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Our Mission
Since ISL Software's inception in 1986, our mission has been to develop personal computer software that facilitates
the learning of Islam.
A Brief History
ISL Software Corporation was founded on May 9, 1986 by Shahid N. Shah and Amir Jafri in Houston, Texas. Neither of
the two founders had finished their first college degrees before they embarked on their journey to promote the
learning of Islam using advancements in computer technology. Shahid was in his senior year in high school and Amir
was in his sophomore year in college.
Through personal experiences, Amir and Shahid felt the need to enhance the way Islamic subject matter was propagated.
With Amir's creativity and Shahid's ingenuity, they began developing a computer program to electronically store and
manage such a surplus of information. Armed with this mandate and with financial assistance from the Islamic Society
of Greater Houston (ISGH) and family members, they started work on a program called The Hafiz. The Hafiz was never
released but was the predecessor to the now famous Alim Islamic software. Between 1986 and 1991 ISL also provided
software development and consulting services to corporations including Fortune 500 companies. In 1995 ISL moved all
day-to-day operations to Silver Spring, Maryland.
In 1991 ISL Software launched the first version of The Alim. The Alim revolutionized the Islamic software industry.
It was the first software program to combine the powers of Quranic translations, commentaries, extensive subjects
database, and a host of other supporting information bases into one complete cross-referenced program. The Alim was
also the first program with an open architecture that allowed for infinite expansion. ISL freely made available all
of the extensive content that was included in The Alim. The goal was to foster development and dissemination of
Islamic literature in the electronic media, allowing others to develop services and products in the field of Islamic
education. To date, The Alim has pioneered many efforts in Islamic software and multimedia. In many web sites and
software programs available today you will find material that was originally created for The Alim. The Alim is now
in its seventh year of development and ISL is continuously updating and expanding the capabilities of this globally
popular software.
In 1997 ISL added Arabic Playhouse to its line of products. Arabic Playhouse is designed to teach children and
adults how to read Quranic Arabic. With the aid of multimedia elements, the program is designed to be language
independent so a person of any national origin can utilize it with the greatest of ease. Like The Alim, Arabic
Playhouse is fast becoming a leader in its field.
In the near future, you will be seeing additional revolutionary services and products emerging from ISL using state
of the art technology and unsurpassed proficiency. Please continue to visit our web site to stay abreast of the
latest technological developments in the Islamic software world.
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