Brochureware was a term used to describe "simply listing products and services on a Web site." To emphasize what's lacking, ''

Advertising Age ''Ad Age'' (known as ''Advertising Age'' until 2017) is a global media brand that publishes news, analysis, and data on marketing and media. Its namesake magazine was started as a broadsheet newspaper in Chicago in 1930. ''Ad Age'' appears in mul ...

'' referred to "static brochureware" - it just stands there and "is little more than a brochure."

Overview

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote that it's "not the kindest of terms." IBM's initial online annual report was "standard brochureware: sticking the print annual report on the Web;" the third year they made it "easy to navigate" and added features to enable viewers to "create charts slicing the company's figures any number of bean-counting ways." In 1999 ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

'' referred to "stodgily designed billboards, known in the business as ''brochureware'' which do little more than ..." Pre-Y2K political websites were described as "bland brochureware."

History

'Get us on the internet' was the mandate at a time when low dial-up speeds"IDT first offered dial-up services in 1994." did not allow much use of computer graphics, and interactive features were minimal. "They put us on the internet" was a praiseworthy accomplishment. Even after

Y2K The year 2000 problem, also known as the Y2K problem, Y2K scare, millennium bug, Y2K bug, Y2K glitch, Y2K error, or simply Y2K refers to potential computer errors related to the formatting and storage of calendar data for dates in and after ...

it was considered news to headline "Toyota Elevating Its Site From Brochureware." Technology was not the only obstacle. In 1997, it was still the case that "Federal financial disclosure regulations still favor paper over electrons" (something not scheduled to be remedied by SEC rule changes until 2021). Even brochureware was not that simple: "brochureware that works in multiple languages" was needed. The computer industry's trade shows were described as hype, crowds, and "bags of brochureware." Concurrently, half of the advertising field's top 10 agencies were shoeless shoemakers, and ''Advertising Age'' wrote: "Three of the top agencies have pages that boast a full site will be coming…"

xWare

Earlier than ''brochureware'' was the use of the word ''

vaporware In the computer industry, vaporware (or vapourware) is a product, typically computer hardware or software, that is announced to the general public but is late or never actually manufactured nor officially cancelled. Use of the word has broade ...

''. Based on an alleged 1982 coining of the word following

Ann Winblad Ann L. Winblad (born November 1, 1950) is an American businesswoman. She is a founding partner of Hummer Winblad Venture Partners. Early life and education Winblad was born on November 1, 1950, in Red Wing, Minnesota.Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

Xenix Xenix is a discontinued version of the Unix operating system for various microcomputer platforms, licensed by Microsoft from AT&T Corporation in the late 1970s. The Santa Cruz Operation (SCO) later acquired exclusive rights to the software, and ...

's non-future,

Esther Dyson Esther Dyson (born 14 July 1951) is a Swiss-born American investor, journalist, author, commentator and philanthropist. She is the executive founder of Wellville, a nonprofit project focused on improving equitable wellbeing. Dyson is also an ang ...

publicized the word in 1983: the first time it appeared in print. By 1985, ''

Computerworld ''Computerworld'' (abbreviated as CW) is an ongoing decades old professional publication which in 2014 "went digital." Its audience is information technology (IT) and business technology professionals, and is available via a publication website ...

'' used the word in a survey. A still earlier ''xWare''-related word is ''FUD:

Fear, uncertainty, and doubt Fear, uncertainty and doubt (often shortened to FUD) is a propaganda tactic used in sales, marketing, public relations, politics, polling and cults. FUD is generally a strategy to influence perception by disseminating negative and dubious or ...

''. ''

Shelfware Shelfware at one time referred to binders of unused documentation and at present refers to unused software. It also refers to security and other policies and procedures that fill an "array of binders" collecting dust. The highest-risk definition ...

'' is a computer-industry term still in use.

References

{{reflist, 31em Business terms Vaporware