CONTACTS 
0201 - Bootstrap Institute
020101 - Mr. Douglas C. Engelbart, Ph.D.

SUBJECTS
Design OHS Architecture Learning Curve
Architecture Learning Curve, Meeting 000821
Lincoln C, Brian
Usability Learning Curve, 000825
History Doug's Development Work to Augment Human Intellect
Easy to Learn Use, Avoid Complex Function Keys, 000825
Power User Wants Function Keys Fast to Use, 000825
Usefulness Not Marketing Criteria
OHS Architecture Based on Augment Developed in 1960, Meeting Doug Eng
Meeting with Doug Engelbart on Design OHS/DKR Based on Augment Design
Augment, Doug Engelbart's System in 1960s

3613 -
3613 -    ..
3614 - Summary/Objective
3615 -
361501 - Follow up ref SDS 18 0000, ref SDS 17 0000.
361502 -
361503 - Received ref DRT 1 0001 from Brian C. Lincoln, Pat's brother, who
361504 - submits notes of a meeting with Doug Engelbart on 000821 about
361505 - developing the architecture for the OHS/DKR system.  This supplements,
361506 - and preceeds Doug's meeting with Eric Armstrong the next day on
361507 - 000822, reported on 000824. ref SDS 18 0001
361509 -  ..
361510 - The meeting implements planning on 000815 reported by Eugene Kim for
361511 - Doug to meet with expert engineers on designing the architecture for
361512 - OHS/DKR. ref SDS 17 LJ4L
361513 -
361514 -      [On 000830 Grant Bowman reports meeting with Doug on 000829 about
361515 -      marketing OHS. ref SDS 19 L52W
361517 -       ..
361518 -      [On 010629 Brian requests his email address be suppressed from
361519 -      the record on the Internet. ref SDS 21 0001
361521 -  ..
361522 - Brian says...
361523 -
361525 -      ..
361526 -     Augment Developed in Late 60s Based on Doug's Research, Papers
361527 -
361528 -     Doug developed ideas about the iterative co-evolution of tools and
361529 -     processes in the late 50s, ref DRT 1 OR7M, and in 1962 produced
361530 -     the paper "Augmenting Human Intellect" which is available at:
361531 -
361533 -          ..
361534 -         http://www.histech.rwth-aachen.de/www/quellen/engelbart/ahi62index.html
361535 -
361537 -      ..
361538 -     Doug worked with software & computer designers through the 60s and
361539 -     had in the late 1960s an initial version of Augment. ref DRT 1
361540 -     2T8K
361541 -
361542 -          This supplements background on Doug and Augment NLS explained
361543 -          in the record on 000223. ref SDS 2 9076
361544 -
361545 -             [On 010620 Lee Iverson cites Doug's background in a paper
361546 -             on NODAL to describe technology for implementing Doug's
361547 -             objectives to augment intelligence. ref SDS 20 TT4I
361549 -      ..
361550 -     Each step of development ran into a wall at some point or another
361551 -     due to odd corporate and larger processes, but Doug has continued
361552 -     to champion his cause and kept developing the ideas throughout the
361553 -     last 40 years.
361554 -
361556 -      ..
361557 -     Power Users Want to Work Quickly, Requires Direct Functions
361558 -     Learning Curve Needs to be Flexible to Fit Broad User Base
361559 -
361560 -     We talked a little about the problem of having much of the
361561 -     software developed to reduce the slope of learning curves with
361562 -     little or no attention on what 'expert use' is like.  For tools
361563 -     that I use every day, I want to learn the most efficient way of
361564 -     using them and I am constantly annoyed by the lack of direct-key
361565 -     access to commands or the layout of menus which seem designed for
361566 -     someone else.  Doug shared this frustration.
361567 -
361568 -        This is an advantage of SDS.
361570 -         ..
361571 -        On 000120 ease of used reviewed. ref SDS 1 9492
361572 -
361573 -
361575 -         ..
