Note

The Applied Data Research (ADR) Software Products Division Records consist of company records and subject materials accumulated by Martin A. Goetz during his twenty-eight year (1959-1987) career with the company.  Researchers should note that these materials do not constitute the official corporate records of Applied Data Research or the Software Products Division.  Rather, the records reflect Goetz’s activities and interests in his various official capacities as senior programmer and project manager, senior vice president and chief technology officer, president of ADR, and most specifically, director of the Software Products Division, a role he held for the bulk of his tenure at ADR.  Researchers should use the ADR Software Products Division Records in tandem with the personal papers of Martin A Goetz (CBI 159).

The collection documents the Software Products Division’s involvement in the development of the software industry, its activities relating to patent and copyright protections for software, separate pricing for software and hardware, bundling, antitrust issues, and relations with IBM.

Goetz filed his ADR Software Product Division materials by subject, according to his current needs and interests, many of which overlapped or coincided with one another. CBI has grouped the papers into ten series reflecting the company’s business functions, as well as Goetz’s activities in his capacity as an ADR executive.  Series include: Annual Reports, Legal, Management, Marketing, Organizational Charts, Patents, Presentations by Martin Goetz, Products, Sales, and Alphabetical Files.  However, researchers should note that Goetz’s original arrangement of the files remains to some extent intact.  This is most evident in the patent materials and the alphabetical files.  Therefore, for example, files titled “Dann v. Johnston” or “Computation Planning, Inc.” cover a range of years and include a variety of record types, including correspondence, memoranda, reports, notes, and published documents, which may have significance for other topics as well.

Series descriptions:

Series I: Annual Reports

Annual Reports from ADR and Ameritech, which purchased ADR in 1986, are included, as well as a 1969 ADR ten-year report.

Series II: Legal

Legal files consist mainly of materials related to the antitrust case ADR filed against International Business Machines (IBM) in 1969 and settled in 1970.  Materials include court documents, reports, press clippings, press releases, and product information for the ADR products AUTOFLOW and ROSCOE and IBM competitor products.  Also included are materials related to an industry survey regarding marketing software in competition with IBM, which was commissioned by ADR and conducted by the Response Analysis Corporation.  More information about the ADR products AUTOFLOW and ROSCOE can be found in the Products, Marketing, and Sales files.  Information on the 1969-1982 United States v. IBM antitrust suit can be found in the personal papers of Martin A. Goetz (CBI 159).

Series III: Management

Management materials include financial, planning and policy documents from ADR and its Software Products Division.  Reports and proposals not directly related to specific ADR products are also included.  Reports and proposals directly related to specific ADR products can be found in the Products files.

Series IV: Marketing

Marketing materials include information related to the marketing of ADR products in the United States and Europe, and include posters and brochures, product and services advertisements, correspondence with Mort Barish Associates (ADR’s PR firm), and a few ADR software case history pamphlets which describe how different companies used ADR software.

Series V: Organizational Charts

Organizational charts for the year 1969.

Series VI: Patents

Patent files include patent documents for Martin Goetz’s “Sorting System” (1968 - U.S. Patent #3,380,029), and his “Automatic System for Constructing and Recording Display Charts” (1970 - U.S. Patent #3,533,086), the software behind the ADR product AUTOFLOW.  Correspondence with Morton C. Jacobs, patent attorney for Millman and Jacobs, regarding patent protection for software, ADR trademarks and patents, and the “Sorting System” patent is included.  The patent files also contain amicus curiae and other materials documenting ADR’s interest and involvement in patent cases, published information, correspondence, and reports related to ADR’s interest in software patenting issues.  Richard C. Jones, ADR president from 1963 to 1970, was involved in the software patenting issue and the Jones files include his writings, newspaper and magazine clippings and other published information, correspondence with other companies interested in patent protection for software, and conference information.

Series VII: Presentations by Martin A. Goetz

The Goetz presentations span twelve years and include those delivered by Goetz in his various official capacities as senior vice president, director of the Software Products Division, and president of ADR.  They are arranged chronologically by date of presentation.  Sales presentations by Goetz can be found in the Sales files.  Talks and writings by Goetz outside his official ADR capacities can be found in the Martin A. Goetz Papers (CBI 159).

Series VIII: Products

Product files include product literature and manuals, reports, and user group information for ADR software products.  Correspondence, client proposals, and competitor product information is also included for some products.  Additional information about certain products (ROSCOE, MetaCOBOL, AUTOFLOW, and others) can be found in Marketing, Sales, and Legal files.  Information relating to the “Automatic System for Constructing and Recording Display Charts” patent, the software behind AUTOFLOW, can be found in the Patents files.

Series IX: Sales

Sales files consist mainly of presentations by Martin Goetz on ADR product sales.  Some memoranda, AUTOFLOW statistics and sales information, and other documentation relating to sales is included.

Series X: Alphabetical Files

Alphabetical files consist of a variety of materials and subjects.  They include, but are not limited to, correspondence with or information about people such as Satya Pal Asija and Calvin N. Mooers; files on companies such as Computation Planning, Inc. and Syncsort, Inc.; subject files on IBM, antitrust and separate pricing (including Richard C. Jones’ files); conference information; and staff articles.  Also included are newspaper clippings regarding a plane crash at the ADR building in November 1969, an Insyte/ADR purchase agreement, and a few photographs.

Acronyms used in this finding aid:
ADAPSO = Association of DAta Processing Service Organizations
ADR = Applied Data Research, Inc.
CONTU = National Commission on New Technological Uses of Copyrighted Works
PSD = Proprietary Software Division, Applied Data Research, Inc.
SPD = Software Products Division, Applied Data Research, Inc.

Arrangement of the Collection

Related Collections

CBI 159, Martin A. Goetz Papers, 1956-1991
CBI 42, Herbert S. Bright Papers, 1924-1988
CBI 92, Information Processing Glossaries, 1953-[ongoing].  Applied Data Research. Glossary of sorting and merging terms. (Princeton, NJ: Applied Data Research, 1962)

Antitrust and IBM:
CBI 2, California Computer Products, Inc. and Century Data Systems, Inc. vs. International Business Machines Corporation Records, 1963-1972
CBI 13, Computer and Communications Industry Association Antitrust Records, ca. 1940-1980

Index Terms

Antitrust law – United States
Computer industry – Law and legislation – United States
Computer software industry
Goetz, Martin A., 1930-
International Business Machines Corporation
Patent laws and legislation – United States

Box and folder list

Annual Reports, 1966-1986

Legal, 1963-1981

Management, 1959-1986

Marketing, 1969-1987

Organizational Charts, 1969

Patents, 1959-1982

Presentations by Martin A. Goetz, 1974-1986

Products, 1963-1987

Sales, 1967-1987

Alphabetical, 1963-1987