Xref: utzoo comp.sys.mac:14088 comp.windows.misc:315 Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!husc6!bloom-beacon!gatech!mcnc!thorin!weiss!steele From: steele@weiss.cs.unc.edu (Oliver Steele) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac,comp.windows.misc Subject: Re: Credit where credit is due Message-ID: <1750@thorin.cs.unc.edu> Date: 17 Mar 88 15:03:53 GMT References: <1624@thorin.cs.unc.edu> <1121@PT.CS.CMU.EDU> Sender: news@thorin.cs.unc.edu Reply-To: steele@weiss.UUCP (Oliver Steele) Organization: University Of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Lines: 105 Keywords: window human computer interface Here's the updated list of user interface advances. Many thanks to those of you who sent in your additions/corrections; some of you I didn't thank personally because my email bounced. Those who contributed are Ed Anson (savax!spray.CalComp.COM!anson@decvax.dec.com) Jim Fulton (jim@expo.lcs.mit.edu) Bruce Horn (blh@VLSI.CS.CMU.EDU) Richard A. O'Keefe (ok@quintus.UUCP) Josh Littlefield (gordon!josh@harvard.harvard.edu) Peter Schachte (gatech!sri-unix!quintus!pds@husc6.harvard.edu) David Tilbrook (dt+@andrew.cmu.edu) . If you sent me mail or posted an addition but your name isn't on the list, please try sending/posting again. Bruce Horn noted that: >I think it is unrealistic to attribute many of these concepts to a single >person. Many folks in LRG (Learning Research Group) & SSL (Systems Science >Laboratory), CSL (Computer Science Laboratory), and SDD (Systems Development >Division) at Xerox, and the Lisa and Mac groups at Apple were involved >in creating these ideas. In response to this, I've tried to list the group involved, as well as just person or company. Ed Anson pointed out that menus have been around longer than pointing-device- ones. I've added categories for keyboard-based menus. Where I write "menu" without a modifier, I mean a mouse-driven one. Josh Littlefield, Peter Schachte, and Mr Jack Campin pointed out that some systems allow the user to copy/move text in ways other than cut/copy/paste. I'm summarize and attribute these in a future posting. (I'm leaving town in a few hours and am running short on time.) David Tilbrook (cursor changes to show context) wrote to correct several misspellings (his first name, the Newswhole system) in an earlier posting, and wishes to make clear that he did not use a busy-bee "(yccch)". The cursors were (from Mr. Tilbrook's letter): > Buddha - indicated system is not ready for input > Oy_Vey - invalid selection > Tracker - used when dragging borders on page > Eh_Wot - puck not on tablet or button depressed redundantly > No_Room - trying to place object where there isn't > enough space > KeyBoard - awaiting user input at keyboard > Ok - action needs to be confirmed > Std - anything else The List, version 2: (where I've received conflicting data, I've listed them all) UI Innovation person(group)@company (product) (date) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- key-based menus : earlier than 1978, probably quite ancient key-based hierarchical menus: UCSD's Pascal system (1978) or earlier Bitmapped display : CSL@Xerox (Alto) (?) (PERQ was first commercial product) or Terak Corporation (c. 1978) BitBLT/RasterOp : Dan Ingalls(LRG)@Xerox Pointing device mapped to screen pointer : Doug Englebart@SRI (mid 70s) Mouse : Doug Englebart@SRI Cursor changes to show system mode : William Newman@Xerox Cursor changes to show context : David Tilbrook (Newswhole) (1975) Menus : LRG@Xerox (?) Popup Menus : Ingalls(LRG)@Xerox Pulldown menus : Lisa@Apple Menu bar : Lisa@Apple Hierarchical menus : Paeth(SSL)@Xerox (Smalltalk) Disabling of menu items : Lisa@Apple or Ed Anson (1980) or earlier or Xerox (1982 or earlier) Key equivalents for m.i.: Lisa@Apple or Ed Anson (1980) or earlier Check marks on m. i. : Lisa@Apple Overlapped windows : Ingalls(LRG)@Xerox Tiled windows : CSL@Xerox Event Queue : Simula@NCC, then Lisa@Apple or Ed Anson(GPGS) -> CORE, GKS (1975) Icons : David Smith(SDD)@Xerox (Star) -> Mac -> Lisa Scroll bars : LRG@Xerox Push Buttons : LRG@Xerox Radio Buttons : Kaehler(LRG)@Xerox Check Boxes : LRG@Xerox (?) Visible indication of button invalidity (dimming) : David Tilbrook (Newswhole) (1975) Dialog Boxes : Star@Xerox (property sheets) Resources : Horn(Mac)@Apple Multifont/style text records : CSL@Xerox (Bravo) or Wang's word processors (1978 or earlier) Modeless Interaction : Tesler(SSL)@Xerox Move/Copy/Delete : Xerox Cut/Copy/Paste w/ mouse : Tesler(SSL)@Xerox (Gypsy, then Smalltalk) Selection point between chrs : Tesler(SSL)@Xerox (Gypsy & Smalltalk) (TECO had this earlier than PARC, it is claimed) Again, this is your list. If you'd like to make a change, write me. If you want to dispute one of these, a date would be helpful. I don't know enough to settle disputes myself, but I'm willing to put you in touch with/arbitrate a conversation among those who have supplied contradictory data. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Oliver Steele ...!uunet!mcnc!unc!steele steele@cs.unc.edu "I worry about anyone under eighteen who isn't a cynic -- and anyone over eighteen who is." -- Spider Robinson