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Design considerations for knowledge workshop terminals

Published: 04 June 1973 Publication History

Abstract

The theme of this paper ties directly to that developed in a concurrent paper "The Augmented Knowledge Workshop," and assumes that: "intelligent terminals" will come to be used very, very extensively by knowledge workers of all kinds; terminals will be their constant working companions; service transactions through their terminals will cover a surprisingly pervasive range of work activity, including communication with people who are widely distributed geographically; the many "computer-aid tools" and human services thus accessible will represent a thoroughly coordinated "knowledge workshop"; most of these users will absorb a great deal of special training aimed at effectively harnessing their respective workshop systems---in special working methods, conventions, concepts, and procedural and operating skills.

References

[1]
Engelbart, D. C., Watson, R. W., Norton, J. C., The Augmented Knowledge Workshop, AFIPS Proceedings National Computer Conference, June 1973, (SRI-ARC Journal File 14724)
[2]
Engelbart, D. C., Augmenting Human Intellect: A Conceptual Framework, Stanford Research Institute Augmentation Research Center, AFOSR-3223, AD-289 565, October 1962, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 3906) The framework developed a basic strategy that ARC is still following---"bootstrapping" the evolution of augmentation systems by concentrating on developments and applications that best facilitate the evolution and application of augmentation systems. See the companion paper' for a picture of today's representation of that philosophy; the old report still makes for valuable reading, to my mind---there is much there that I can't say any better today. In a "science-fiction" section of the report, I describe a console with features that are clear precedents to the things we are using and doing today---and some that we haven't yet gotten to.
[3]
Engelbart, D. C., A Conceptual Framework for the Augmentation of Man's Intellect Vistas," in Information Handling, Howerton and Weeks (Editors), Spartan Books, Washington, D. C., 1963, pp. 1--29, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9375) This chapter contains the bulk of the report; with the main exclusion being a fairly lengthy section written in story-telling, science-fiction prose about what a visit to the augmented workshop of the future would be like. That is the part that I thought tied it all together---but today's reader probably doesn't need the help the reader of ten years ago did. I think that the framework developed here is still very relevant to the topic of an augmented workshop and the terminal services that support it.
[4]
Engelbart, D. C., Sorenson, P. H., Explorations in the Automation of Sensorimotor Skill Training, Stanford Research Institute, NAVTRADEVCEN 1517-1, AD 619 046, January 1965, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 11736). Here the objective was to explore the potential of using computeraided instruction in the domain of physical skills rather than of conceptual skills. It happened that the physical skill we chose, to make for a manageable instrumentation problem, was operating the five-key chording keyset. Consequently, here is more data on keyset-skill learnability; it diminished the significance of the experiment on computerized skill training because the skill turned out to be so easy to learn however the subject went about it.
[5]
Engelbart, D. C., Augmenting Human Intellect: Experiments, Concepts, and Possibilities---Summary Report Stanford Research Institute, Augmentation Research Center, March 1965, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9691). This includes a seven-page Appendix that describes our first keyset codes and usage conventions---which have since changed. Two main sections of about twelve pages, each of which is very relevant to the general topic of "intelligent terminal" design, are discussed above under "Extended Features."
[6]
English, W. K., Engelbart, D. C., Huddart, B., Computer Aided Display Control---Final Report Stanford Research Institute, Augmentation Research Center, July 1965, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9692). About twenty percent of this report dealt explicitly with the screen-selection tests (that were published later in {7}; most of the rest provides environmental description (computer, command language, hierarchical file-structuring conventions, etc.) that is interesting only if you happen to like comparing earlier and later stages of evolution, in what has since become a very sophisticated system through continuous, constant-purpose evolution.
[7]
English, W. K., Engelbart, D. C., Berman, M. A., "Display-Selection Techniques for Text Manipulation," IEEE Transactions on Human Factors in Electronics, Vol. HFE-8, No. 1, pp. 5--15, March 1967, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9694). This is essentially the portion of {6} above that dealt with the screen-selection tests and analyses. Ten pages, showing photographs of the different devices tested (even the knee-controlled setup), and describing with photographs the computerized selection experiments and displays of response-time patterns. Some nine different bar charts show comparative, analytic results.
[8]
Licklider, J. C. R., Taylor, R. W., Herbert, E., "The Computer as a Communication Device," International Science and Technology, No. 76, pp. 21--31, April 1968, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 3888). The first two authors have very directly and significantly affected the course of evolution in time-sharing, interactive-computing, and computer networks, and the third author is a skilled and experienced writer; the result shows important foresight in general, with respect to the mix of computers and communications in which technologists of both breeds must learn to anticipate the mutual impact in order to be working on the right problems and possibilities. Included is a page or so describing our augmented conferencing experiment, in which Taylor had been a participant.
[9]
