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Visi On
Visi On Applications Manager
DeveloperVisiCorp
Working stateDiscontinued
Source modelProprietary
Initial releaseDecember 16, 1983; 41 years ago (1983-12-16)
Latest release1.01 / Currently unknown
LicenseProprietary

Visi On (also known as VisiOn) is an operating environment for MS-DOS, developed by VisiCorp and released in December 1983. Visi On was the first software with a graphical user interface (GUI) for the IBM PC.[1] It was also one of the first GUIs available on any personal computer. Visi On was never popular, as it had steep minimum system requirements for its day, but it was influential in the development of later GUIs like Windows.

VisiCorp had programs for sale that were compatible with VisiOn, including a spreadsheet program called "VisiOn Calc". (Not to be confused with VisiCalc).[2][3]

One of Visi On's features was an hourglass cursor that indicated when the system was loading data from a disk. At the time, most software would display words on the screen like "busy" or "please wait" instead.[3]

History

[edit]

Background

[edit]

In the spring of 1981, Personal Software was cash-flush from the ever-increasing sales of VisiCalc, and the corporate directors sat down and planned out their future directions. Ed Esber introduced the concept of a "family" of products that could be sold together, but from a technical perspective none of their products were similar in anything but name. For instance, to use VisiPlot with VisiCalc data, the numbers to be plotted had to be exported in a "raw" format and then re-imported.

Dan Fylstra led a technical discussion on what sorts of actions the user would need to be able to accomplish in order for their products to be truly integrated. They decided that there were three key concepts. One was universal data exchange, which would be supported by a set of common data structures used in all of their programs. Another was a common, consistent interface so users would not have to re-learn the UI as they moved from one program to another. Finally, Fylstra was concerned that the time needed to move from one program to another was too long to be useful – a user needing to quickly look something up in VisiDex would have to save and exit VisiCalc, look up the information, and then quit that and re-launch VisiCalc again. This process had to be made quicker and simpler.

Creation

[edit]

In July 1981, Xerox announced the Xerox Star, an advanced workstation computer featuring a graphical user interface (GUI), and by that point it was known that Apple Computer was working on a lower-cost computer with a GUI that would later be released as the Apple Lisa. Personal Software's president, Terry Opdendyk, knew of a two-man team in Texas that was working on a GUI, and arranged for Scott Warren and Dennis Abbe to visit Personal Software's headquarters in Sunnyvale, California. They demonstrated a version of the Smalltalk programming language running on the TRS-80 microcomputer, a seriously underpowered machine for the task. Personal Software was extremely impressed.[4]

A contract was soon signed, and work on project "Quasar" started almost immediately. The name was shortly thereafter changed to Visi On, a play on "vision" that retained their "Visi" naming. An experimental port to the Apple III was completed in November, and after that, development work shifted to the DEC VAX,[4] which had cross-compilers for a number of different machines. In early 1982 Personal Software changed their name to VisiCorp, and was betting much of the future success of the company on Visi On.

Visi On had many features of a modern GUI, and included a few that did not become common until many years later. It was fully mouse-driven, used a bit-mapped display for both text and graphics, included on-line help, and allowed the user to open a number of programs at once, each in its own window. Visi On did not, however, include a graphical file manager. Visi On also demanded a hard drive in order to implement its virtual memory system used for "fast switching", and at the time hard drives were very expensive.

Shortly after Apple introduced the Lisa, VisiCorp announced that it was developing Visi On.[5]

In an interview before the launch of the original Macintosh, Steve Jobs claimed that neither VisiOn nor Microsoft's Windows would be the standard windowing software on IBM PCs, instead saying that IBM's own windowing software would become the standard.[6]

COMDEX demo

[edit]

Tom Towers, VisiCorp's new VP of marketing, pushed for the system to be demonstrated at the fall COMDEX show in 1982. Others in the company were worried that the product was not ready for shipping, and that showing it so early would leave potential customers and distributors upset if it wasn't ready soon after. Another concern was that VisiWord was being released at the same show, and there was some worry that it might be lost in the shuffle.[4]

The demonstrations at COMDEX were a huge success. Many viewers had to be told it was not simply a movie they were watching, and Bill Gates speculated that the PC was in fact simply a terminal for a "real" machine like a VAX. It became one of the most talked-about products in the industry.[4] However this huge success led to a number of very serious problems.

