The Story of the ALTO and Xerox PARC
summary
The talk recounts Xerox PARC’s development of the Alto (1973), a bitmap workstation that introduced a mouse, WYSIWYG display, early GUIs, a networked file/mail system (≈600 messages/day), and integrated technologies like Ethernet and Starkweather’s laser printer. It also covers PARC’s software innovations—Smalltalk (the first practical object system) and the Bravo/Gypsy editors—notes that about thirty prototype Altos were used internally, and explains how Xerox failed to productize the full Alto stack while Ethernet and the printer succeeded, causing engineers to leave and seed companies such as Apple, Microsoft and Pixar.
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chapters (6)
- 0:00Introduction
- 11:09Computer history context
- 26:29Xerox PARC origins
- 33:13Alto computer innovations
- 42:17PARC legacy and end
- 44:42Conclusion
