<s>
In	O
the	O
computer	O
industry	O
,	O
vaporware	B-Application
(	O
or	O
vapourware	B-Application
)	O
is	O
a	O
product	O
,	O
typically	O
computer	B-Architecture
hardware	I-Architecture
or	O
software	O
,	O
that	O
is	O
announced	O
to	O
the	O
general	O
public	O
but	O
is	O
late	O
or	O
never	O
actually	O
manufactured	O
nor	O
officially	O
cancelled	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Vaporware	B-Application
is	O
often	O
announced	O
months	O
or	O
years	O
before	O
its	O
purported	O
release	O
,	O
with	O
few	O
details	O
about	O
its	O
development	O
being	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Developers	O
have	O
been	O
accused	O
of	O
intentionally	O
promoting	O
vaporware	B-Application
to	O
keep	O
customers	O
from	O
switching	O
to	O
competing	O
products	O
that	O
offer	O
more	O
features	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Network	O
World	O
magazine	O
called	O
vaporware	B-Application
an	O
"	O
epidemic	O
"	O
in	O
1989	O
and	O
blamed	O
the	O
press	O
for	O
not	O
investigating	O
if	O
developers	O
 '	O
claims	O
were	O
true	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Seven	O
major	O
companies	O
issued	O
a	O
report	O
in	O
1990	O
saying	O
that	O
they	O
felt	O
vaporware	B-Application
had	O
hurt	O
the	O
industry	O
's	O
credibility	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
United	O
States	O
accused	O
several	O
companies	O
of	O
announcing	O
vaporware	B-Application
early	O
enough	O
to	O
violate	O
antitrust	O
laws	O
,	O
but	O
few	O
have	O
been	O
found	O
guilty	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
Vaporware	B-Application
"	O
was	O
coined	O
by	O
a	O
Microsoft	O
engineer	O
in	O
1982	O
to	O
describe	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
Xenix	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
and	O
first	O
appeared	O
in	O
print	O
in	O
a	O
newsletter	O
by	O
entrepreneur	O
Esther	O
Dyson	O
in	O
1983	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
InfoWorld	O
magazine	O
editor	O
Stewart	O
Alsop	O
helped	O
popularize	O
it	O
by	O
lampooning	O
Bill	O
Gates	O
with	O
a	O
Golden	O
Vaporware	B-Application
award	O
for	O
the	O
late	O
release	O
of	O
his	O
company	O
's	O
first	O
version	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
in	O
1985	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Vaporware	B-Application
first	O
implied	O
intentional	O
fraud	O
when	O
it	O
was	O
applied	O
to	O
the	O
Ovation	O
office	O
suite	O
in	O
1983	O
;	O
the	O
suite	O
's	O
demonstration	O
was	O
well	O
received	O
by	O
the	O
press	O
,	O
but	O
the	O
product	O
was	O
never	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
Vaporware	B-Application
"	O
,	O
sometimes	O
synonymous	O
with	O
"	O
vaportalk	O
"	O
in	O
the	O
1980s	O
,	O
has	O
no	O
single	O
definition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
generally	O
used	O
to	O
describe	O
a	O
hardware	B-Architecture
or	O
software	O
product	O
that	O
has	O
been	O
announced	O
,	O
but	O
that	O
the	O
developer	O
has	O
no	O
intention	O
of	O
releasing	O
any	O
time	O
soon	O
,	O
if	O
ever	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ann	O
Winblad	O
,	O
president	O
of	O
Open	B-Application
Systems	I-Application
Accounting	I-Application
Software	I-Application
,	O
wanted	O
to	O
know	O
if	O
Microsoft	O
planned	O
to	O
stop	O
developing	O
its	O
Xenix	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
as	O
some	O
of	O
Open	O
System	O
's	O
products	O
depended	O
on	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
She	O
asked	O
two	O
Microsoft	O
software	O
engineers	O
,	O
John	O
Ulett	O
and	O
Mark	O
Ursino	O
,	O
who	O
confirmed	O
that	O
development	O
of	O
Xenix	B-Application
had	O
stopped	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
One	O
of	O
them	O
told	O
me	O
,	O
'	O
Basically	O
,	O
it	O
's	O
vaporware	B-Application
 '	O
,	O
"	O
she	O
