the.com/xerox alto
the computer that invented your desktop, then let apple take the credit.
means a 1973 research computer from xerox parc that first combined a graphical interface, mouse, and networked windows in one machine.
from built at xerox's palo alto research center by a team including alan kay and chuck thacker, the alto was never sold to the public — it was a lab experiment so far ahead of its time that xerox itself didn't grasp what it had.
steve jobs visit1979 tour directly inspired the macintosh
only builtabout 2,000 units, never sold commercially
first everythinggui, mouse, ethernet, wysiwyg editor, bitmap screen
for instance
bravo editor — first wysiwyg word processor, ran on the alto in 1974
parc ethernet — bob metcalfe wired altos together at xerox parc, 1973
apple lisa — 1983 machine built by engineers who saw the alto demo