The Constraints of Software

Abstract

Computer software media has long had intrinsic similarities to books...so why may one be borrowed in a library and not the other? The answer lies in the context and history of how computer media came to be. In this essay I explore the early history of software distribution, where many different proposals fought to succeed. I provide an overview of the software industry’s early embrace of copy-protected floppy disks as a distribution medium, and how they harmed the notion of software as a borrowable medium. Lastly, I cover how CD-ROM materials were treated as books by publishers and libraries, yet failed to realize this premise with long-term success. I argue that a combination of industry actions and technological constraints over four decades caused computer software to fail to succeed as a tangible medium that can be borrowed like a book, lent, or resold at will.