Frank Ludolph

The Lisa user interface

Apple’s Lisa, introduced in January 1983, was the bridge between the first commercial graphical desktop system, the Xerox Star (April 1982), and the Apple Macintosh (January 1984), which popularized it. Although visually similar to current graphical user interfaces, its user model differs substantially. The live demonstration presents a broad view of the Lisa user interface and relates it to other systems. This extended abstract focuses on elements of Lisa’s document-centric user model and context management that made it easier to learn and use than today’s systems.

Simplified applications for network computers

This paper describes the design of HotJava Views, a user environment and suite of applications for a Network Computer. A Network Computer differs from the common Personal Computer in that it has no permanent local storage, but instead obtains its software and data as needed over the network from a central server. We have abandoned some characteristic features of current GUI interfaces, such as the desktop metaphor, file systems, and the distinction between applications and documents. Our design principles are focused on simplicity, efficiency of operation, clarity of the interaction model, and tight integration between applications.