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SPACEWAR MODE
KEY POINTS
Display not inevitable component of digital
computing platform.
Display conveys information, but also hides
information.
Display not a passive device; implicates user
into a specific relationship with computer.
CRT APPLICATIONS
PROJECT WHIRLWIND
EARLY IMPRESSIONS
The display equipment now in use with WWI is
intended primarily for demonstration purposes.
(Servomechanisms Laboratory, 1949, p. 29)
EXPERIMENTATION
BOUNCING BALL
The trick was to set the
frequency such that you
hit the hole in the floor.
This kept a lot of people
interested for quite a
while, and it was clear
that man-machine
interaction was here to stay. Anyone could turn the
(Hurst et al., 1989, p. 21)
frequency knobs.
LEGACY
Something is always happening on a TV
screen, which is why people stare at them for
hours. On MIT's annual Open House day, for
example, people came to stare for hours at
Whirlwind's CRT screen. What did they stare at?
Bouncing Ball.
(Graetz, 1981)
MOUSE AS DEMO
PDP-1
The PDP-1 would be faster than the Tixo, more
compact, and available. It was the first computer
that did not require one
to have an E.E. degree
and the patience of
Buddha to start it up in
the morning.
(Graetz, 1981)
DISPLAY AS MANAGER
In a real-time interactive system, the display
plays a critical mediating role.
The display must convey a sufficient amount
of information to the user.
The display narrows the users options, defines
relationship with machine.