In separate June and July 1983 Byte articles, the company mentioned a late summer 1983 release.[7][8]

Corporate civil war

[edit]

While Visi On development continued, VisiCorp as an entity was in the process of self-destruction. Terry Opdendyk, the president hand-picked by the early venture capital investors, had an extremely autocratic management style that led to the departure of many key executives. From late 1981 to the eventual release of Visi On, most of the product management of the company left, notably Mitch Kapor in charge of VisiCalc development, Ed Esber, Roy Folk, Visi On's product marketing manager, among others. This was referred to as "corporate civil war".[This quote needs a citation]

It was Mitch Kapor's departure that would prove most devastating to the company, however. Kapor, developer of VisiPlot and VisiTrend, had been pressing for the development of a greatly improved spreadsheet to succeed VisiCalc, but Opdendyk was uninterested. This was during a time when VisiCorp and VisiCalc's developers were at an impasse, and VisiCalc was growing increasingly outdated. When Kapor decided to leave, the other executives pressed for a clause forbidding Kapor to work on an "integrated spreadsheet", but Opdendyk couldn't be bothered, exclaiming "Kapor is a spaghetti programmer", denigrating his abilities.

Kapor would go on to release Lotus 1-2-3, which became a major competitor to VisiCalc in 1983. By the end of the year, sales had been cut in half. Combined with the exodus of major portions of the senior executive staff and the ongoing battle with VisiCalc's developers, VisiCorp was soon in serious financial difficulty. All hopes for the company's future were placed on Visi On.

The October 31, 1983 InfoWorld, in an article titled, "Finally, Visi On is here," flatly stated: "the... publisher is putting the product on computer store shelves... Visi On was scheduled to be available during the last week in October".[9] The November 14, 1983 issue said: "VisiCorp has just released Visi On."[10] However, the July 2, 1984 issue says: "By the time Visi On was actually shipped on December 16, 1983,..."[11] and PC Magazine reported in the February 7, 1984 issue that they still hadn't received the product in its commercially available form.[12]

Release

[edit]

The operating system, known as the Visi On Applications Manager, was released in December 1983 and sold for US$495 (equivalent to $1,560 in 2024), with a mouse sold separately for another $250.

Reception

[edit]

The main disadvantage of Visi On was its extremely high system requirements by 1983 standards. It needed 512 kilobytes of RAM and a hard disk at a time when PCs shipped with 64k-128k. IBM did not yet offer a hard disk with the PC when Visi On was first demoed (IBM's first model with a hard drive, the PC XT, didn't ship until March 1983). Third-party drives were however available at the time, typically 5 MB units that connected to the floppy controller and were treated by the operating system as an oversized floppy disk (there was no subdirectory support). This brought the total cost of running Visi On to $7500, three-quarters the cost of the Apple Lisa.

The press continued to laud the product, going so far as to claim it represented the end of operating systems. The end-users were less impressed, however, not only due to the high cost of the required hardware, but also the general slowness of the system. In a market where computers were generally used for only one or two tasks, usually business related, the whole purpose of Visi On was seriously diluted.

In January 1984, Apple Computer released the Macintosh with much fanfare. Although the Macintosh was seriously lacking software, it was faster, cheaper, and included one feature Visi On lacked: a graphical file manager (the Finder). Although it didn't compete directly with Visi On, which was really a "PC product", it nevertheless demonstrated that a GUI could indeed be fast and relatively inexpensive, both of which Visi On failed to deliver.

Adding to the release's problems was Bill Gates, who took a page from VisiCorp's book and announced that their own product, Microsoft Windows, would be available in May 1984. This muddied the waters significantly, notably when he further claimed it would have a similar feature set, didn't require a hard disk, and cost only $250. Windows was released with an even longer delay than Visi On, shipping in November 1985, and was lacking the features that forced Visi On to demand a hard drive.

End of life

[edit]

Only eight VisiCorp employees were still developing Visi On when VisiCorp sold the source code to Control Data in mid-1984 to raise cash as it sued Software Arts, while continuing to sell the software itself.[13] Sales were apparently very slow; in February 1985, VisiCorp responded by lowering the price of the basic OS to $99, knowing that anyone purchasing it would also need to buy the applications. These were bundled, all three for $990. This improved the situation somewhat, but sales were still far below projections, and it was certainly not helping the company stave off the problems due to Lotus 1-2-3.

