More broken Apples...

[Tony Duell]

> dodo.  Mostly because of graphics accelerator cards.  But text modes do
> tend to be a lot faster.

I was told that one of the design specifications of the PERQ (which had a 
bit-mapped display, no hardware text mode at all) was that it shold be as 
fast at displaying text as a typical machine of the time. A 'typical 
machine' used a text termianl with a 9600 buad link, so under 1000 
characters a second. Given a 80*24 screen, that meant a full screen 
update took a couple of seconds. 

I can't remember the exact specification of the final PERQ, but I seem to 
remember it could do 10 complete screen updates (and it's a larger screen 
than 80*24 text) in a second.

Of course some other machines (HP9000/200s spring to mind) have separate 
full-screen hardware text and graphics display systems that can be displayed 
together (if you so wish). 

> though - they give a lot more feedback than trackpads.  The whole
> lifting your hand off the keyboard to move the mouse (or trackball) and
> then back to type thing is annoying.

If I have to use a mouse, I'd like one with a chording keyboard built in :-)

-tony