Gregory Weston wrote:
In article <null-F6752B.07544721042007@comcast.dca.giganews.com>,
Greg Buchner <null@none.invalid> wrote:
<http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u287/birne999999999/DSC00276.jpg>
There's two. Can everybody pick them out?
Picture of the GS, obviously.
Assertion that Windows was the first OS to [introduce] the use of mice
with PCs _unless_ you assume that "PC" is an abbreviation for "computer
compatible with the product known as the IBM Personal Computer" rather
than a general abbreviation for a personal computer as compared to, say,
an AS-400. Odd, though, since the text uses (lower cased) "personal
computer" later on. Note that Apple perpetuates this abuse of
nomenclature in their current ad campaign, though.
Assertion that Windows in 1985 was an operating system. It wasn't, and
even Microsoft acknowledged that Windows didn't qualify as an OS until
3.1.1 shipped (and that's arguably optimistic; they may have just
finally decided they could get away with calling it that since the
popular press was telling everyone the same thing by that time).
And it fails to note that while Windows shipped in 1985 it was announced
(and so you could possibly say "introduced") in 1983.
And the first PC "environment" that I saw that used a mouse was Visi-On
(by Visi-Corp), pre-release, in Oct.-Nov., 1983, at a computer show.
I was blown away by what they were able to achieve with an XT!
Performance was always the big problem, until faster microprocessors
and cheaper memory made GUIs practical.
Microsoft's pre-annnouncement of Windows the following month effectively
froze the market, effectively killing Visi-On's chances while Microsoft
got busy trying to make Windows.
Both PC efforts were catalyzed by the same Xerox PARC work that led to
the Mac.
-michael