Following declining VisiCalc sales and low revenues from Visi On, in November 1985, the company merged with Paladin Software. The new company kept the Paladin name. VisiCorp, and its line of "VisiProducts", were history.

Technical information

[edit]

Official system requirements for Visi On were:

  1. 512K of User Memory
  2. RS-232 Serial Port
  3. 5 Megabyte Hard Disk (FAT12 file system )
  4. 1 Floppy Disk Drive, DS/DD, 40 Track, 48 tpi
  5. VisiCorp Mouse (Mouse Systems-compatible mice)
  6. MS-DOS 2.0
  7. Graphics Adapter compatible with CGA 640x200 monochrome mode[14]
  8. Computer monitor capable of displaying CGA 640x200

It will work on newer PCs, but requires a compatible mouse and hard disk partition under 15MB as only the FAT12 file system is supported. In addition, as it revectors some IRQs used by PC/ATs and later, VISIONXT.EXE requires modifications which prevent Graph and other applications from functioning properly.[14]

Visi On required Mouse Systems-compatible mice; Microsoft-compatible PC mice, which over time became the standard, were introduced later (in May 1983).[15] Visi On used two mouse drivers. First, loaded in text mode, made mouse registers accessible to the embedded driver, which translated coordinates to cursor position. This internal driver, built-in as a subroutine into VISIONXT.EXE, required Mouse Systems PC-Mouse pointing device. It is not compatible with the Microsoft Mouse standard.

Writing Visi On applications required a Unix development environment.[16] Visi On was targeted toward high-end (expensive) PC workstations. Visi On applications were written in a subset of C VisiC, and a third-party could have ported the core software (VisiHost, VisiMachine virtual machine, VISIONXT.EXE in IBM PC DOS version) to Unix, but that never occurred. In 1984, VisiCorp's assets were sold off to Control Data Corporation.

Making working copies of the original floppy disks using modern methods is difficult - they are protected using pre-created bad sectors and other methods of floppy disk identification.

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Visi On

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from Grokipedia
Visi On is an early (GUI) and operating environment for , developed by and released in December 1983 as the first such system for the computers. It provided a multi-application desktop with overlapping windows, mouse-driven navigation, and integrated productivity tools including a spreadsheet (Visi On Calc), (Visi On Word), and charting application (Visi On Graph), all running atop a layer that abstracted hardware differences. Visi On's development began in the first quarter of 1981 under , the company behind the groundbreaking , with a focus on creating an intuitive, portable environment for business users that emphasized human factors like consistent interaction techniques and seamless data sharing across applications. First demonstrated at the Fall trade show in 1982, it was initially announced for release in summer 1983 but launched on December 16 amid high expectations as a "new generation of " capable of making personal computers more productive through windowed multitasking. However, its ambitious design required substantial hardware— an PC or XT with at least 512 KB of RAM, a 5 MB hard drive, CGA graphics adapter, 2.0 or later, and a serial mouse—which limited adoption on the era's typical low-end systems. Despite innovative features like a hyperlinked help system, built-in installer, custom filing system, and support for third-party applications via a portable "Visi Machine" virtual environment, Visi On achieved only mediocre commercial success, priced at around $2,000 and overshadowed by emerging competition from Apple and . VisiCorp's broader financial struggles, including declining VisiCalc sales from a peak of over 39,000 units monthly to under 5,700 by late 1983, compounded the challenges, leading to the sale of Visi On's to in August 1984 for cash amid ongoing litigation. Historically, Visi On holds significance as a pioneer in PC GUIs, reportedly inspiring co-founder after he viewed a demonstration, influencing the development of announced in 1983 but released in 1985. Though it faded into obscurity without major updates or widespread use, its emphasis on integrated, window-based foreshadowed modern desktop environments.

