Allume Systems
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software |
| Predecessor | Aladdin Systems |
| Founded | 1988 in New York City, United States |
| Founder | David Schargel, Jonathan Kahn |
| Fate | Acquired by Smith Micro Software in 2005 |
| Headquarters | Watsonville, California , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | StuffIt, StuffIt InstallerMaker, ShrinkWrap, Spring Cleaning, Aquazone series |
| Parent | Smith Micro Software (since 2005) |
Allume Systems began as a software developer established in 1988 by David Schargel and Jonathan Kahn in New York City, originally named Aladdin Systems. The company focused on creating, publishing, and distributing software designed for personal computers and was officially incorporated in January 1989.
In April 2004, the company was purchased by International Microcomputer Software Inc. (IMSI), a publisher specializing in PC software. A few months later, in July, the firm rebranded from Aladdin Systems to Allume Systems following a trademark dispute with Aladdin Knowledge Systems. In 2005, IMSI sold Allume Systems to Smith Micro Software.
Products
Aladdin Systems initially concentrated on the Macintosh platform, producing data compression and management tools. Their prominent offerings included the StuffIt compression suite, StuffIt InstallerMaker for delivery solutions, the ShrinkWrap disk image application, and the Spring Cleaning system optimization tool.
The company expanded its product range in 1996 by acquiring the ShrinkWrap utility from developer Chad Magendanz.
Beginning in 1995, Aladdin Systems introduced components of StuffIt for Microsoft Windows, culminating in the full release of StuffIt for Windows by 2000. The software was subsequently adapted for Linux and Solaris platforms in 2001. However, these Unix versions were discontinued after the acquisition by Smith Micro. By this time, Allume had broadened its software lineup to encompass graphics, imaging, internet security, and various utility applications.
In addition to its core products, Allume capitalized on specialized markets by creating the Aquazone series of fish tank simulators, inspired by the popularity of similar marine aquarium simulation games.