Have you heard of the PLATO system?
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Platonic :-\
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
Yep. I remember reading about it in the 60s, we had a manual which concentrated on (my befuddled elderly brain informs me) the computer aided learning aspects. I remember being impressed, but, given the cost of a suitable mainframe, wondered how it would ever be affordable. :-D Never came across it again. Perhaps it was just too expensive a project that for us Brits. Once the Swinging Sixties were over (1967), the White Heat of Technology chilled somewhat.
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
raddevus wrote:
Have you heard of the PLATO system?
Yes. I used it. Great fun to play Star Trek with 32 other people across the country on a Friday night. Four teams of Federation, Klingon, Orion and Romulan. Each ship type had different abilities. Touch screen didn't get used at all in that game nor much in general. As I recall it was very course, something like maybe 8 by 8 grid was the most resolution possible.
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
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raddevus wrote:
Have you heard of the PLATO system?
Yes. I used it. Great fun to play Star Trek with 32 other people across the country on a Friday night. Four teams of Federation, Klingon, Orion and Romulan. Each ship type had different abilities. Touch screen didn't get used at all in that game nor much in general. As I recall it was very course, something like maybe 8 by 8 grid was the most resolution possible.
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
You're having a significant impact on my budget. I've already bought two of your other recommendations (C# 7 in a nutshell) and the book on microservices. :-D
Latest Article - Code Review - What You Can Learn From a Single Line of Code Learning to code with python is like learning to swim with those little arm floaties. It gives you undeserved confidence and will eventually drown you. - DangerBunny Artificial intelligence is the only remedy for natural stupidity. - CDP1802
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You're having a significant impact on my budget. I've already bought two of your other recommendations (C# 7 in a nutshell) and the book on microservices. :-D
Latest Article - Code Review - What You Can Learn From a Single Line of Code Learning to code with python is like learning to swim with those little arm floaties. It gives you undeserved confidence and will eventually drown you. - DangerBunny Artificial intelligence is the only remedy for natural stupidity. - CDP1802
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
Didn't you read about it in Ted Nelson's "Computer Lib / Dream Machines"? :-) Or was that book out of print when you became interested in computer books? Computer Lib/Dream Machines - Wikipedia[^] (CL/DM was first published in 1974 and is one of the most remarkable scrapbooks in computer litterature. This is the book where Ted Nelson introduded the hypertext concept, and Plato is one of the background elements for his Hypertext. If you can tet hold of a copy of that book, hold onto it!)
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Didn't you read about it in Ted Nelson's "Computer Lib / Dream Machines"? :-) Or was that book out of print when you became interested in computer books? Computer Lib/Dream Machines - Wikipedia[^] (CL/DM was first published in 1974 and is one of the most remarkable scrapbooks in computer litterature. This is the book where Ted Nelson introduded the hypertext concept, and Plato is one of the background elements for his Hypertext. If you can tet hold of a copy of that book, hold onto it!)
Member 7989122 wrote:
Didn't you read about it in Ted Nelson's "Computer Lib / Dream Machines"? :) Or was that book out of print when you became interested in computer books?
Actually it prob was out of print by the time I was reading computer history. I did read Levy's Hackers though and must've missed the reference to it.
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SarahTheBlue wrote:
side note: light-years is a measurement of distance, not time.
Good point :laugh:
side side note: "light-years ahead" is a colloquialism meaning very advanced, unrelated to distance or time
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side side note: "light-years ahead" is a colloquialism meaning very advanced, unrelated to distance or time
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I read quite a bit and I read a lot of computer history because I find what the people went through fascinating. They built amazing technology out of nothing but copper wires. I was quite shocked when I stumbled upon this book at Barnes & Noble at lunch today. The Friendly Orange Glow: The Untold Story of the PLATO System and the Dawn of Cyberculture[^] That system had a touch screen in 1973 or so. Much more interesting things in there. They had developed Instant Messaging back then. Wow. Looks like a really interesting read. EDIT Here's a bit of the summary:
amazon summary:
At a time when Steve Jobs was only a teenager and Mark Zuckerberg wasn’t even born, a group of visionary engineers and designers—some of them only high school students—in the late 1960s and 1970s created a computer system called PLATO, which was light-years ahead in experimenting with how people would learn, engage, communicate, and play through connected computers. Not only did PLATO engineers make significant hardware breakthroughs with plasma displays and touch screens but PLATO programmers also came up with a long list of software innovations: chat rooms, instant messaging, message boards, screen savers, multiplayer games, online newspapers, interactive fiction, and emoticons.
I used it somewhere around 1970. The human interface was a custom terminal that connected to our IBM 360 mainframe. I think the mother ship was in Minnesota somewhere (U of Minn?). It had some interesting features but overall, I wasn't that impressed with it and didn't spend more than about 45 minutes on it. Perhaps it was ahead of my time too.
I'm retired. There's a nap for that... - Harvey
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Very cool that you actually used the system. It is amazing technology for that time.:thumbsup:
As additional information I didn't find the touch screen very useful. It was coarse as mentioned and at least at times failed to work. However the system had a language that was set up to facilitate creating multi-user environments. So, for example, it was trivial to set up, as a non-administrator, my own workspace such that others could access it, and I could limit their access, and monitor what they were doing. Creating graphics also seemed rather easy to do. Keep in mind that at the same time that I was using that system I was also still taking classes that required one to submit programs via punch cards and then wait for the output to come from the operations people as the output from a high speed line printer.