First Usenet post about Macintosh and Lisa

[Dog Cow]

Google gets it wrong. According to their 20 Year Usenet Timeline, the first post mentioning Macintosh and Lisa was made on August, 1982.

In fact, the earliest post mentioning Macintosh and Lisa was made several months earlier, in November of 1981. Note the contrived spelling "Mackentosh" which is probably how Google missed it.

Here it is:

Aucbvax.5209

fa.works

utzoo!decvax!ucbvax!works

Mon Nov 16 01:54:23 1981

WorkS Digest V1 #36

>From JSol@RUTGERS Mon Nov 16 01:14:55 1981

WorkS Digest Monday, 16 Nov 1981 Volume 1 : Issue 36

Today's Topics: C Compilers Available From DECUS

WorkStations for Programmers Vs. Users

More On The "Lisa" Project

----------------------------------------------------------------------

[ ... snip by Dog Cow ... ]

Date: 15 Nov 1981 1417-EST

From: G.PALEVICH at MIT-EECS

Subject: Smalltalk 80 bible

So just where do I (a humble student) go to get a copy of the

Smalltalk 80 specifications book and the 380K byte system tape?

I read in Infoworld that the Apple IV is 68000 based. I seem

to remember rumours that they had at least the window portion of

Smalltalk 80 up.

The Infoworld article also talked about two other Apple

computers: a redesign of the Apple II for 64K chip, and some sort of

portable (ala Osborne I) 68000 based machine -- possibly code-named

the Mackentosh.

I believe that Tandy is working on a 68000 based machine, too.

In fact, I bet just about everyone is going 16bit because of the

greater speed/power/RAM.

------------------------------

Date: 15 November 1981 23:13-EST

From: Brian P. Lloyd

Subject: Apple and 'Lisa'

While visiting Apple several months ago, I caught a glimple of a box

that bore no resemblence to any current Apple product. I snooped

around a bit and read the memos that people had tacked on the walls of

their cubicals. Although I could be wrong, I got the strong

impression that I saw their 'top secret' product (this was the new

products development group).

The device I saw looked much like a VT-100 (same form factor) and had

a mouse. They were experimenting with color graphic printers, and I

overheard some discussion of the quality of the bitmapped display. I

was unable to find out what processor is being used, but I did learn

that it is a 16 bit chip. They were most interested in my experience

with the Convergent Technologies cluster communications and OS

architecture.

If I had to guess I would say that Apple is trying to build a cross

between the Xerox 'Star' and the Convergent Technologies system. They

could actually have something as far as the hardware is concerned, but

I wasn't too sure about their software crew.

Brian

 

[Mars478]

Wonderful blast to the past. Sounds like a stealth recon mission.

GOOD JOB!

 

[olePigeon]

Speculation about an unannounced Apple product. Some things never change.

 

[Dog Cow]

The second post mentioned "The device I saw looked much like a VT-100 (same form factor)" which at first I took to mean the Macintosh, but now that I am looking at some pictures of VT-100 terminals, it looks more like a Lisa.

You be the judge: http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/tty/h/vt100.jpg

However, the first post is clearly about Macintosh, due to the code name reference. Note too, the reference to the Apple //e ("a redesign of the Apple II for 64K chip"), which was released in Jan 1983.

Speculation about an unannounced Apple product. Some things never change.

Yes, these old posts are fun to read, aren't they?