Xerox PARC - Revision history

Jnc: Link Xerox

2025-10-10T00:00:46Z

Link Xerox

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:00, 10 October 2025
Line 1:		Line 1:
	'''Xerox PARC''' was the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (most usually referred to by the acronymmed short form). During its peak period of productivity in the 1970s, building on earlier thinking and work by people such as [[J. C. R. Licklider]], [[Ivan Sutherland]] and [[Douglas Engelbart]], it created essentially the modern computing environment. Among their most consequential and famous creations were:		'''Xerox PARC''' was the [[Xerox]] Palo Alto Research Center (most usually referred to by the acronymmed short form). During its peak period of productivity in the 1970s, building on earlier thinking and work by people such as [[J. C. R. Licklider]], [[Ivan Sutherland]] and [[Douglas Engelbart]], it created essentially the modern computing environment. Among their most consequential and famous creations were:

	* the ground-breaking [[Xerox Alto]] personal [[workstation]], from which essentially all modern [[personal computer]]s, including especially their [[graphical user interface]]s, are descended;		* the ground-breaking [[Xerox Alto]] personal [[workstation]], from which essentially all modern [[personal computer]]s, including especially their [[graphical user interface]]s, are descended;

Jnc: Substitute text description

2024-11-23T01:36:33Z

Substitute text description

← Older revision		Revision as of 01:36, 23 November 2024
Line 23:		Line 23:
	* the [[touch tablet]]		* the [[touch tablet]]

	The [[Maxc]] computers (clones of the [[PDP-10]], which ran [[TENEX]]), were also produced there		The [[Maxc]] computers (clones of the [[PDP-10]], which ran [[TENEX]]), were also produced there. PARC also wrote and experimented with the first [[worm]]s ever produced.

	{{semi-stub}}		{{semi-stub}}
			<!--
	==See also==		==See also==
			-->
	* [[Worm]]

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==

Jnc: /* See also */ +Worm

2024-11-22T17:10:05Z

Jnc: /* External links / +50 Years Later, We‘re Still Living In The Xerox Alto‘s World

2024-11-16T11:47:44Z

External links: * +50 Years Later, We‘re Still Living In The Xerox Alto‘s World

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:47, 16 November 2024
Line 38:		Line 38:
	** [https://computerhistory.org/blog/a-backup-of-historical-proportions/ A Backup of Historical Proportions] - making the Xerox PARC file system archive accessible		** [https://computerhistory.org/blog/a-backup-of-historical-proportions/ A Backup of Historical Proportions] - making the Xerox PARC file system archive accessible
	* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-parc Xerox PARC's Engineers on How They Invented The Future] - excellent [[IEEE]] article (with a few irritating minor errors: "information-processing techniques office" should be [[Information Processing Techniques Office]] - its formal name; "the 1,103 dynamic memory chips used in the MAXC design" - that's the [[Intel 1103]])		* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-parc Xerox PARC's Engineers on How They Invented The Future] - excellent [[IEEE]] article (with a few irritating minor errors: "information-processing techniques office" should be [[Information Processing Techniques Office]] - its formal name; "the 1,103 dynamic memory chips used in the MAXC design" - that's the [[Intel 1103]])
			* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-alto 50 Years Later, We‘re Still Living In The Xerox Alto‘s World] - another IEEE article, which also covers the creation of PARC
	* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/parc Xerox Donates Legendary PARC Research Center]		* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/parc Xerox Donates Legendary PARC Research Center]

Jnc: +New category

2024-01-10T00:53:46Z

+New category

← Older revision		Revision as of 00:53, 10 January 2024
Line 42:		Line 42:
	[[Category: Research Organizations]]		[[Category: Research Organizations]]
	[[Category: Xerox]]		[[Category: Xerox]]
			[[Category: PDP-10 Users]]

Jnc: +link to PostScript

2023-12-18T12:32:09Z

+link to PostScript

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:32, 18 December 2023
Line 16:		Line 16:

	* the [[laser printer]]		* the [[laser printer]]
	* inclusion of [[graphics]] in computer-produced documents		* inclusion of [[graphics]] in computer-produced documents, eventually leading to [[PostScript]]
	* [[structured programming]] and [[object-oriented]] [[programming language]]s		* [[structured programming]] and [[object-oriented]] [[programming language]]s
	* the idea for the [[laptop]] (in the form of [[Alan Kay]]'s [[Dynabook]])		* the idea for the [[laptop]] (in the form of [[Alan Kay]]'s [[Dynabook]])

