Vermeer was acquired by Microsoft in 1996 specifically so that Microsoft could add FrontPage to its product line-up.Īs a WYSIWYG editor, FrontPage is designed to hide the details of pages' HTML code from the user, making it possible for novices to easily create web pages and sites.įrontPage's initial outing under the Microsoft name came in 1996 with the release of Windows NT 4.0 Server and its constituent HTTPd server Internet Information Services 2.0. FrontPage was initially created by the Cambridge, Massachusetts company Vermeer Technologies Incorporated, evidence of which can be easily spotted in filenames and directories prefixed _vti_ in web sites created using FrontPage.
