Decision makers, sales people, and all manner of corporate travelers move through airports and hotels toting their computers. Corporations have increased their spending on computer systems every year since 1985 even when overall spending was declining. Today's computer systems are no longer relegated to special rooms. They populate our desks, run our production lines, organize our warehouses, and schedule our work. The big change in the 1990s is that personal productivity has evolved from desktop typing to full system access and analysis.
Computer users are now the information users.
Processing is now on line. Even in heavy manufacturing it is common to see monitors on machinery and throughout the factory. Microcomputers perform automatic analyses using data gathered from dispersed systems into spreadsheets or data bases. Instead of seeing reports, people see computers everywhere. While computers are still not as easy and intuitive to use as pen and paper, the ease of use of personal computers has come a long way.