September 30, 1985
Microsoft announces the shipment to retail stores of Excel for the Macintosh, a powerful, full-featured microcomputer spreadsheet that combines business graphics with an on-sheet database. (from The History of Microsoft 1985)
Wikipedia Article: Microsoft Excel
May 1996 Microsoft Press Release: More Than 30 Million Users
Wikipedia Article: Charles Simonyi
“In 1981, at Metcalfe’s suggestion, he applied directly to Bill Gates for a job at Microsoft. At the firm, Simonyi oversaw the development of what became its most profitable products, Word and Excel, as well as Excel’s predecessor Multiplan. “
