As We Know It. Companies need customer intelligence to help determine who their customers are, what they need, and when they need it, and companies need business intelligence to respond and deliver effectively to their customers. As we know now, the web has certainly not killed Powerpoint. It is as strong as ever. More than one delegate invoked the failed, lofty ambitions of Artificial Intelligence in the '60s and '70s.
Some folks do use history as a tool.
The Short History of Web Usability . A few years back, there were many companies trying to provide some sort of information over the phone using touch-tone menus. This was during the heyday of the audiotex industry. I know someone who created a useful audiotex travel guide. But he couldn't find a practical way to make money from the service.