Jnc: /* External links */ +A Backup of Historical Proportions

2023-12-18T12:28:26Z

External links: +A Backup of Historical Proportions

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:28, 18 December 2023
Line 36:		Line 36:
	* [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/index.html Xerox PARC Interim File System (IFS) archive]		* [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/index.html Xerox PARC Interim File System (IFS) archive]
	** [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/Xerox_PARC_source_code.html Xerox PARC file system archive] - curated overview		** [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/Xerox_PARC_source_code.html Xerox PARC file system archive] - curated overview
			** [https://computerhistory.org/blog/a-backup-of-historical-proportions/ A Backup of Historical Proportions] - making the Xerox PARC file system archive accessible
	* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-parc Xerox PARC's Engineers on How They Invented The Future] - excellent [[IEEE]] article (with a few irritating minor errors: "information-processing techniques office" should be [[Information Processing Techniques Office]] - its formal name; "the 1,103 dynamic memory chips used in the MAXC design" - that's the [[Intel 1103]])		* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-parc Xerox PARC's Engineers on How They Invented The Future] - excellent [[IEEE]] article (with a few irritating minor errors: "information-processing techniques office" should be [[Information Processing Techniques Office]] - its formal name; "the 1,103 dynamic memory chips used in the MAXC design" - that's the [[Intel 1103]])
	* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/parc Xerox Donates Legendary PARC Research Center]		* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/parc Xerox Donates Legendary PARC Research Center]

Jnc: Improve considerably

2023-10-05T19:44:01Z

Improve considerably

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:44, 5 October 2023
Line 1:		Line 1:
	'''Xerox PARC''' was the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center; most usually referred to by the acronymmed short form. ~~It most famously~~ and ~~consequentially produced the ground-breaking~~ [[~~Xerox Alto~~]] ~~personal~~ [[~~workstation~~]]~~, from which essentially all modern computing user interfaces are descended;~~ and ~~the~~ [[~~Ethernet]] [[local area network~~]], ~~which was similarly influential on~~ the ~~now-ubiquitous [[WiFi]] networking technology~~.		'''Xerox PARC''' was the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (most usually referred to by the acronymmed short form). During its peak period of productivity in the 1970s, building on earlier thinking and work by people such as [[J. C. R. Licklider]], [[Ivan Sutherland]] and [[Douglas Engelbart]], it created essentially the modern computing environment. Among their most consequential and famous creations were:

	~~Also created at PARC was~~ the [[~~PARC Universal Packet~~]] ~~(PUP)~~ [[~~internetwork\|internetworking~~]] [[~~protocol suite~~]]~~; it had a significant influence on the later~~ [[~~TCP/IP~~]].		* the ground-breaking [[Xerox Alto]] personal [[workstation]], from which essentially all modern [[personal computer]]s, including especially their [[graphical user interface]]s, are descended;

	~~The~~ [[~~MAXC~~]] ~~computers (clones of the~~ [[~~PDP-10~~]], which ~~ran~~ [[~~TENEX~~]]), ~~were also produced there~~		* the [[Ethernet]] [[local area network]], which through its descendant, [[DIX Ethernet]], was similarly influential on the now-ubiquitous [[WiFi]] networking technology;

	{{stub}}		* the [[PARC Universal Packet]] (PUP) [[internetwork]]ing [[protocol suite]]; it had a significant influence on the later [[TCP/IP]] of the [[Internet]];

			* the unification of the above into the network-centric information-handling system, with [[server]]s and workstations (the Alto).

			Hints of those existed before, but PARC's unified implementation of them all (and in a way that made them cheap enough to deploy them widely) was a huge jump forward.

			Although 'personal computers' had a thin but long (if now poorly remembered) history at that point (including the [[LINC]], and [[Augmentation Research Center\|ARC]]'s 'workstation' - which did not mean then what it does now), the Alto showed what could be done when you added a [[bit-mapped display]] to which the [[Central Processing Unit\|CPU]] had direct access, and deployed a group of them in a network/server environment; having so much computing power available, on an individual basis, that the user could 'light their cigar with computes' radically changed everything. (Of course, the invention of the [[microprocessor]] turbo-charged that.)

			Other notable creations of PARC in that period included:

			* the [[laser printer]]
			* inclusion of [[graphics]] in computer-produced documents
			* [[structured programming]] and [[object-oriented]] [[programming language]]s
			* the idea for the [[laptop]] (in the form of [[Alan Kay]]'s [[Dynabook]])
			* structured [[VLSI]] design, including [[CAD]] tools for it
			* [[semiconductor]] [[laser]]s, used in (among many other places) [[optical disk]]s
			* the [[touch tablet]]

			The [[Maxc]] computers (clones of the [[PDP-10]], which ran [[TENEX]]), were also produced there

			{{semi-stub}}

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==
Line 14:		Line 34:
	==External links==		==External links==

