4 ms·

Summary: In 1996 some academics tried to re-imagine human-computer interaction, and they used the current Mac OS as a starting point (FYI: It was version 7.5).

by waxman 16y ago

Summary: In 1996 some academics tried to re-imagine human-computer interaction, and they used the current Mac OS as a starting point (FYI: It was version 7.5). How Their Predictions Panned Out: First off, they got some relatively obvious things right: they correctly saw that computers of the future would be hyper-connected instead of isolated (but in 1996 this wasn't exactly a bold prediction), and that they would have hardware orders of magnitude more powerful. Somewhat more insightfully they predicted that the purpose of computers would shift from mainly solo productivity-type work to games, multimedia, creative, social, etc. They also predicted the rise of alternative forms of I/O, and I think the I/O of Apple's iOS, for instance, is in many ways consistent with what they envisioned. A few of their guesses have not yet materialized, though. They emphasize the use of "language" over point and click icons. Unfortunately, NLP and AI are harder than they anticipated. If we again look at iOS as an example, touch icons, it seems, are still much more useful than natural language. The article provides a fascinating time capsule of HCI thinking at the dawn of the Internet. Incidentally, just weeks after this article was published Steve Jobs returned to Apple and sparked the new generation of interfaces that they could only imagine.

lwhi 16y ago
"Incidentally, just weeks after this article was published Steve Jobs returned to Apple and sparked the new generation of interfaces that they could only imagine." In what way were the newer generation of interfaces different to what they'd already described (as the 'mac interface')? -- I think we're still using very WIMP orientated interfaces .. most interfaces haven't changed that much. Even iOS / Android use central themes from the old desktop metaphor.
- waxman 16y ago
  iOS
  - lwhi 16y ago
    .. in 1996, really? ;)
- Samuel_Michon 16y ago
  Apple's iOS doesn't use windows, all apps are full-screen. IOS doesn't have a menu bar, only an info bar (time, power, cell reception, etc). It doesn't even use a pointing device, and there's no onscreen pointer -- you can use your finger to 'click' (touch) and drag, but you can't point. Window, Icon, Menu, Pointing device. Only the icons survived. There's no desktop metaphor either in iOS: no recycle bin, no central file cabinet to browse through, no desktop to arbitrarily place things on, no way to make file folders.
  - lwhi 16y ago
    * (W) You are presented with modal dialogs (a form of window) at various points in many iOS interfaces - ditto for Android. * (I) The main way of representing an application is via an icon. * (M) There are definitely menus in Android. I'd argue that there are also even menus in iOS - lists of options that are allow you select which operation you'd like to perform (e.g. mail settings menu). * (P) You can point - you use your finger. You can't hover. It's not really that ground-breaking - it's a relatively small iteration.
    - Samuel_Michon 16y ago
      When using Mac OS X, no matter what you do, there's always a menu bar at the top of the screen. Until recently, all Mac OS X apps had window chrome, even when the application window was maximized. IOS doesn't have any of that -- there are specific situations in which you are presented with a modal dialog or a menu, but they aren't GUI elements that are always onscreen. Then there's the pointing. In iOS, you can't just point -- to touch is to point+click.
      - lwhi 16y ago
        I don't understand why these distinctions make any difference? Fundamentally - I think the core elements are very similar - the differences are necessary due to the constraints of mobile devices. Perhaps implementation differs - but I don't see how this makes my point less true. Are you stating that we actually are making use of interfaces which are groundbreaking (in a similar way to those presented in the article)?
Qz 16y ago
While not as 'language' based as we would like, I do think tremendous progress has been made in language-as-an-interface with the rise of google. It doesn't talk back to me, but I can type a lot of meaningful statements or questions into google and get a 'meaningful' response.
- rgbrgb 16y ago
  Text/Language search in general is much more useful in the GUI now than it ever was. For instance, I use spotlight for everything - I hardly ever dive into folders looking for something.
dman 16y ago
Ever since Windows renamed some UI (Programs and Features etc) and made some other things harder to reach (System etc) I largely use the search interface to get to what I want in the Control Panel and associated settings tools.

by waxman 16y ago

lwhi 16y ago

"Incidentally, just weeks after this article was published Steve Jobs returned to Apple and sparked the new generation of interfaces that they could only imagine." In what way were the newer generation of interfaces different to what they'd already described (as the 'mac interface')? -- I think we're still using very WIMP orientated interfaces .. most interfaces haven't changed that much. Even iOS / Android use central themes from the old desktop metaphor.

waxman 16y ago
iOS
- lwhi 16y ago
  .. in 1996, really? ;)
Samuel_Michon 16y ago
Apple's iOS doesn't use windows, all apps are full-screen. IOS doesn't have a menu bar, only an info bar (time, power, cell reception, etc). It doesn't even use a pointing device, and there's no onscreen pointer -- you can use your finger to 'click' (touch) and drag, but you can't point. Window, Icon, Menu, Pointing device. Only the icons survived. There's no desktop metaphor either in iOS: no recycle bin, no central file cabinet to browse through, no desktop to arbitrarily place things on, no way to make file folders.
- lwhi 16y ago
  * (W) You are presented with modal dialogs (a form of window) at various points in many iOS interfaces - ditto for Android. * (I) The main way of representing an application is via an icon. * (M) There are definitely menus in Android. I'd argue that there are also even menus in iOS - lists of options that are allow you select which operation you'd like to perform (e.g. mail settings menu). * (P) You can point - you use your finger. You can't hover. It's not really that ground-breaking - it's a relatively small iteration.
  - Samuel_Michon 16y ago
    When using Mac OS X, no matter what you do, there's always a menu bar at the top of the screen. Until recently, all Mac OS X apps had window chrome, even when the application window was maximized. IOS doesn't have any of that -- there are specific situations in which you are presented with a modal dialog or a menu, but they aren't GUI elements that are always onscreen. Then there's the pointing. In iOS, you can't just point -- to touch is to point+click.
    - lwhi 16y ago
      I don't understand why these distinctions make any difference? Fundamentally - I think the core elements are very similar - the differences are necessary due to the constraints of mobile devices. Perhaps implementation differs - but I don't see how this makes my point less true. Are you stating that we actually are making use of interfaces which are groundbreaking (in a similar way to those presented in the article)?

Qz 16y ago

While not as 'language' based as we would like, I do think tremendous progress has been made in language-as-an-interface with the rise of google. It doesn't talk back to me, but I can type a lot of meaningful statements or questions into google and get a 'meaningful' response.

rgbrgb 16y ago
Text/Language search in general is much more useful in the GUI now than it ever was. For instance, I use spotlight for everything - I hardly ever dive into folders looking for something.

dman 16y ago

Ever since Windows renamed some UI (Programs and Features etc) and made some other things harder to reach (System etc) I largely use the search interface to get to what I want in the Control Panel and associated settings tools.