later	O
said	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
an	O
article	O
titled	O
"	O
Vaporware	B-Application
"	O
in	O
the	O
November	O
1983	O
issue	O
of	O
RELease	O
1.0	O
,	O
Dyson	O
defined	O
the	O
word	O
as	O
"	O
good	O
ideas	O
incompletely	O
implemented	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
January	O
1982	O
review	O
of	O
the	O
new	O
IBM	B-Device
Personal	I-Device
Computer	I-Device
,	O
BYTE	B-Application
favorably	O
noted	O
that	O
IBM	O
"	O
refused	O
to	O
acknowledge	O
the	O
existence	O
of	O
any	O
product	O
that	O
is	O
not	O
ready	O
to	O
be	O
put	O
on	O
dealers	O
 '	O
shelves	O
tomorrow	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
discussing	O
Coleco	O
's	O
delay	O
in	O
releasing	O
the	O
Adam	B-Device
,	O
Creative	B-General_Concept
Computing	I-General_Concept
in	O
March	O
1984	O
stated	O
that	O
the	O
company	O
"	O
did	O
not	O
invent	O
the	O
common	O
practice	O
of	O
debuting	O
products	O
before	O
they	O
actually	O
exist	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
Dyson	O
's	O
article	O
,	O
the	O
word	O
"	O
vaporware	B-Application
"	O
became	O
popular	O
among	O
writers	O
in	O
the	O
personal	O
computer	O
software	O
industry	O
as	O
a	O
way	O
to	O
describe	O
products	O
they	O
believed	O
took	O
too	O
long	O
to	O
be	O
released	O
after	O
their	O
first	O
announcement	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
InfoWorld	O
magazine	O
editor	O
Stewart	O
Alsop	O
helped	O
popularize	O
its	O
use	O
by	O
giving	O
Bill	O
Gates	O
,	O
then-CEO	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
Golden	O
Vaporware	B-Application
award	O
for	O
Microsoft	O
releasing	O
Windows	B-Application
in	O
1985	O
,	O
18	O
months	O
late	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
Vaporware	B-Application
"	O
took	O
another	O
meaning	O
when	O
it	O
was	O
used	O
to	O
describe	O
a	O
product	O
that	O
did	O
not	O
exist	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
created	O
the	O
fake	O
demonstration	O
in	O
an	O
unsuccessful	O
attempt	O
to	O
raise	O
money	O
to	O
finish	O
their	O
product	O
,	O
and	O
is	O
"	O
widely	O
considered	O
the	O
mother	O
of	O
all	O
vaporware	B-Application
,	O
"	O
according	O
to	O
Laurie	O
Flynn	O
of	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Newsweek	O
magazine	O
's	O
Allan	O
Sloan	O
described	O
the	O
manipulation	O
of	O
stocks	O
by	O
Yahoo	B-Application
!	I-Application
</s>
<s>
and	O
Amazon.com	B-Application
as	O
"	O
financial	O
vaporware	B-Application
"	O
in	O
1997	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Popular	O
Science	O
magazine	O
uses	O
a	O
scale	O
ranging	O
from	O
"	O
vaporware	B-Application
"	O
to	O
"	O
bet	O
on	O
it	O
"	O
to	O
describe	O
release	O
dates	O
of	O
new	O
consumer	O
electronics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Car	O
manufacturer	O
General	O
Motors	O
 '	O
plans	O
to	O
develop	O
and	O
sell	O
an	O
electric	O
car	O
were	O
called	O
vaporware	B-Application
by	O
an	O
advocacy	O
group	O
in	O
2008	O
and	O
Car	B-Application
and	I-Application
Driver	I-Application
magazine	O
retroactively	O
described	O
the	O
Vector	O
W8	O
supercar	O
as	O
vaporware	B-Application
in	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
product	O
missing	O
its	O
announced	O
release	O
date	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
labeling	O
of	O
it	O
as	O
vaporware	B-Application
by	O
the	O
press	O
,	O
can	O
be	O
caused	O
by	O
its	O
development	O
taking	O
longer	O
than	O
planned	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
software	O
products	O
are	O
not	O
released	O
on	O
time	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
researchers	O
in	O
2001	O
who	O
studied	O
the	O
causes	O
and	O
effects	O
of	O
vaporware	B-Application
;	O
"	O
I	O
hate	O
to	O
say	O
yes	O
,	O
but	O
yes	O
"	O
,	O
a	O
Microsoft	O
product	O
manager	O
stated	O
in	O
1984	O
,	O