Engelbart, D. C., Human Intellect Augmentation Techniques, Final Report Stanford Research Institute, Augmentation Research Center, CR-1270, N69-16140, July 1968, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 3562). A report especially aimed at a more general audience, this one rather gently lays out a clean picture of research strategy and environment, developments in our user-system features, developments in our system-design techniques, and (especially relevant here) some twenty pages discussing "results," i.e. how the tools affect us, how we go about some things differently, what our documentation and record-keeping practices are, etc. And there is a good description of our on-line conferencing setup and experiences.
[10]
Engelbart, D. C., "Augmenting Your Intellect," (Interview With D. C. Engelbart), Research Development, pp. 22--27, August 1968, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9698). The text is in a dialog mode---me being interviewed. I thought that it provided a very effective way for eliciting from me some things that I otherwise found hard to express; a number of the points being very relevant to the attitudes and assertions expressed in the text above. There are two good photographs: one of the basic work station (as described above), and one of an on-going augmented group meeting.
[11]
Engelbart, D. C., English, W. K., "A Research Center for Augmenting Human Intellect," AFIPS Proceedings-Fall Joint Computer Conference, Vol. 33, pp. 395--410, 1968, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 3954). Our most comprehensive piece, in the open literature, describing our activities and developments. Devotes one page (out of twelve) to the work-station design; also includes photographs of screen usage, one of an augmented group meeting in action, and one showing the facility for a video-based display system to mix camera-generated video (in this case, the face of Bill English) with computer-generated graphics about which he is communicating to a remote viewer.
[12]
Haavind, R., "Man Computer 'Partnerships' Explored," Electronic Design, Vol. 17, No. 3, pp. 25--32, 1 February, 1969, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 13961). A very well-done piece, effectively using photographs and diagrams to support description of our consoles, environment, working practices, and experiences to a general, technically oriented reader.
[13]
Augmentation of the Human Intellect---A Film of the SRI-ARC, Presentation at the 1969 ASIS Conference, San Francisco, (A 3-Reel Movie). Stanford Research Institute, Augmentation Research Center, October 1969, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9733).
[14]
Field R. K., "Here Comes the Tuned-In, Wired-Up, Plugged-In, Hyperarticulate Speed-of-Light Society---An Electronics Special Report: No More Pencils, No More Books---Write and Read Electronically," Electronics, pp. 73--104, 24 November, 1969, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9705). A special-feature staff report on communications, covering comments and attitudes from a number of interviewed "sages." Some very good photographs of our terminals in action provide one aspect of relevance here, but the rest of the article does very well in supporting the realization that a very complex set of opportunities and changes are due to arise, over many facets of communication.
[15]
Engelbart, D. C., "Intellectual Implications of Multi-Access Computer Networks," paper presented at Interdisciplinary Conference on Multi-Access Computer Networks, Austin, Texas, April 1970, preprint, (SRI-ARC Journal File 5255). This develops a picture of the sort of knowledge-worker marketplace that will evolve, and gives examples of the variety and flexibility in human-service exchanges that can (will) be supported. It compares human institutions to biological organisms, and pictures the computer-people networks as a new evolutionary step in the form of "institutional nervous systems" that can enable our human institutions to become much more "intelligent, adaptable, etc." This represents a solid statement of my assumptions about the environment, utilization and significance of our computer terminals.
[16]
Engelbart, D. C., SRI-ARC Staff, Advanced Intellect-Augmentation Techniques---Final Report, Stanford Research Institute, Augmentation Research Center, CR-1827, July 1970, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 5140). Our most comprehensive report in the area of usage experience and practices. Explicit sections on: The Augmented Software Engineer, The Augmented Manager, The Augmented Report-Writing Team, and The Augmented Presentation. This has some fifty-seven screen photographs to support the detailed descriptions; and there are photographs of three stages of display-console arrangement (including the one designed and fabricated experimentally by Herman Miller, Inc, where the keyboard, keyset and mouse are built into a swinging control frame attached to the swivel chair).
[17]
Roberts, L. C., Extensions of Packet Communication Technology to a Hand Held Personal Terminal, Advanced Research Projects Agency, Information Processing Techniques, 24 January, 1972. (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 9120). Technology of digital-packet communication can soon support mobile terminals; other technologies can soon provide hand-held display terminals suitable for interactive text manipulation.
[18]
Savoie, R., Summary of Results of Five-Finger Keyset Training Experiment, Project 8457-21, Stanford Research Institute, Bioengineering Group, 4, p. 29, March 1972, (SRI-ARC Catalog Item 11101). Summarizes tests made on six subjects, with an automated testing setup, to gain an objective gauge on the learnability of the chording keyset code and operating skill. Results were actually hard to interpret because skills grew rapidly in a matter of hours. General conclusion: it is an easy skill to acquire.
[19]
DNLS Environment Stanford Research Institute, Augmentation Research Center, 8, p. 19, June 1972, (SRI-ARC Journal File 10704). Current User's Guide for ARC's Display Online System (DNLS). Gives explicit description on use of the keyset, mouse, and the basic interaction processes.

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    cover image ACM Other conferences
    AFIPS '73: Proceedings of the June 4-8, 1973, national computer conference and exposition
    June 1973
    936 pages
    ISBN:9781450379168
    DOI:10.1145/1499586
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    Published: 04 June 1973

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