Development History

Origins and Inspiration

VisiCorp traces its origins to Personal Software, founded in 1976 by Dan Fylstra and Peter R. Jennings as a publisher of early personal computer software. The company's breakthrough came in 1979 with VisiCalc, the first electronic spreadsheet program, developed by Dan Bricklin and Bob Frankston through their firm Software Arts and marketed exclusively by Personal Software. VisiCalc's success, which sold hundreds of thousands of copies and became a defining "killer app" for the Apple II, solidified Personal Software's position as a leading software firm and prompted its rebranding to VisiCorp in 1982. By 1981, amid the rise of text-based operating systems like and the limitations of command-line interfaces for business users, VisiCorp shifted focus toward graphical user interfaces (GUIs) to enhance intuitiveness and productivity. This effort began in the first quarter of that year under the codename Project Quasar, aimed at creating a multi-application environment that addressed customer demands for easier software interaction and seamless data sharing across programs. The project drew key inspirations from pioneering systems of the 1970s and early 1980s, including the workstation (1973), which introduced graphics, windows, icons, and a mouse for direct object manipulation, and its commercial successor, the (1981), which popularized object-oriented interfaces for office workflows. Emerging hardware trends, such as the IBM PC released in 1981 with its processor, provided the processing power to adapt these concepts to affordable personal computers running . The 1983 announcement of Apple's Lisa, featuring graphical windows and mouse-driven operations, further exemplified the growing momentum toward GUIs in business computing, influencing VisiCorp's ambitions. At its core, envisioned an integrated for business productivity applications, building on 's direct manipulation model—where users visually edited cells—to encompass a broader suite of tools like word processing and file management within a unified, windowed interface.

Creation Process

The development of Visi On was led by executives, including , co-creator of , alongside key figures such as Bill Coleman, the group manager overseeing the project, and contributions from Bob Frankston. The engineering team, initially comprising about five full-time staff during early phases, expanded as the project progressed, with collaboration from external consultants like Dr. George Woodmansee, a system architect focused on GUI design principles. Woodmansee's involvement emphasized iterative , drawing from human factors research to refine the interface for both novice and expert users. Prototyping began in the first quarter of 1981 on early hardware, starting with text-based mockups on systems like the Model I before shifting to graphical elements. By mid-1981, specifications were finalized, and a functional was achieved by November 1981 using a modified with 160 KB RAM and an connected via RS-232C to simulate input through a tablet. The full development phase commenced in the first quarter of 1982 on PC hardware, evolving the into a graphical shell over with windowing, icons, and menu-driven interactions; this work utilized primarily for about two-thirds of the codebase, supplemented by 8086 for performance-critical sections, with some Pascal and Z8000 assembly for optimization. Targeted at 8086/8088-based PCs and compatibles running 2.0, the prototyping addressed compatibility across architectures, including future support for the 68000 processor. Mouse support was integrated early, inspired by Xerox innovations but adapted for affordable PC peripherals such as the with a custom driver or compatible devices like Mouse Systems' optical models, enabling one-button selection and secondary button scrolling for intuitive navigation. Initial sketches in 1981 focused on these elements as a foundational shell over , with a functional ready by mid-1982 emphasizing concurrent application handling via overlapping windows. Challenges during this build phase included managing memory constraints on 256 KB RAM systems, resolving dynamic allocation and segmentation issues through tools like the DCONFIG , and balancing interface consistency with application-specific needs while porting to limited-resolution displays and ensuring fast loading on early hard disks like the PC XT's Winchester drives.

Pre-Release Demonstration

VisiCorp unveiled Visi On to the public for the first time at the Fall trade show in on November 15, 1982, presenting it as a groundbreaking windowing environment designed to enhance usability on PC compatibles. The demonstration, led by VisiCorp's marketing team, featured live interactions using a to manipulate overlapping windows, demonstrating seamless multitasking and a consistent graphical interface that allowed users to switch between applications effortlessly. This event drew significant crowds, including co-founder , who attended multiple sessions and viewed the software as a competitive threat, accelerating Microsoft's own GUI development efforts. Key features highlighted in the demo included pull-down menus for navigation, integration with the popular spreadsheet for across applications, and a display utilizing IBM's CGA mode at 640x200 resolution. The prototype ran on specialized hardware configurations, requiring at least 512 KB of RAM and a to support its architecture, which positioned Visi On as a premium solution for corporate users rather than entry-level systems. VisiCorp emphasized the system's ability to run atop , transforming the command-line operating system into an intuitive "operating environment" complete with bundled productivity applications like Visi On Calc, Graph, and Word. The COMDEX showcase generated substantial hype, with media outlets portraying Visi On as the vanguard of PC interface evolution, promising to make computing accessible beyond programmers and enthusiasts. Publications such as Byte Magazine later reflected on the demo's impact, noting its role in shifting industry focus toward graphical environments ahead of rivals like Apple's Macintosh. VisiCorp's strategic pitch differentiated Visi On from basic DOS utilities by touting its integrated suite as a complete office solution, fostering expectations of widespread adoption in business settings despite emerging internal corporate tensions.

