[Am-info] Re: MS Depositions

[John J. Urbaniak]

So even the name "Windows" came from someone other than Microsoft?

John


Geoffrey wrote:

> John Poltorak wrote:
>
> > On Thu, Jan 31, 2002 at 07:53:43PM -0500, Geoffrey wrote:
>
> >>So, where do Apple and Xerox fit into this picture puzzle??
> >
> > Xerox invented the WIMP GUI at the Palo Alto Research Centre. Everything
> > else is derivative. It's difficult to say when it first came out as I'm
> > not sure if it was part of a commercial product.
> >
> > WIMP - Windows, Icons, Mouse and Pointing devices.
>
> I've not verified the accuracy of the following, but I find it
> interesting that it appears that, as usual, Microsoft was the last to
> come to this picture.  As usual, taking everyone else's good ideas and
> claiming them for their own.  It appears that Xerox had a 'gui' based
> workstation as early as 1981.  Jobs had Lisa out in 1983.
>
> From:
>
> http://www.cc.gatech.edu/classes/cs6751_97_winter/Topics/dialog-wimp/
>
> "The development of WIMP interfaces continued at Xerox PARC. The PARC
>
> research team, which included notables such as Alan Kay and Adele
> Goldberg, designed most of the elements that we associate with WIMP
> interfaces: a bit-mapped display with movable/resizable windows, buttons
> and pop-up menus, the desktop metaphor, and an object-oriented software
> architecture and development library. The Smalltalk language/development
> environment (1970-) was the research testbed for OOP and WIMP
> interfaces. The Xerox Star workstation (1981) was the first production
> computer to use the desktop metaphor, productivity applications and a
> three-button mouse.
>
> Steve Jobs and a team from Apple paid an infamous visit to Xerox PARC.
> The result was the Lisa (1983) computer and the Macintosh (1984), the
> first mass-produced WIMP-based machines. A small company, Microsoft, got
> the contract to develop the first suite of productivity applications to
> be bundled with the Macintosh. By 1985, Microsoft proposed Windows,
> which they intended to run on a wide variety of platforms. The reader
> can fill in the blanks. With the rapid rise of Microsoft Windows, WIMP
> interfaces have become the dominant interface paradigm."
>
> --
> Until later: Geoffrey           esoteric@3times25.net
>
> "...the system (Microsoft passport) carries significant risks to users that
> are not made adequately clear in the technical documentation available."
> - David P. Kormann and Aviel D. Rubin, AT&T Labs - Research
> - http://www.avirubin.com/passport.html
>
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