From: johnsd2@jec307.its.rpi.edu (Daniel Norman Johnson)
Subject: Re: All GUIs are not alike
Reply-To: johnsd2@rpi.edu
Organization: Information Technology Services, Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1992 16:13:56 GMT

Thanks to all who answered my query. I'm going to put all my quesitons
in this responce to save bandwidth.

In article <92101.000756MXD118@psuvm.psu.edu>, Spiro the Spiny Goldfish <MXD118@psuvm.psu.edu> writes:
|> In article <g44tjka@rpi.edu>, johnsd2@rs6215.ecs.rpi.edu (Daniel Norman Johnson)
|> says:
|> >
|> >In article <1992Apr9.224352.367@news.nd.edu>, rcook@grumpy.helios.nd.edu      t
|> >(rober
|> >cook) writes:
|> >|> [deletia- is OS/2 more likte Windows or MacOS?]
|> >|>
|> >|> The WorkPlace Shell is a better GUI than both the Mac and Windows.
|> >
|> >Is the WorkPlace Shell a GUI or a file manager?
|> 
|> Both.  It replaces the old Program and File Managers.
|>

That sounds like a file manager to me (most OSes that I have seen do not
have Window's inconvinient distinction between these two functions-
its nice to see OS/2 has joined the club! :) )

But, I am still confused about the GUI itself- I am talking about
the Officle Mr. YourSupposedToProgramForME GUI for v 2.0; not the
1.3 GUI or the Windows box (or the DOS box :) ), and  not the file
manager [I've already got the message that it is very nice, and rather
similiar to the Mac Finder]

For instance, in this new v2.0 GUI that you have, do windows for
Applications usually have menu bars. Do they have pop-up menus, and if
so what usually goes in those menus? Does it have any weird new controls
that MacOS does not have (I'm familiar with MacOS controls); An example
is the SunOS combination button/menu/palette thingum.

Oh, and while I'm on GUIs I'll just ask 1 other question- does it have
a GUI for multitasking? Ex: In SunOS (openwindows, openlook etc etc etc)
when (some) apps start processing the the background you can tell they are
doing so (and not availiable to do other work) because the title bar gets
a pattern of black dots overlayed on it.

There's a similary doohicky in MacOS, a movable modal dialog box with
a thermometer and a "Cancel" or "Stop" button is the "official" user
interface for multitasking there...

does OS/2 have something like this? [kinda beside the point, but why not]

[deletia- OS/2 does use the old GUI, it uses something new] 
[deletia- File Manager windows dont' have menu bars]
[deletia- Which version of OS/2 2.0 beta had the Workplace shell]
|> 
|> >|>  WPS will launch the application it is associated with and
|> >|> print it, but unlike the Mac you will not notice that the program had
|> >|> to be loaded in order to accomplish this seemingly trivial task.  It is
|> >|> a truly object oriented shell.
|> >
|> >"object oriented" is a little bit meaningless. You may mean no more
|> >than icon-based (which it is, at least), but it may ALSO mean a lot more.
|> >It could be partitioned into object so that you can slip your own code inside
|> >the Workplace shell with whatever results you like, and things like that.
|> 
|> Well - it is object-oriented using the object model called "SOM".  When
|> Workplace Shell development tools become available,  the object-oriented
|> nature of the desktop will become more apparent.
|> 

Perhaps it will, but I'm impatient and would rather not wait. :)
Oh well, I guess I'll find out what the Object Orientedness is about
in good time. Or bad time. Or worse time.. or even worse time.. or really
awful time or... well you get the idea.

BTW maybe somebody should set up a comp.os.os2.advocasy group? Heck, it
needs it. :) And I could ask my annoying questions there, and not bother
everybody.. :)
|> ---
|> Michael E. Dahmus -- mxd118@psuvm.psu.edu, dahmus@cs.psu.edu, or GWPX90D *P*
|> UNIX:  The perfect operating system for people who don't have to pay for
|>        their computers.        <* OS/2 2.0 is here! *>

Hehehehehehe nice quote. I agree, I agree...
-- 
			- Dan Johnson
And God said "Jeeze, this is dull"... and it *WAS* dull. Genesis 0:0
Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.misc