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History of CS > Chapter 9 > Flashcards

Chapter 9 Flashcards

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1
Q

When was the Macintosh introduced and what was it?

A

January 24, 1984. Computer with graphical user interface

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2
Q

When was the history of personal computing divided and what are the two eras?

A

The introduction of the Macintosh computer. The two eras: text-based computing inherited from timesharing systems vs the world of windows and graphics

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3
Q

What was Xerox’s goal?

A

To dominate future generations of high tech office products

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4
Q

Why was PARC’s founding significant for computing?

A

The choice of Palo Alto as a location (located in Silicon Valley where a lot of other high tech companies were established) and the background of the team (exceptionally talented and visionary researchers and engineers)

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5
Q

What was the Alto?

A

A personal minicomputer coupled with high-resolution graphics hardware and powerful processor with large memory

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6
Q

What was novel about the Alto?

A
  • Processor capabilities were spread around the machine rather than clustered on one circuit board.
  • Also, each Alto also came with a mouse.
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7
Q

When did the Alto go into use? How much did it cost to build it?

A

The first Alto went into use in 1973. An Alto cost about $18,000 to build.

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8
Q

What is Smalltalk?

A

Smalltalk was a programming environment developed by a group led by Alan Kay

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9
Q

What is the Dynabook?

A

Alan Kay described the Dynabook in his phD to be a thin, portable, battery-powered device with a high-resolution screen and a keyboard (sort of like a tablet nowadays)

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10
Q

What was the idea of Smalltalk?

A

To have a flexible and interactive way of working with graphical objects on a screen.

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11
Q

What did Smalltalk introduce in regards to programming?

A

Object-oriented languages.
Event-driven code.
Integrated development environment.
Overall: Enforced modularity and made it easier to reuse code between systems and to maintain systems.

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12
Q

When did object-oriented programming become mainstream and why did it take so long?

A

1990s because it was more difficult to grasp than traditional programming.

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13
Q

What is Gypsy?

A

Text editor produced in 1976. Resembles Microsoft Word.

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14
Q

What is meant by “what you see is what you get”?

A

What you see is what you get: the printed output would match the visual content of the screen as closely as possible.

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15
Q

What did the laser printer achieve?

A

Merged printing and paper handling mechanisms from a high-end Xerox copier. Another PARC invention.

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16
Q

Grosch’s law

A

A single large and expensive computer would be more cost effective than multiple smaller computers.

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17
Q

Distributed computing

A

Used to describe the idea of having big and little computers working together over computer networks

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18
Q

Client-server computing

A

Graphical interface that split the screen into two window panes: one showing header information for the current message folder, and the other showing the text of the selected message.

19
Q

What was Xerox’s big mistake?

A

Xerox’s big mistake was to turn PARC’s innovations too directly and too rapidly into commercial products, years before customers were ready for them

20
Q

Xerox’s Star

A

Also known as Xerox 8010 Information System.
One of the earliest commercial computer systems to feature a graphical user interface (GUI) and desktop metaphor.

21
Q

Key features of Xerox’s Star

A

GUI, Desktop metaphor, What you see is what you get editing, Ethernet networking

22
Q

Main operating system of graphics workstations

A

Unix

23
Q

What microprocessor chip did most workstations use?

A

Motorola 68000. Meant to be the fastest, most flexible processor available and was not necessarily compatible with its predecessors

24
Q

Motorola 68000 (little facts)

A
  • 32-bit memory addresses
  • registers could hold and manipulate 32-bit numbers
  • processor moved data in 16-bit chunks
25
Q

First 68000-based workstation

A

The Apollo

26
Q

Silicon Graphics Incorporated

A
  • the other major workstation supplier
  • emphasised powerful graphics hardware and won a dominant position in film studios
27
Q

What are workstations?

A

Workstations are high-performance computers designed for professional or technical applications, and they often cater to specific industries or tasks.
In relation to graphics workstations, they were viewed as alternatives to VAX bundled with graphics hardware.

28
Q

What did workstation companies do to gain price-performance advantages?

A

Focused on niche or specialised markets where there was a demand for specific technologies or capabilities

29
Q

Apple Lisa similarities to Xerox’s Star

A
  • Pitched for administrative use and came with a suite of visually polished office applications
  • Derived directly from the work of PARC
  • Tesler developed the object-oriented Lisa Toolkit to help produce graphical applications
  • Use of a simulated desktop to represent files
30
Q

Lisa limitations

A
  • unreliable floppy drives
  • operation system ran slowly and crashed frequently
  • no way to properly print the documents it created
31
Q

Lisa pros

A
  • hard disks
  • networking
  • a GUI
  • slots for expansion
  • users could load several applications simultaneously
32
Q

What was the goal of Steve Jobs when building the Macintosh?

A

To build a cheap, friendly personal computer with a built-in modem

33
Q

Macintosh facts

A
  • Small memory of128KB (to keep costs down)
  • much of the OS was burned on the ROM
  • Macintosh was closed so users could not add boards and were discouraged from even opening the case
  • No expansion slots and no memory sockets
  • Still priced at $3000
  • At Drexel University, all freshmen were required to purchase one, at a negotiated cost less than half of the retail price
34
Q

Macintosh pros

A
  • high portability
  • rapid response to user inputs
  • an elegant user interface
35
Q

What is PageMaker?

A

Desktop publishing software programs in 1985 that let people tinker with fonts and graphics to create newsletters.

36
Q

What was different about the Macintosh II?

A

Launched in 1987 with the expansion slots that Jobs had stripped out and could be used with full-sized monitors.

37
Q

Two most successful Macintosh competitors

A

Atari’s ST and the Commodore Amiga

38
Q

Why was Atari’s ST successful?

A

Despite clumsy hardware and software, it was half the price of a Macintosh and added colour graphics capabilities.

39
Q

Why was the Amiga successful?

A

Included uniquely powerful sound and graphics chips. Mainly used for video production work and game playing

40
Q

Amiga and ST in Europe

A

Successful in Europe with small businesses and computer enthusiasts for whom compatibility and polish were less important than value

41
Q

Macintosh Portable (year, price, weight)

A
  • 1989
  • $7000
  • 16-pound weight due to lead acid battery
42
Q

Atari Portable (battery life)

A

consumed 12 Duracell disposable batteries in half an hour

43
Q

Why did Commodore and Atari not succeed in the following years?

A

Slow to improve the processor speeds and graphical capabilities of their machines due to a smaller market share than Apple

History of CS (5 decks)

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