Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site watmath.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!csc
From: csc@watmath.UUCP (Computer Sci Club)
Newsgroups: net.works
Subject: Re: 4404 Experiences
Message-ID: <15823@watmath.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 18-Jul-85 11:54:54 EDT
Article-I.D.: watmath.15823
Posted: Thu Jul 18 11:54:54 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 19-Jul-85 01:03:44 EDT
References: <2734@topaz.ARPA>
Reply-To: csc@watmath.UUCP (Computer Sci Club)
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 47
Summary: 

In article <2734@topaz.ARPA> forwarder@CSNET-SH.ARPA writes:
>From: obrien@CSNET-SH.ARPA
>
>	Chris Ryland asked for 4404 experiences.  I had one of these
>on my desk for a week a while back.
>
>	On the whole I was favorably impressed.  Here are some notable
>points:
>
>	o They've done some nice things to the Smalltalk system.  Little
>things like being able to get at the contents of a Workspace from another
>workspace, certain predefined variables, etc.
>
>	o The thing runs on top UNIFLEX, a UNIX "work-alike" system.
>None of the system calls are the same and none of the commands are the
>same, but it still looks awfully like a UNIX.
>
>	o To hold costs down, it has a medium-resolution screen, and
>hardware pan over the 1Kx1K display space.  However, although there is
>a Smalltalk primitive message to find out what part of the virtual space
>is currently really on the screen, nobody much really uses that message
>yet.  Result: something can change somewhere that you can't see it, and
>you won't notice that it's happened.  Surprisingly, this doesn't bug
>me as much as I thought it might.

	One mod I have made to the 4404 I work on is to have 
StandardSystemController>controlInitialze ensure that its view is on the
screen.  Thus, when you enter a new window, it scrolls into view.  Secondly,
there are a number of places (PopUpMenus, FillInTheBlanks, BinaryChoices)
where checks are made to ensure that things appear completely on the
VIRTUAL screen.  These should be changed to bring things up on the PHYSICAL
screen.  There are no too many of these.  

>
>	o Speed: it ain't a Dorado.  It's maybe 30% faster than a Dolphin,
>which isn't so very terrible.

	As one of the few people (only?) who have used both, I must say 
that I am quite impressed with the 4404.  It is quite an acceptable speed,
though things like senders/implemetors should be examined for possible 
speed improvements.  I guess the main point is that I *dont* notice a 
lack of speed.

>

	-bob atkinson
	U of Waterloo/ Xerox Parc