Full Talk on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrnYKgTl184
Blog post on Medium:
"Software Through the Ages"
https://medium.com/cardstack/software-through-the-ages-7ae7b3debfd7
Chris Tse, Founding Director of the Cardstack Project, talks about the history of software distribution, walking through the five phases that were defined by companies like Microsoft, IBM, Apple, Google, and Salesforce.com—which eventually led to open source.
In detail, Chris explains how software evolved from Software-as-a-Product (SaaP) into Software-as-a-Quote (SaaQ) and Software-as-a-Resource (SaaR)—oscillating between off-the-shelf and customized software—until Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) became the most popular distribution method. Finally, he answers the question, “What comes after SaaS?”, introducing the new idea of Software-as-a-Tool (SaaT)—which will define the future of software by combining powerful off-the-shelf tools with individual customization.