Helix (database)

Helix is a pioneering database management system for the Apple Macintosh platform, created in 1983. Helix uses a graphical "programming language" to add logic to its applications, allowing non-programmers to construct sophisticated applications. It never grew beyond being a niche product. As of 2015, Helix is thirty-one years old, but still has a dedicated, if small, following.

Despite being the first multiuser database on any PC platform, the first object-based, visual programming tool, and, perhaps, the first relational database on a PC platform, Helix's marketing and ownership problems led it to a life as a niche product on an OS with a small market share.

History

Originally created by Odesta Corporation in 1983 on the original Macintosh, Helix received rave reviews when it was released the next year. At the time the Mac only supported 440kB floppy disks as storage, shared with the operating system and leaving little room for applications or data. It was assumed that users would add a second floppy for any sort of real-world use, with the OS and Helix on one floppy, and data on another. Leaving room for a maximum database size of under 500k, Helix's data management capabilities did not need to be all that strong. Nevertheless it was a full relational database.