Evolution of Software Slide 1

1960s

Mainframes
A mainframe was a giant computer that didnt have
an operating system, instead you had to feed it
commands via punch-cards or magnetic tape. The
mainframe would execute the function and return
the information to a terminal. A mainframe my
have multiple terminals.
The introduction of the microprocessor gave rise to
the operating system.
An operating system is a collection of software that manages
the computer hardwareits chief operation is the schedule
tasks that optimize the available capacity of the computer.

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Evolution of Software Slide 2

1970 s

UNIX
It was created by Bell Laboratories, now AT&T,
initially as a development environment, but evolved
into an operating system used primarly in academic
and governmental circles.
It was originally built in assembly language (pretty
much binary code) and later re-written in C,
which was also created at Bell Laboratories, and
is the most ubiqitous computer language. The big
advancement of UNIX was the introduction of
the kernal which provided services to start /
stop program and schedule access to shared
resources. Now several systems are built on a
UNIX platformmost notably Mac OSX.

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Evolution of Software Slide 3

mid 1980s

MS-DOS
MS Dos is the first operating system released by
Microsoft. It was actually a cheap knock off of an
existing OS, IMB PC DOS. IBM eventually stopped
production of its own OS and bundled its PC with
MS DOS. MS DOS used command line

commands had to be keyed in

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Evolution of Software Slide 4

1970s

Apple II
This was one of the first computers to offer a GUI
(Graphical User Interface). It introduced graphics
and colors to the computer. It also made it easier for
the lay person to interact with the computer
it is often credited for creating the home
computer market.

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Evolution of Software Slide 5

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1980s

Apple Lisa
Xerox Parc pushed the bounds of the GUI,
completely re-imaging the interface, introducing
the mouse, desktop and the concept of the icon.
Apple was given a preview of this experience, which
inspired them to build the LISA, which introduced
the concepts of windows in a GUI.

xerox parc

Evolution of Software Slide 6

1984

1984 Commercial
and GUI
Apple released the Macintosh 128k using a single
TV commerical. The spot aired during Super
Bowl XVIII, was directed by Ridley Scott and cost
1.5 million to air. This spot is considered one of
the most seminal moments in advertising. The
Macintosh 128k had fully moved away from any
command line interaction, making the entire
experience about the interface.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3EbwSOpw_A

macintosh 128k

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Evolution of Software Slide 7

1985

Steve Jobs Leaves

Due to internal power struggles, Steve Jobs left
Apple in 1985. He purchased Pixar, an upstart
production house at the time and founded NeXT.
It was at NeXT that he developed the basis for Mac
OSX (built on on UNIX)

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Evolution of Software Slide 8

1990s

Windows
MS - DOS evolved into Windows, which didnt
really have success until 3.0. At the same time,
they released Microsoft Office. It was heralded as
one of the first business class solutions that was a
WYISWYG. 3.0 gave rise to Windows 95
Around this time the internet was growing in popularity,
prompting Bill Gates to write a memo dubbed, Internet
Tidal Wave, in which he stressed the importance of the
internet in all facets of computing. Following this memo,
Mircosoft created new product lines focused on computer
networking and the World Wide Web. The most immediate
creation was Internet Explorer, which following its release
became the most popular browswer.

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Evolution of Software Slide 9

Steve Jobs Returns

Jobs returned in 1997, when Apple purchased
NeXT. Steve became CEO.

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Evolution of Software Slide 10

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Apple vs Microsoft
apple

microsoft

Grew by innovating and scaling slowly

Grew by copying and acquiring

Believes the consumers wants a good

experience and are willing to for-go some
level of control to get it

Believes the consumers wants complexity

by way of more control

Focused on software and hardware

Focused on software

Evolution of Software Slide 11

1990s

Linux
Linux is an open source operating system built
by Linus Torvalds on top of system tools and
libraries from the GNU Project. Its kernal is as
stable as UNIX, which one reason why its so
popular: more than 90% of todays 500 fastest
supercomputers run some variant of Linux. Linux
also runs on embedded systems (devices where the
operating system is built into the firmware) such as
tablet, routers, televisions, game consoles. In fact
Android is built on the Linux kernel. Linux is the
most widely used os on servers.
The GNU project, which stands for not UNIX is basically
a free version of UNIX (UNIX is fairly proprietary).
GNU project gave rise to the GNU Public License, which
guarantees that software released under this license can be
shared and modified without restriction.

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