Corporate Internal Conflicts

In 1983, VisiCorp faced escalating internal tensions, often described as a "corporate civil war," primarily between its and divisions, exacerbated by leadership under President Terry Opdendyk and the company's aggressive expansion into new products like Visi On. These disputes contributed to high executive turnover, including the departure of key figures such as Ed Esber, Richard Melman, and Tom Towers, as engineering priorities clashed with commercial strategies. The conflicts intensified amid strained relations with Software Arts, the developer of , co-founded by and Bob Frankston; geographic separation between VisiCorp's Sunnyvale headquarters and Software Arts in , along with the hiring of professional managers, eroded direct communication between CEO Dan Fylstra and Bricklin over publishing agreements and product strategies. A pivotal escalation occurred in September 1983 when sued Software Arts for $60 million, alleging breaches of contract including delays in delivering versions for new platforms and threats to block shipment of Visi On unless Software Arts developed a compatible application. Software Arts countersued, claiming withheld royalties—peaking at approximately $1 million per month—and undermined their direct sales efforts by pressuring dealers; the dispute centered on control over , which accounted for 58% of 's revenue that year. Bricklin's departure from collaborative efforts stemmed from these strategic disagreements, leading to prolonged litigation that distracted from internal operations and culminated in a settlement in September 1984, after which divested Software Arts assets. Compounding these issues were severe financial pressures, as VisiCalc's market share eroded following the January 1983 release of , which integrated , graphics, and database functions in a faster, PC-optimized package, outselling VisiCalc and propelling Lotus to become the second-largest software company by year's end. reported sales of $42-43 million in 1983 but incurred losses of $2-3 million, its first since 1979, due to declining VisiCalc royalties and substantial investments in Visi On's development, which strained cash flow amid the lawsuit's royalty withholdings. The board intervened with cost-cutting measures, including layoffs in May 1984, as the company grappled with VisiCalc's sales drop—exacerbated by Software Arts' promotional pricing at $99 to counter 's $120 dealer model. Executive reshuffles followed, with Opdendyk resigning as president and COO in June 1984 to pursue other opportunities, prompting Fylstra to assume those roles amid ongoing recovery efforts; Fylstra himself departed later that year in November, signaling the end of the restructuring phase. After Fylstra's departure, merged with Software, appointing Roy Folk as president and CEO. These internal turmoil and financial strains directly impacted Visi On's development, originally demonstrated at the Fall 1982 as a promising GUI environment but delayed by over a year due to technical refinements and the Software Arts dispute, which forced to independently develop Visi On Calc. The rushed finalization to meet a December 1983 release deadline resulted in persistent bugs, incomplete features, and performance issues on contemporary hardware like the PC XT, contributing to its lukewarm initial reception despite the earlier high-profile demo.

Product Release

Launch Specifications

Visi On was officially released on December 16, 1983, as version 1.0, targeted at 2.0 running on the PC and compatible systems. The product was priced at $495 for the core software, equivalent to about $1,560 in 2024 dollars according to U.S. adjustments, with an additional $250 required for the compatible . A full setup incorporating the necessary hardware, such as a hard disk-equipped , elevated the total cost to approximately $7,500. It was packaged on 10 floppy disks and mandated installation onto a hard drive for operation. A subsequent update to version 1.01 addressed minor bug fixes, though the exact release date remains undocumented. Distribution occurred primarily through software retailers and direct sales channels from , often bundled with the company's application suite to encourage adoption. The launch built on high expectations generated by its pre-release demonstration at earlier that year.