adding	O
that	O
"	O
the	O
problem	O
is	O
n't	O
just	O
at	O
Microsoft	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
phenomenon	O
is	O
so	O
common	O
that	O
Lotus	O
 '	O
release	O
of	O
1-2-3	B-Application
on	O
time	O
in	O
January	O
1983	O
,	O
three	O
months	O
after	O
announcing	O
it	O
,	O
amazed	O
many	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1986	O
,	O
the	O
American	O
National	O
Standards	O
Institute	O
adopted	O
SQL	B-Language
as	O
the	O
standard	O
database	O
manipulation	O
language	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Software	O
company	O
Ashton-Tate	O
was	O
ready	O
to	O
release	O
dBase	B-Application
IV	I-Application
,	O
but	O
pushed	O
the	O
release	O
date	O
back	O
to	O
add	O
support	O
for	O
SQL	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Vaporware	B-Application
also	O
includes	O
announced	O
products	O
that	O
are	O
never	O
released	O
because	O
of	O
financial	O
problems	O
,	O
or	O
because	O
the	O
industry	O
changes	O
during	O
its	O
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
3D	O
Realms	O
first	O
announced	O
Duke	B-Application
Nukem	I-Application
Forever	I-Application
in	O
1997	O
,	O
the	O
video	O
game	O
was	O
early	O
in	O
its	O
development	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
's	O
previous	O
game	O
released	O
in	O
1996	O
,	O
Duke	B-Application
Nukem	I-Application
3D	I-Application
,	O
was	O
a	O
critical	O
and	O
financial	O
success	O
,	O
and	O
customer	O
anticipation	O
for	O
its	O
sequel	B-Language
was	O
high	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
personal	B-Architecture
computer	I-Architecture
hardware	I-Architecture
speeds	O
improved	O
at	O
a	O
rapid	O
pace	O
in	O
the	O
late	O
1990s	O
,	O
it	O
created	O
an	O
"	O
arms	O
race	O
"	O
between	O
companies	O
in	O
the	O
video	O
game	O
industry	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
Wired	O
News	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
time	O
3D	O
Realms	O
went	O
out	O
of	O
business	O
in	O
2009	O
with	O
the	O
game	O
still	O
unreleased	O
,	O
Duke	B-Application
Nukem	I-Application
Forever	I-Application
had	O
become	O
synonymous	O
with	O
the	O
word	O
"	O
vaporware	B-Application
"	O
among	O
industry	O
writers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
company	O
notorious	O
for	O
vaporware	B-Application
can	O
improve	O
its	O
reputation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
usually	O
announces	O
information	O
about	O
its	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
early	O
because	O
third-party	O
developers	O
are	O
dependent	O
on	O
that	O
information	O
to	O
develop	O
their	O
own	O
products	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
to	O
the	O
"	O
vaporware	B-Application
"	O
label	O
,	O
this	O
is	O
also	O
called	O
"	O
ambush	O
marketing	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
fear	O
,	O
uncertainty	O
and	O
doubt	O
"	O
(	O
FUD	O
)	O
by	O
the	O
press	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1994	O
,	O
as	O
customer	O
anticipation	O
increased	O
for	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
new	O
version	O
of	O
Windows	B-Application
(	O
codenamed	O
"	O
Chicago	B-Application
"	O
)	O
,	O
Apple	O
announced	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
upgrades	O
to	O
its	O
own	O
System	B-Operating_System
7	I-Operating_System
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
that	O
were	O
not	O
due	O
to	O
be	O
released	O
until	O
nearly	O
two	O
years	O
later	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
wrote	O
that	O
Apple	O
did	O
this	O
to	O
"	O
blunt	O
Chicago	B-Application
's	O
momentum	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
VisiCorp	O
announced	O
Visi	B-Application
On	I-Application
in	O
November	O
1982	O
,	O
it	O
promised	O
to	O
ship	O
the	O
product	O
by	O
spring	O