361576 -        Eric noted on 000824 it may be a disadvantage for casual users
361577 -        who prefer slower performance, but easier to remember functions
361578 -        when used infrequently. ref SDS 18 546O
361580 -      ..
361581 -     We then spent some time talking about current technologies and I
361582 -     showed Doug a quick introduction to Javascript and talked a little
361583 -     about some of the limitations of javascript versus java for a thin
361584 -     client.  One question Doug had that I couldn't answer is whether
361585 -     any current javascript DOM allows javascript to find out what text
361586 -     is selected by the mouse.  Obviously javascript is a very limited
361587 -     language for attempting to implement any serious Augment
361588 -     candidate, but its an extremely light way to implement some
361589 -     concepts.
361590 -
361591 -        [On 060211 Open Iris Java web-application SRI CALO project
361592 -        sponsored by DARPA, ref SDS 23 YY5K, seems conflicting with
361593 -        mistaken belief worrying on 030527 about loss of
361594 -        confidentiality using SDS records that are not produced on the
361595 -        Internet. ref SDS 22 ZU3G
361596 -
361598 -      ..
361599 -     Funding Will Launch Production Work to Code System
361600 -
361601 -     One of the elements of the discussion which surprised me was
361602 -     that Doug said that he had not been planning on any actual coding
361603 -     development to happen before some financing for the project had
361604 -     been secured.  Although I think that the project will get funding
361605 -     soon, this seemed somewhat different than what I had understood
361606 -     to be happening.  Doug said he was willing to rethink that, but I
361607 -     mostly thought it was good to get his view of it explicit so that
361608 -     it could be discussed if necessary.
361610 -           ..
361611 -          This aligns with planning on 000324 to fund a budget for the
361612 -          work, ref SDS 3 5482, discussed again with Doug on 000327.
361613 -          ref SDS 4 5402
361615 -      ..
361616 -     Thats about it for the summary.
361618 -      ..
361619 -     For my thoughts:
361621 -      ..
361622 -     I think the history of the project may have some lessons we
361623 -     can learn, but I suspect each of us may take away different lessons.
361624 -     I believe that Doug's project has generated a number of good
361625 -     concepts, 'technologies', and core designs that can be implemented
361626 -     as is.
361628 -      ..
361629 -     I think that one way to approach the problem of how to implement
361630 -     technologies and instantiate ideas in a way that won't become
361631 -     dead ends is to do 3 things (this may be exactly what is happening
361632 -     and is not intended to be novel):
361634 -      ..
361635 -     1) create pseudocode, englishy-code object descriptions, and
361636 -     technical documentation.
361638 -      ..
361639 -     2) instantiate OHS Email Gateway V1 using some of the key features,
361640 -     with the intention to create something quickly, something light, and
361641 -     something that can act as a world-useable strawperson to beat up
361642 -     and use as a launching point for future instantiations.   I am pretty
361643 -     sure this is happening already.
361644 -
361645 -       The work on the OHS Email Gateway V1 does not interfere with
361646 -     more generic and higher level pseudocode object definitions
361647 -     which can then act as templates for implementing wider and
361648 -     wider sets of Augment functionality in various environments.
361650 -      ..
361651 -     3) Documentation & publication.  Continue to write documentation
361652 -     for each individual innovation and index the documentation well so
361653 -     that it can be archived, indexed, etc.  This includes trying to
361654 -     write some pseudo code, a technical description, and an executive
361655 -     summary indicating what value it adds to the world and how.
361657 -      ..
361658 -     I think that this process can bootstrap the ideas in the current
361659 -     context / climate to get them out and being used and getting additional
361660 -     groups developing instantiations of the many feature ideas.
361662 -      ..
361663 -     so, thems my thoughts.  I will be back in September.  Feel free
361664 -     to complete the revolution in my absence.
361665 -
361666 -
361667 -
361668 -
361669 -
3617 -