Initial Reception

Upon its release in late 1983, Visi On garnered positive attention for introducing advanced elements to the PC, such as resizable overlapping windows, mouse-driven navigation, and a desktop-like environment that simplified interaction for business users. A review in praised its intuitive design, consistent commands across bundled applications like Calc and Word, and innovative use of icons and menus, positioning it as a visually appealing and user-friendly system that enhanced productivity through graphical displays and window management. These features were hailed as a significant step forward in making accessible to non-technical professionals, with the integration and multitasking capabilities particularly noted for streamlining workflows in office settings. However, contemporary critiques highlighted substantial drawbacks, including sluggish performance on period hardware, a steep learning curve despite the graphical elements, and limited compatibility with existing DOS applications. The PC Magazine analysis pointed out long load times, slow processing speeds—especially with large datasets or complex tasks—and high system demands like 512K of RAM and a hard disk, which caused noticeable delays and potential thrashing in virtual memory operations. Similarly, a Byte magazine article compared Visi On unfavorably in terms of accessibility, noting that running it on an IBM PC XT required expensive hardware upgrades beyond the reach of most users, exacerbating reliability concerns during operation. In the broader industry landscape, Visi On was viewed favorably against text-based DOS shells for its pioneering multitasking and GUI innovations, yet it drew unfavorable comparisons to the Apple Macintosh, released in January 1984, which offered greater polish, ease of use, and affordability without such stringent hardware needs. Early business adopters appreciated the system's ability to handle multiple applications simultaneously, aiding tasks like and reporting, though reports indicated frequent returns due to persistent performance instability and integration challenges with legacy software.

Market Performance and Decline

Visi On's market performance was disappointing from the outset, hampered by its steep and stringent hardware demands that excluded the majority of personal computers in use at the time. The software cost $495, with the adding $250, while it required a minimum of 512 KB of RAM and a with at least 2.2 MB of free space, far exceeding the typical configurations of PC-compatible systems, which commonly featured 128 KB to 256 KB of RAM and relied on floppy disks. In contrast to VisiCalc's success, which exceeded 500,000 copies sold by 1983 and approached one million total units across its lifetime, Visi On failed to achieve comparable adoption due to these barriers. The competitive landscape intensified Visi On's challenges, as more accessible alternatives quickly captured market share. The Apple Macintosh, launched in January 1984 for $2,495, provided a complete built directly into an affordable all-in-one system, appealing to users seeking an integrated experience without add-on software. Meanwhile, , a DOS-based integrated released in January for $495, outperformed VisiCalc by leveraging the lower costs and broader compatibility of text-mode applications, propelling Lotus to $53 million in sales that year. Microsoft further eroded Visi On's position with a preview of in late and its full release in November 1985, offering a lighter-weight GUI shell at a fraction of the cost and with reduced hardware requirements. VisiCorp's internal struggles accelerated the product's decline, including a costly against Software Arts over VisiCalc royalties that strained resources and limited post-launch marketing efforts. In August 1984, amid ongoing financial pressures—despite company revenues exceeding $40 million in 1983, largely from —VisiCorp sold the Visi On and development rights to to generate much-needed cash. Development effectively halted thereafter, with Control Data showing little interest in advancing the product. By November 1984, following the merger with Paladin Software, Visi On received no major updates beyond version 1.01 and was phased out of support, marking the end of its brief commercial run.

Technical Features

System Requirements

Visi On was designed for IBM PC or compatible systems equipped with an or 8086 processor, such as the IBM PC or PC XT models. It was incompatible with IBM PC/AT or later models without hardware modifications or hacks due to conflicts. It demanded a minimum of 512 KB of RAM, which was double the typical 256 KB available in most contemporary PCs, making it resource-intensive for the era. A with at least 5 MB of storage was required, formatted using the to support the system's operations, including management. For display, Visi On necessitated a monochrome or compatible with CGA standards, operating in 640x200 monochrome mode to render its graphical interface. A Mouse Systems-compatible serial mouse connected to COM1 was mandatory for navigation, as the system did not support the emerging serial mouse protocol at the time; this peripheral was sold separately, adding to the setup cost. On the software side, 2.0 or a later version served as the underlying operating system, with Visi On functioning as an environment layered atop it. Installation involved using the built-in setup utility, which required a key disk in drive A: and entailed partitioning the hard drive to create a FAT12-compatible volume for Visi On's files. After installation, the system booted directly into its shell environment, bypassing the standard command prompt unless the boot configuration was manually reconfigured, such as by editing or files. This process limited compatibility with unmodified DOS setups. Accessibility was further constrained by the absence of a full keyboard-only mode; while limited keyboard shortcuts existed for basic functions like navigation, core interactions such as resizing or relied on the , rendering it impractical for budget systems lacking this . The bundled applications, including the and , imposed additional demands on disk space and RAM during multitasking, often pushing systems closer to their limits.

