MacroMind

MacroMind was a multimedia software company founded in Chicago, Illinois on April 16, 1984 by Marc Canter, Jay Fenton and Mark Stephen Pierce.

History
The company was originally named Chicago Software in April 1984. Three days later, it was renamed MacroMind after a character from Fenton's hit game Gorf.

MacroMind's first project was SoundVision, a combined music and graphics editor. Before the release, the audio and graphics features were split into MusicWorks and VideoWorks. MacroMind's earliest projects were distributed by Hayden Software.

Much of the MacroMind's early work also involved contracting for other companies. In December 1985, Fenton implemented a customized version of VideoWorks with Tiny BASIC that was licensed to Apple Computer to build training discs for their early Macintosh line.

By March 1988, the company had grown to 22 employees and was self-publishing its products. After a round of funding, MacroMind moved to 410 Townsend Street in San Francisco, California in 1989. In 1991, MacroMind merged with Paracomp to briefly become MacroMind-Paracomp, then merged with Authorware Inc. in 1992 to form Macromedia.

Products

 * MacroMind MusicWorks (October 1984) - music composer
 * MacroMind VideoWorks (June 1985) - multimedia animation software
 * MacroMind VideoWorks Player - for runtime playback of VideoWorks files
 * MacroMind VideoWorks II (1987) - added support for color
 * MacroMind VideoWorks Accelerator (1987) - animation compiler for VideoWorks files
 * MacroMind ArtGrabber with Body Shop (1985) - software and desk accessory
 * MacroMind ComicWorks (1986) - a paint program with text editing and multi-page layout capabilities
 * MacroMind GraphicWorks 1.1 (1987) - a version with the same user interface and updated graphics libraries
 * MacroMind Utility Disk (1986) - a collection of useful graphical desk accessories
 * Maze Wars+ (Fall 1986) - multiplayer network game based on the classic Maze War
 * MacroMind Director (1989) - evolved from VideoWorks Professional
 * MacroMind Accelerator (1989) - animation compiler for Director
 * MacroMind Director 2.0 (April 1990) - evolved from VideoWorks Interactive Pro, which introduced the Lingo scripting language
 * MacroMind Player - for runtime playback of Director files
 * MacroMind MediaMaker (1990) - early video editing and compositing software
 * MacroMind Three-D (1991) - 3D modeling and animation software
 * MacroMind 3DWorks - animation, lighting, and camera setup
 * MacroMind RenderWorks - rendering of 3DWorks projects in 8 or 24-bit color
 * MacroMind FireWorks (formerly ImageWorks) - post-production of RenderWorks graphics

A few products initiated by MacroMind were actually released by MacroMind-Paracomp:
 * MacroMind Action! 1.0.1 (1991) - a graphical presentation program
 * MacroMind Director 3.0 (1991) - introduction of XObjects
 * MacroMind TitleMaker (1991) - a utility for making animated titles