Xref: utzoo comp.sys.mac:13550 comp.windows.misc:184
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!pasteur!agate!ig!uwmcsd1!dogie!uwvax!astroatc!nicmad!hill
From: hill@nicmad.UUCP (Ray Hill)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac,comp.windows.misc
Subject: Re: A/UX window systems, Mac tool...( Hum Interface)
Message-ID: <2460@nicmad.UUCP>
Date: 4 Mar 88 23:13:35 GMT
References: <4129@hoptoad.uucp> <283@rhesus.primate.wisc.edu> <1710@ssc-vax.UUCP> <7523@apple.Apple.Com> <1719@ssc-vax.UUCP> <241@eos.UUCP>
Reply-To: hill@nicmad.UUCP (Ray Hill)
Organization: Nicolet Instruments, Biomedical Division
Lines: 51
Keywords: window human computer interface

In article <241@eos.UUCP> lyman@eos.UUCP (Lyman Taylor) writes:
>	Multitasking saves the World!      Come on, the only person I know of
>the can actually use two applications at once is Mr. Spock of Star Trek due to
>the unique features of his Vulcan mind ( i.e. he is not a human being ).

Then I guess I must have pointed ears. Having multiple applications on the
screen at one time is my prefered mode of operation. Using multiple Xterms
with the X Window system, I have multiple "vi" editing windows of the code I
am currently working on. I also keep one window one for the compile/link of
my application. This way I can edit a file while keeping an eye on the compile
window for errors. I also like to open a "rn" window while compiling. This
way I only read articles while waiting for the compile to finish. If at any
second the compile finishes or bombs I see the exact error on my screen. 

>       Unfortunately, us humans can only handle ONE high level cognitive task 
>at once. 

See the above note.

>	Think about it.  When have you ever seen anyone, including yourself,
>doing two things at once ( like running a spredsheet and SIMULTANEOUSLY writing
>something into your favorite editor ).  I give you a hint most computers I seen
>have ONE keyboard per user.

Again see the above note. Also even though only one keyboard is attached to a
screen. That doesn't mean you can't do data entry into several windows. You
see I am faster at changing code than the computer is at compiling. So I can
actually get ahead.

>	To sum it all up multitasking means that can have more that one task
>runnig at the same time ( more than one doing work FOR you ), but you can only
>work WITH one application at a time.  So it looks SERIAL because people THINK
>serial. We can only do low level tasks like see, hear, taste, and smell in
>parallel; I guess that's what separates the humans from the computers who think
>SERIALLY just like we do, only they're better at faking it.

To sum it up, there are times people can appear to work in parallel to the
computer. Sure its still actually serial but I get better more throughout by
making my computer think I can work in parallel.

>P.P.S. And yes the Mac interface isn't THE absolute best interface, but at 
>	least its  tries.

P.P.S.  Any yes the UNIX shell command interface isn't THE absolute best, but
	at least it tries.
>
>
>Lyman S. Taylor					lyman@ames-aurora.arpa
>NASA Ames Research Center		                or

						Ray Hill
						hill@nicmad