Re: PC or Mac?

[pausch@saaf.se (Paul Schlyter)]

In article <u5ldr9itgqhg9a@corp.supernews.com>,
Matthew Russotto <russotto@grace.speakeasy.net> wrote:
 
> In article <a3cb67$r8k$1@merope.saaf.se>, Paul Schlyter <pausch@saaf.se> wrote:
>>In article <slrna5jbl9.21.byron@b60z27hbb464i.ab.hsia.telus.net>,
>>Byron Q. Desnoyers Winmill <byron@b60z27hbb464i.ab.hsia.telus.net> wrote:
>>>
>>>Mimick does not imply compatibility with software in this case, but
>>>wetware.  A number of companies jumped on the GUI bandwagon thanks
>>>to Apple popularising the GUI.  To name a few products: GEM, GEOS,
>>>Amiga's OS, BeOS, OS/2, Windows.  The GUI elements in all of these
>>>systems (except maybe Amiga, which I have no experience with) are
>>>quite similar.  Many of these elements clearly came from Apple's
>>>offering.
>>
>>..and Apple in turn "borrowed" the GUI idea from Xerox...
> 
> Apple borrowed (or bought) far less from Xerox than Windows borrowed
> from the Mac. 
 
A GUI is a GUI is a GUI.... or did Windows borrow more from the
Mac than just the GUI?
 
> >In turn, Apple has borrowed some other ideas because they were
> >good:  expansion slots (missing in early Mac's),
> 
> The idea was "borrowed" from the S-100 machines, if that. 
 
...which in turn probably borrowed the idea from earlier minicomputers.
To avoid building the entire computer as one monolithic piece of
electronics is actually a Good Idea.
 
> >IDE harddisks (cheaper),
> Alas.
> 
> >and the PC diskette format (good because then you can
> >transfer diskettes between machines).
> 
> To this day, Apple does not use the PC diskette format.
 
Really?  On my 14-year old PC I can, without problem, read files
on diskettes written to by my wife's PowerBook Mac.  So either the
Mac uses the PC diskette format, or else my old PC can somehow
automagically read Mac diskette format(s?)...
 
> They did switch to the same low-level format when they went to
> 1440K diskettes, but the high-level format never changed.
 
See above.
 
>> Was the GUI ever patented?
> 
> You can't legitimately patent an idea.  Many elements of the GUI have
> been patented, however. (including, I believe, the "trash can")
 
Isn't the "trash can" an idea too?  Both the GUI idea and the trashcan
idea have of course been implemented as working software.
 
-- 
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