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From: han@Apple.COM (Byron Han, fire fighter)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac,comp.windows.misc
Subject: Re: A/UX window systems, Mac toolbox, etc
Message-ID: <7523@apple.Apple.Com>
Date: 1 Mar 88 20:12:28 GMT
References: <4129@hoptoad.uucp> <283@rhesus.primate.wisc.edu> <1710@ssc-vax.UUCP> <3996@vdsvax.steinmetz.ge.com>
Reply-To: han@apple.UUCP (Byron Han, fire fighter)
Organization: Communication Tools Group - Apple Computer, Inc.
Lines: 36

In article <3996@vdsvax.steinmetz.ge.com> barnett@steinmetz.ge.com (Bruce G. Barnett) writes:
>In article <1710@ssc-vax.UUCP> benoni@ssc-vax.UUCP (Charles L Ditzel) writes:
>|The toolbox is hardly something to be touting ... 
>
>My naive impression of the Mac Windows was that is was a useful window
>system given a single process and a small screen. But I don't
>understand how Apple can provide the same interface in a multi
>application environment. How would pull-down menus work with multiple
>applications? They can't all grab the top of the screen.
>Context-sensitive pop-up menus make much more sense to me. But then
>you would need more than one button on the mouse.

Why don't you try out MultiFinder and see how well (in my unbiased :-) opinion)
it works?  The menu bar reflects the menu appropriate to the topmost 
application.  All the windows that belong to an application reside in a
layer.  When an application is brought to the front/foreground, all the windows
in its layer are brought forward and the menu bar is switched.

> Someone once made the point that it is easy to grow downward than to
> grow upward. That is, it is easier to convert a multi-application,
> multi-tasking, color window system into a single color, single user
> system than vice versa.

Incidentally, the Macintosh windowing user interface evolved from the Lisa 
Office System which was a multitasking multiple window, multiple application
environment.  I don't think that there is much difference between a
color and a monochrome windowing system.

Disclaimer:
This is NOT an official Apple position, just some comments by me.
I do work for Apple and happen to love it so take my comments with 
a grain of NaCl.
-- 
------------------------ Byron Han,  Communications Tool ----------------------
     Apple Computer, Inc.  20525 Mariani Ave, MS 27Y  Cupertino, CA 95014
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