Core Architecture and Interface

Visi On functioned as a graphical shell layered atop 2.0 or later, providing a unified platform for running applications while maintaining compatibility with DOS file operations and interrupts. At its core, Visi On employed a architecture called the "Visi Machine," which abstracted hardware differences to enable portability, though it was primarily implemented on PC-compatible systems with bit-mapped displays. The system supported through manual window switching, where users could alternate between active applications via clicks or keyboard commands, simulating concurrency without interrupting DOS's single-tasking nature. The adopted a inspired by office environments, featuring overlapping and resizable that represented individual applications or documents. Each included menus at the bottom for common actions, with consistent commands across applications. Interaction was primarily mouse-driven, with a required Mouse Systems-compatible device for optimal navigation, though keyboard shortcuts provided fallback support for selection and management. This emphasized direct manipulation, allowing users to point, click, and drag elements within windows to perform tasks like resizing or repositioning. File management was handled through an integrated browser that leveraged the FAT12 inherent to , presenting directories and files in a hierarchical view accessible from any . Users could manipulate textual representations of files to open, copy, or move them, serving as an early precursor to modern drag-and-drop operations by enabling visual rearrangement without command-line input. The browser integrated seamlessly with the GUI, supporting data transfer between applications via shared clipboard-like mechanisms. Despite its innovations, Visi On's architecture had notable limitations, lacking true preemptive multitasking and relying on cooperative yielding from applications, which could lead to system hangs or crashes if a program failed to respond appropriately. Graphics were constrained to the CGA's 640x200 mode, forgoing color support to ensure broad compatibility on early hardware, though this resulted in a text-oriented appearance that limited visual expressiveness.

Bundled Applications

Visi On was bundled with a core productivity suite designed to leverage its graphical user interface for business tasks, consisting of four primary applications: Visi On Calc, a spreadsheet program featuring graphical editing capabilities that allowed users to manipulate cells and formulas through mouse-driven interactions within resizable windows; Visi On File, a database manager supporting visual querying where users could build and execute searches using point-and-click interfaces on data records; Visi On Graph, a charting tool for creating and editing graphs, including bar charts and line plots, with bit-mapped enabling dynamic resizing and visual modifications; and Visi On Word, a offering preview functionality to display formatted text as it would appear in print while editing. These applications integrated seamlessly within the Visi On environment by launching in overlapping windows, facilitating multitasking, and sharing data through clipboard-like mechanisms that permitted cut-and-paste operations across programs, such as copying values directly into a chart or document. They also employed common menu structures at the bottom of the screen for consistent commands like file operations and transfers, promoting a unified that reduced the for switching between tools. A unique aspect of the suite was its object-oriented data handling, which supported visual linking between applications—for instance, establishing direct connections from a Visi On Calc cell to a Visi On Graph , allowing automatic updates when source data changed, thereby enhancing data consistency in business reports. The core four applications emphasized business , but Visi On offered expansions through optional add-ons, such as Visi , a and tool for scheduling tasks and appointments with timeline visualizations integrated into the GUI.

Legacy and Influence

Impact on GUI Development

Visi On holds a pioneering position as the first commercial graphical user interface (GUI) designed for on PC compatibles, released in December 1983 and predating , which launched in November 1985. This early implementation introduced overlapping windows, icons, and mouse-driven interactions to the PC platform, establishing foundational concepts for desktop environments in business settings. Its demonstration at 1982 reportedly motivated co-founder to accelerate Windows development, influencing the adoption of similar windowing and multitasking paradigms in Microsoft's GUI. The system popularized mouse-driven desktops for productivity applications in corporate environments, shifting user expectations from command-line interfaces (CLI) to more intuitive graphical ones. Visi On's design inspired subsequent GUIs, including Digital Research's , released in , where developers at prototyped GEM after seeing Visi On. Furthermore, Visi On showcased the viability of integrated application suites, bundling tools like a , , and graphing program that shared data seamlessly, paving the way for later productivity ecosystems. Visi On's requirements—512 KB of RAM, a hard drive, and a —drove industry-wide hardware upgrades, as it highlighted the limitations of standard PC configurations and encouraged adoption of expanded memory and pointing devices for enhanced productivity. On the technical front, its reliance on FAT12 file systems for storage and terminate-and-stay-resident (TSR) mechanisms for limited multitasking influenced later DOS-based environments and extenders, which built upon these models to enable more robust program switching without full OS overhauls. These elements collectively accelerated the transition from CLI dominance to GUI standards in personal computing.