	* [https://xeroxalto.computerhistory.org/ Xerox PARC Alto filesystem archive]
	** [https://xeroxalto.computerhistory.org/cross_reference.html Cross reference by file name]
	* [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/index.html Xerox PARC Interim File System (IFS) archive]		* [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/index.html Xerox PARC Interim File System (IFS) archive]
	** [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/Xerox_PARC_source_code.html Xerox PARC file system archive] - curated overview		** [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/Xerox_PARC_source_code.html Xerox PARC file system archive] - curated overview
	* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-parc Xerox PARC's Engineers on How They Invented The Future] - excellent [[IEEE]] article (with a few irritating minor errors: "information-processing techniques office" should be 'Information Processing Techniques Office~~' [~~its formal name]; "the 1,103 dynamic memory chips used in the MAXC design" - that's the [[Intel 1103]])		* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-parc Xerox PARC's Engineers on How They Invented The Future] - excellent [[IEEE]] article (with a few irritating minor errors: "information-processing techniques office" should be [[Information Processing Techniques Office]] - its formal name; "the 1,103 dynamic memory chips used in the MAXC design" - that's the [[Intel 1103]])
	* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/parc m]		* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/parc Xerox Donates Legendary PARC Research Center]

	[[Category: Research Organizations]]		[[Category: Research Organizations]]
	[[Category: Xerox]]		[[Category: Xerox]]

Jnc: /* External links */ + Two good IEEE articles

2023-10-03T04:50:43Z

External links: + Two good IEEE articles

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:50, 3 October 2023
Line 18:		Line 18:
	* [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/index.html Xerox PARC Interim File System (IFS) archive]		* [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/index.html Xerox PARC Interim File System (IFS) archive]
	** [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/Xerox_PARC_source_code.html Xerox PARC file system archive] - curated overview		** [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/Xerox_PARC_source_code.html Xerox PARC file system archive] - curated overview
			* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/xerox-parc Xerox PARC's Engineers on How They Invented The Future] - excellent [[IEEE]] article (with a few irritating minor errors: "information-processing techniques office" should be 'Information Processing Techniques Office' [its formal name]; "the 1,103 dynamic memory chips used in the MAXC design" - that's the [[Intel 1103]])
			* [https://spectrum.ieee.org/parc m]

	[[Category: Research Organizations]]		[[Category: Research Organizations]]
	[[Category: Xerox]]		[[Category: Xerox]]

Jnc: Re-factor, add some content (PUP); add new archive

2023-05-11T15:21:18Z

Re-factor, add some content (PUP); add new archive

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:21, 11 May 2023
Line 1:		Line 1:
	'''Xerox PARC''' was the acronymmed short form of the 'Xerox ~~Palo~~ Alto ~~Research Center'~~.		'''Xerox PARC''' was the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center; most usually referred to by the acronymmed short form. It most famously and consequentially produced the ground-breaking [[Xerox Alto]] personal [[workstation]], from which essentially all modern computing user interfaces are descended; and the [[Ethernet]] [[local area network]], which was similarly influential on the now-ubiquitous [[WiFi]] networking technology.

	~~The~~ [[~~MAXC~~]] ~~computers~~ (~~clones of the~~ [[~~PDP-10~~]]~~; they ran~~ [[~~TENEX~~]]~~) were produced there, along with, most famous and consequentially,~~ the ~~ground-breaking~~ [[~~Ethernet~~]] [[~~local area network~~]] ~~and~~ the [[~~Xerox Alto~~]] ~~personal~~ [[~~workstation~~]].		Also created at PARC was the [[PARC Universal Packet]] (PUP) [[internetwork\|internetworking]] [[protocol suite]]; it had a significant influence on the later [[TCP/IP]].

			The [[MAXC]] computers (clones of the [[PDP-10]], which ran [[TENEX]]), were also produced there

	{{stub}}		{{stub}}
Line 14:		Line 16:
	* [https://xeroxalto.computerhistory.org/ Xerox PARC Alto filesystem archive]		* [https://xeroxalto.computerhistory.org/ Xerox PARC Alto filesystem archive]
	** [https://xeroxalto.computerhistory.org/cross_reference.html Cross reference by file name]		** [https://xeroxalto.computerhistory.org/cross_reference.html Cross reference by file name]
			* [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/index.html Xerox PARC Interim File System (IFS) archive]
			** [https://xeroxparcarchive.computerhistory.org/Xerox_PARC_source_code.html Xerox PARC file system archive] - curated overview

	[[Category: Research Organizations]]		[[Category: Research Organizations]]
	[[Category: Xerox]]		[[Category: Xerox]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:10, 22 November 2024
Line 26:		Line 26:

	{{semi-stub}}		{{semi-stub}}

			==See also==

			* [[Worm]]

	==Further reading==		==Further reading==