HISTORY OF THE SAFE SOFTWARE NAME
We are often asked "How did you come up with the name Safe Software?" This is often followed by "How did you get the domain www.safe.com?" The answer to both these questions is one of history.
We'll answer the second question first since it is the easiest. We applied for the domain back in 1993 when the internet was just starting to take off. It is "safe" to say that we would not be able to get this name today!
1993 was also the year that Safe Software was founded. Back then, there was a format called the Spatial Archive and Interchange Format (SAIF). It was very similar to GML. SAIF is pronounced Safe so we decided to take the name Safe Software as a play on the SAIF format.
Why SAIF? Well, without SAIF there wouldn't be a Safe Software! SAIF was the format that started it all and therefore has a special place that no other format can hold. And yes, FME still supports SAIF today.