View source for Breakthrough Software

{{Infobox company
| industry = Software
| location = [[Novato, California]], U.S.
| founded = By 1984
| defunct = 1987
| fate = Merged into [[NortonLifeLock|Symantec]]
| products = Project management software
| brands = Time Line, Timeline
}}
'''Breakthrough Software''' was a software company based in [[Novato, California]]. Breakthrough developed and sold the Time Line [[project management software]] for [[PC DOS]] computers, releasing the first version in 1984,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=0OsESSRYEc0C&dq=breakthrough+software+novato&pg=PA86 Breakthrough offers project management software for IBM micro]. ''Computerworld'', 3 Sept 1984.</ref> and version 2.0 in July, 1985.<ref name=hb>Hank Bannister. [https://books.google.com/books?id=my8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=breakthrough+software+novato&pg=PA1 Project Software Demand Growing]. ''InfoWorld'', Jan 27, 1986. page 5.</ref> Company staff in the 1980s included William Lohse (1984-1985) as president,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=EFea26Iy2kQC&dq=breakthrough+software+novato&pg=RA1-PA57 Vendors search for next big win]. ''Computerworld'', Mar 25, 1985. page 57.</ref> Victoria Lohse as COO and CEO<ref name=vl>[https://books.google.com/books?id=pDwEAAAAMBAJ&dq=Victoria+Lohse+Breakthrough&pg=PA31 Issco agrees to buy maker of Time Line]. ''InfoWorld'', 13 Oct 1986.</ref> and Andrew Layman as president starting in 1986.<ref name=hb/>

Negotiations to merge Breakthrough into Integrated Software Systems Corp. (ISSCO) reached an agreement in principle in October, 1986<ref name=vl/> but broke down soon afterwards when [[Computer Associates]], developer of a different project management program, announced an agreement to acquire ISSCO.<ref>Rachel Parker. [https://books.google.com/books?id=bDwEAAAAMBAJ&dq=breakthrough+software+novato&pg=PA16 Breakthrough to Withdraw from Merge Plans with ISSCO]. ''InfoWorld'', 15 Dec 1986.</ref>

Breakthrough was acquired by [[NortonLifeLock|Symantec]] in 1987. Symantec continued to release versions of Timeline until at least version 6.0 in 1994.<ref>William Brandel. [https://books.google.com/books?id=j7EPRo-7juEC&dq=last+version+of+Timeline+software+Symantec&pg=PA30 Symantec to purchase rival]. ''Computerworld''. 11 April 1994. page 30.</ref>

== References ==
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[[Category:Software companies based in California]]
[[Category:Defunct companies based in California]]
[[Category:Defunct software companies of the United States]]