Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!ucsd!sdcsvax!ucsdhub!hp-sdd!hplabs!hpda!hpcupt1!hpcuhb!hpsmtc1!dlw
From: dlw@hpsmtc1.HP.COM (David Williams)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.misc
Subject: Re: Re: A/UX window systems, Mac tool...( Hum Interface)
Message-ID: <13650001@hpsmtc1.HP.COM>
Date: 4 Mar 88 18:31:40 GMT
References: <241@eos.UUCP>
Organization: Hewlett Packard, Cupertino
Lines: 31

Hmmm, 

Sounds like we have some people who have not used the Macintosh running 
Multifinder! On my tables I have a Mac II and an HP 319 discless workstation
running X Windows. Right now I am entering this message via one of two windows
I currently have open under the application NCSA telnet. I also have Hypercard
up running Focal Point, and underneath that I have the finder. Currently, NCSA
has the menu bar and this window is the active one. If I click on the Hypercard
window it becomes active and context switches the menu bar. If I click on a
Finder window then it becomes active. Meanwhile stuffit is unstuffing some
files in the background along with the globe application (which is displaying
a color spinning globe in its own window). 

If I move to the 319 running X...lets see the active window is the one that the
cursor is in! So I guess the difference is that I didn't have to click on a
window to make it the active one (wow some difference). I don't know how NeWS
does its context switching, but it must have to have some way of knowing which
window I want to interact with.

So I do not have to go up to the menu bar to context switch which window is
the active one unless I want to. There is also an fkey available which turns
the menu bar into a pop up menu anywhere on the screen, so I guess I have that
capability as well (if I choose to do so). So far I like this layering approach
that apple has taken. And yes it will be nice when IPC and true multitasking
arrives, but for now I am very happy with the powerful consistent graphical
interface that Apple has provided me with. 

I am happy to see this discussion on Window systems/User Interface happening.
It is about time that Unix came out of the dark ages and attempted to create
an interface so that non-computer scientists would WANT to use it. I would 
much prefer to use Unix with a decent interface than MS-OS/2.  Now if only
we could hear some comments from the Xerox Parc folks.