Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!aero!lubofsky
From: lubofsky@aerospace.aero.org (Nick Lubofsky)
Newsgroups: comp.os.misc
Subject: Front End
Keywords: casei
Message-ID: <53958@aerospace.AERO.ORG>
Date: 5 Jul 89 16:46:10 GMT
Reply-To: lubofsky@aero.UUCP (Nick Lubofsky)
Organization: The Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, CA
Lines: 47

This is more on the CASEI project described by Russ Abbott in a
previous article.

CASEI (Computer-Aided Software Engineering and Integration) may not be
the best name for what we're doing here. I prefer to call the project
Front End.

I envision Front End as a tool that is sitting on a computer when an
arbitrary person walks up to it. I want it to be attractive, obvious,
and easy to use so that people that are afraid of computers can walk
up to it and use it (like the computer interfaces they have at some
malls.) This is seriously lacking in operating systems I have seen.

However, an advanced computer user should be able to walk up to the
Front End and quickly get to where he wants to. Often a person is in
the middle of one or more sessions of programming environments. They
should be able to get right back into them. This part already exists
in operating systems.

Front End should have both. Also, both the beginning and the advanced
user should have an interface for finding something. This is what Russ
Abbott was talking about. Systems are cluttered with arbitrary folders
and directories sprawling about in arbitrary ways. A higher level of
organization would save some frustration.

An ideal scenario would be: A person with no prior knowledge of
computers needs to see a diagram or picture of something, say a
blueprint of a truck or airplane. He should be able to walk up to a
terminal, and using Front End with no outside help, either locate the
specific diagram, or perhaps find out that such a picture doesn't
exist on that system. He should easily be able to browse through
related things on the system, and find out about related things on
other systems.

Currently, we have begun creating a prototype in Smalltalk. I am not
convinced that Smalltalk is the best environment to develop in, but it
is somewhat portable system to system. Does anyone have any ideas on
that?

By the way, does anyone know if the name "Front End" is being used for
any piece of software?

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Nicholas Lubofsky  |  lubofsky@aerospace.aero.org           |  The Aerospace
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