|
Doug's 1968 Demo0
On December 9th, 1968 Doug Engelbart appeared on stage at the Fall Joint Computer Conference in San Francisco to give his slated presentation, titled "A Research Center for Augmenting Human Intellect" and spent the next 90 minutes not only telling about his work, but demonstrating it live to a spellbound audience that filled the hall.
1
Overhead shot of Doug operating his mouse and keyset during the 1968 Demo
|
|
Instead of standing at a podium, he was seated at a custom designed computer console, where he drove his presentation through his NLS computer at SRI in Menlo Park (30 miles away), onto a large projection screen overhead, flipping seamlessly between his presentation outline, live demo of features, and video teleconferencing members of his research lab linking in from SRI in shared screen mode to demonstrate more of the system.
2
Watch the demo: You can
watch the complete 1968 Demo (100 minutes, see intro]), or watch it in segments (35 clips, excellently annotated!), at the Stanford University MouseSite – the online portion of Stanford's extensive collection of Doug's early work. Or see demo highlights (25 minutes in 10 clips, nicely done!) at the SRI International web site. You can also watch the Demo on YouTube (10 parts).
Read the paper: (Remember this "1968 Demo" was technically a talk presented at a conference) See the paper submitted to the conference proceedings to accompany Doug's presentation, A Research Center for Augmenting Human Intellect, by Doug Engelbart and Bill English, in Proceedings of the 1968 Fall Joint Computer Conference, San Francisco, CA, December 9, 1968, Vol. 33, pp. 395-410 (AUGMENT,3954,). See also the poster announcing Doug's talk, and the table of contents for Part I of the conference proceedings, now online at the ACM portal [pdf|html]. 2
Reflecting on the 1968 Demo3
Many very rich resources are available to learn more about the making of hte demo, the system being demonstrated, how and why it was conceived and evolved, the significance of it, and what it was like being on the team working in Doug's innovative lab at that point in time.
3a
Doug and His Team
3b
Workstation History and The Augmented Knowledge Workshop (1986)
In 1986 Doug delivered a paper and talk about the demo and the vision it represented, titled Workstation History and The Augmented Knowledge Workshop, which he presented at the 1986 ACM Conference on the History of Personal Workstations. He included lots numerous historic photos and personal anecdotes. (This talk was videotaped and we hope to one day make it available to the public.)
3b1
Two fabulous events were held in later years to commemorate the demo with panel discussions by Doug, members of his research team who participated in the 1968 demo, and invited guests discussing what it took to put on the demo that day, what it was like behind the scenes, and the significance of the work they were doing then and now.
3b2
Engelbart's Unfinished Revolution (1998)
A 30th Anniversary Event - December 9, 1998
Watch the 1998 Panel Discussion with Doug and members of his research team Jeff Rulifson, Bill English, Charles Irby, with special guest Stuart Brand and moderator Paul Saffo discussing the demo and its significance.
3b3
Engelbart and the Dawn of Interactive Computing (2008)
A 40th Anniversary Event - December 9, 2008
Watch the 2008 Panel Discusssion with members of Doug's research team Jeff Rulifson, Bill English, Don Andrews, Bill Paxton, together with and special guest Andy van Dam and moderator Bob Sproull discussing the demo and its significance.
3b4
Click on the preceeding links to watch all the event sessions. For more background, program information, and related links, see our Noteworthy Events page.
3b5
Colleagues and Press
3c
Watch the other speakers and panelists at the two events reflecting on the 1968 Demo, luminaries such as Curt Carlson, Denise Caruso, Andy van Dam, Chuck House, Robert Taylor, John Markoff, Ted Nelson, Alan Kay, Paul Saffo, Bob Sproull, and more [40th Anniv Sessions | 30th Anniv. Sessions].
3c1
The 40th anniversary of the 1968 demo was marked by many articles reflecting on the demo -- see 40th Anniversary Press for recommended articles and interviews by Patricia Seybold, Paul Saffo, Maggie Shiels, and others. Or browse our Press Clippings page for a more comprehensive collection of links dating back in time.
3c2
Student Projects
3d
The Mother of All Demos: An Animated Commentary
In 2009 a Freshman at Baylor University by the name of Philip Heinrich produced an impressive 5 minute video capturing the essence of Doug's goals and vision, combining audio from the 1968 demo with his own animation, which he titled "The Mother of All Demos: An Animated Commentary". Read about the project, the student, and the course and professor he produced it for on our Student Showcase page which includes links to the video on YouTube and to other projects he has authored.
3d1
See Also 4
From the Internet 4a
- Visit MouseSite - the definitive website on the 1968 Demo (as well as the history of the Mouse) hosted by Stanford University.
4a1
- "The Mother of All Demos" (90 min Video/Film) Doug's 1968 debut of NLS (Augment's precursor) including hypermedia, the mouse, collaborative work, interactive computing, human computer interface, and overarching guiding principles. See especially Clip 12 where Doug, sitting in San Francisco, brings in a coworker sitting in his lab in Menlo Park, to demonstrate the mouse, and Clip 13 where Doug introduces the keyset.
4a2
From Doug's Lab4b
- A Research Center for Augmenting Human Intellect. (the paper written for the conference where they gave the demo, describing the work they were demoing). Douglas C. Engelbart and William K. English, AFIPS Conference Proceedings of the 1968 Fall Joint Computer Conference, San Francisco, CA, 33, December 1968, pp. 395-410 (AUGMENT,3954,). Republished with articles No. 4, 21, and 23 in "Computer Supported Cooperative Work: A Book of Readings," Irene Greif [Ed.], Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, Inc., San Mateo, CA, 1988, pp. 81-105. See also Engelbart's videotaped presentation from this historic 1968 conference "A Research Center for Augmenting Human Intellect."
4b1
- Augmenting Human Intellect: A Conceptual Framework. (Doug's seminal report documenting his strategic vision that drove the work) Douglas C. Engelbart, Summary Report, Stanford Research Institute, on Contract AF 49(638)-1024, October 1962, 134 pages (AUGMENT,133182,).
4b2
- Workstation History and The Augmented Knowledge Workshop. Douglas C. Engelbart, Proceedings of the ACM Conference on the History of Personal Workstations, Palo Alto, CA, January 9-10, 1986, pp. 73-83 (AUGMENT,101931,). Republished as The Augmented Knowledge Workshop in "A History of Personal Workstations," Adele Goldberg [Ed.], ACM Press, New York, 1988, pp. 185-236.
4b3
More 4c
|
hide header
