1950 to 1959: Starting the Ascent of Digital Computers and Software - The Technical and Social History of Software Engineering - page 94

and 14 cruiseship lines. The growth and success of SABRE illustrate the power
of computers and software to make enormous changes in common business prac-
tices.
The downside of computerization is that probably more than 100,000 clerical
personnel in these various companies lost their jobs. This loss was partially re-
placed by the addition, usually within those same companies, of perhaps 30,000
software and data center personnel.
Software Applications in the 1950s
In the 1950s, small applications were the norm, in part due to the difficulty of cod-
ing large applications in low-level languages such as assembly.
Table 4.2 shows the approximate numbers of software applications developed
from 1950 through 1959. Scientific and military applications continued to domin-
ate during this decade.
Table 4.2 U.S. Software Applications from 1950 to 1959