XyWrite

XyWrite is a word processor for MS-DOS and Windows modeled on the mainframe-based ATEX typesetting system. Popular with writers and editors for its speed and degree of customization, XyWrite was in its heyday the house word processor in many editorial offices, including the New York Times from 1989 to 1993. XyWrite was developed by David Erickson and marketed by XyQuest from 1982 through 1992, after which it was acquired by The Technology Group. The final version for MS-DOS was 4.18 (1993); for Windows, 4.13.

XyQuest was founded in June 1982 by former ATEX employees Dave Erickson and John Hild. Its most successful product was XyWrite III Plus, which attracted a devoted following among professional writers.

The turning point for XyWrite came in the form of a disastrous near-partnership with IBM, which was seeking a modern replacement for its venerable DisplayWrite word processor. Working under an agreement signed in June 1990, XyQuest devoted nearly all of its development resources to revising Erickson's XyWrite IV to IBM's specifications, including IBM Common User Access-style menus, mouse support and a graphical user interface. Envisioned as a marriage between XyQuest technology and IBM marketing, the product was to be called Signature.

But on the eve of Signature's release, IBM announced a strategic decision to withdraw completely from the desktop software market, shocking XyQuest and leaving Signature in limbo. When a prospective new alliance with Lotus did not materialize, XyQuest had no alternative but to resticker the ready-to-ship Signature packages as XyWrite 4.0 and attempt to carry on.

However, the changes IBM had insisted on were a liability where the III Plus user base was concerned. Some key reviews (such as in The Wall Street Journal) were harsh, and there were complaints that 4.0 was buggy and slow. Moreover, in the years since the last major XyWrite release, WordPerfect had cemented its hold on the DOS word processor market. Already financially strained by the long development cycle for Signature, by the end of 1992 XyQuest was bleeding money. The sale to The Technology Group ensued.

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