Discontinuation and Modern Views

Visi On's support effectively ceased around 1985, following VisiCorp's merger with Software in November 1984, after the company had already sold development rights for the software to in August 1984. The source code was licensed to as part of efforts to raise capital amid financial struggles, though no significant further development occurred under their stewardship. This merger marked the end of active maintenance and updates for Visi On, as the combined entity adopted the name and shifted focus away from the Visi product line. In the aftermath, the merged Paladin Software continued operations briefly but ultimately discontinued Visi On and related products; Paladin's efforts to enter the market with new products like Crunch failed to sustain momentum, contributing to the erasure of Visi On from mainstream narratives. Contemporary perspectives in retro communities regard Visi On as an ambitious yet flawed pioneer of PC graphical interfaces, preserved through archives like those at Toastytech, where disk images and documentation are maintained for historical study. It is emulated in tools such as the PCE emulator and , allowing enthusiasts to experience its multitasking and windowing features on modern hardware, often highlighting its forward-thinking design despite hardware limitations of the era. Visi On remains underexplored in broader histories of graphical user interfaces compared to contemporaries like the Apple Macintosh, with recent analyses calling for greater examination of its contributions to standardizing PC-based GUIs and influencing subsequent developments.

References

  1. https://winworldpc.com/product/visi-on
  2. http://toastytech.com/guis/vision.html
  3. https://guidebookgallery.org/articles/aguidedtourofvision
  4. https://www.computinghistory.org.uk/det/66578/VisiCorp/
  5. https://www.nytimes.com/1984/02/26/business/how-a-software-winner-went-sour.html
  6. https://www.nytimes.com/1984/08/03/business/control-data-buys-visicorp-program.html
  7. https://www.ithistory.org/db/companies/visicorp
  8. https://www.computerhistory.org/revolution/personal-computers/17/305
  9. https://www.computerhistory.org/timeline/1981/
  10. https://www.computerhistory.org/blog/the-lisa-apples-most-influential-failure/
  11. https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Byte/80s/Byte-1983-06.pdf
  12. https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Byte/80s/Byte-1983-07.pdf
  13. https://retrotechreads.substack.com/p/the-rise-of-microsoft-windows-part
  14. https://www.filfre.net/2018/06/doing-windows-part-2-from-interface-manager-to-windows/
  15. http://edesber.com/PDFs/InfoWorldVisiCorp07-02-1984.pdf
  16. https://edesber.com/visicorp-history/
  17. https://www.wired.com/2009/01/jan-26-1983-spreadsheet-as-easy-as-1-2-3-2/
  18. https://www.nytimes.com/1984/06/20/business/visicorp-loses-its-president.html
  19. http://www.edesber.com/PDFs/BurrellesVisiCorp11-13-1984.pdf
  20. https://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/access/text/2024/01/102805341-05-01-acc.pdf
  21. https://www.filfre.net/2018/06/doing-windows-part-1-ms-dos-and-its-discontents/
  22. https://archive.org/details/vision_202005
  23. https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm
  24. https://habr.com/ru/companies/ruvds/articles/921790/
  25. https://guidebookgallery.org/articles/visicorpsvision
  26. https://archive.org/details/PC-Mag-1984-01-24
  27. http://toastytech.com/guis/win1983.html
  28. https://makingdatameaningful.com/visicalc/
  29. https://web.stanford.edu/dept/SUL/sites/mac/primary/docs/pr1.html
  30. https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2015/today-in-media-history-lotus-1-2-3-was-the-killer-app-of-1983/
  31. https://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/03/business/visicorp-is-merging-into-paladin.html
  32. https://jvlone.com/computerpub/InfoWorld/IW_1984-07-xx_x-x_VisiOn_IWinReview.pdf
  33. https://guidebookgallery.org/articles/thevisionexperience
  34. https://kartsci.org/kocomu/computer-history/graphical-user-interface-history/
  35. https://nemanjatrifunovic.substack.com/p/history-of-the-gem-desktop-environment
  36. https://computer.rip/2021-06-19-The-Visi-On-Vision.html
  37. https://technologizer.com/2010/11/22/the-ones-that-didnt-make-it-windows-failed-rivals/index.html
  38. https://www.nytimes.com/1985/09/15/business/the-executive-computer-number-crunching-on-the-macintosh.html
  39. https://lunduke.substack.com/p/visi-on-the-failed-1983-gui-that
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