1983	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
news	O
forced	O
Quarterdeck	O
Office	O
Systems	O
to	O
announce	O
in	O
April	O
1983	O
that	O
its	O
DESQ	B-Operating_System
would	O
ship	O
in	O
November	O
1983	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
responded	O
by	O
announcing	O
Windows	B-Application
1.0	I-Application
in	O
fall	O
1983	O
,	O
and	O
Ovation	O
Technologies	O
followed	O
by	O
announcing	O
Ovation	O
in	O
November	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
InfoWorld	O
noted	O
in	O
May	O
1984	O
that	O
of	O
the	O
four	O
products	O
only	O
Visi	B-Application
On	I-Application
had	O
shipped	O
,	O
albeit	O
more	O
than	O
a	O
year	O
late	O
and	O
with	O
only	O
two	O
supported	O
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
his	O
1989	O
Network	O
World	O
article	O
,	O
Joe	O
Mohen	O
wrote	O
the	O
practice	O
had	O
become	O
a	O
"	O
vaporware	B-Application
epidemic	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
blamed	O
the	O
press	O
for	O
not	O
investigating	O
claims	O
by	O
developers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1985	O
Stewart	O
Alsop	O
began	O
publishing	O
his	O
influential	O
monthly	O
Vaporlist	O
,	O
a	O
list	O
of	O
companies	O
he	O
felt	O
announced	O
their	O
products	O
too	O
early	O
,	O
hoping	O
to	O
dissuade	O
them	O
from	O
the	O
practice	O
;	O
among	O
the	O
entries	O
in	O
January	O
1988	O
were	O
a	O
Verbatim	O
Corp	O
.	O
optical	O
drive	O
that	O
was	O
30	O
months	O
late	O
,	O
WordPerfect	B-Application
for	O
Macintosh	O
(	O
12	O
months	O
)	O
,	O
IBM	O
OS/2	O
1.1	O
(	O
nine	O
months	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
Lotus	B-Application
1-2-3	I-Application
for	O
OS/2	O
and	O
Macintosh	O
(	O
nine	O
and	O
three	O
months	O
late	O
,	O
respectively	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Seven	O
major	O
software	O
developers	O
—	O
including	O
Ashton-Tate	O
,	O
Hewlett-Packard	O
and	O
Sybase	B-Application
—	O
formed	O
a	O
council	O
in	O
1990	O
,	O
and	O
issued	O
a	O
report	O
condemning	O
the	O
"	O
vacuous	O
product	O
announcement	O
dubbed	O
vaporware	B-Application
and	O
other	O
misrepresentations	O
of	O
product	O
availability	O
"	O
because	O
they	O
felt	O
it	O
had	O
hurt	O
the	O
industry	O
's	O
credibility	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
announcing	O
a	O
product	O
that	O
does	O
not	O
exist	O
to	O
gain	O
a	O
competitive	O
advantage	O
is	O
illegal	O
via	O
Section	O
2	O
of	O
the	O
Sherman	O
Antitrust	O
Act	O
of	O
1890	O
,	O
but	O
few	O
hardware	B-Architecture
or	O
software	O
developers	O
have	O
been	O
found	O
guilty	O
of	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
IBM	O
's	O
competitor	O
,	O
Control	O
Data	O
Corporation	O
(	O
CDC	O
)	O
,	O
released	O
a	O
computer	O
,	O
IBM	O
announced	O
the	O
System/360	B-Device
Model	I-Device
91	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Justice	O
Department	O
accused	O
IBM	O
of	O
doing	O
this	O
intentionally	O
because	O
the	O
System/360	B-Device
Model	I-Device
91	I-Device
was	O
not	O
released	O
until	O
two	O
years	O
later	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
likely	O
announced	O
its	O
PCjr	B-Device
in	O
November	O
1983	O
—	O
four	O
months	O
before	O
general	O
availability	O
in	O
March	O
1984	O
—	O
to	O
hurt	O
sales	O
of	O
rival	O
home	O
computers	O
during	O
the	O
important	O
Christmas	O
sales	O
season	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
practice	O
was	O
not	O
called	O
"	O
vaporware	B-Application
"	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
,	O
but	O
publications	O
have	O
since	O
used	O
the	O
word	O
to	O
refer	O
specifically	O
to	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
"	O
Vaporware	B-Application
is	O
a	O
practice	O
that	O
is	O
deceitful	O
on	O
its	O
face	O
and	O
everybody	O
in	O
the	O
business	O
community	O
knows	O
it	O
,	O
"	O
said	O
Sporkin	O
.	O
</s>
