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VisiCorp Visi On was a short-lived but influential graphical desktop environment program for PC-compatible computers running early versions of MS-DOS. Although Visi On was never popular (as it had steep minimum system requirements for its day), it was a notable influence on the later development of Microsoft Windows.
History
Visi On was released in December 1983 as an integrated operating and applications environment for IBM PCs. Visi On was among the first programs for the PC platform to use a mouse-based interface. Unlike the more advanced GUI-based computers of the era (the Xerox Star and the Apple Lisa), Visi On did not use icons to represent computer files. Although VisiCorp encouraged third-party companies to created Visi On-compatible programs, none did. Visi On included the Word word processing application and the Graph spreadsheet application.
Legend has it that, during the 1982 COMDEX trade show, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates saw a demonstration of Visi On and quickly scrambled to begin the release of a similarly-capable product. During that same month, an article appeared in Byte magazine announcing the beginning of a Microsoft product called "Windows", which didn't actually appear as a commercial product until 1985.
Technical information
Visi On worked on IBM PCs that used an Intel 8086 CPU. Visi On required 512 kilobytes of RAM and a minimum 5 megabyte hard drive. Visi On could not run on a PC that did not have any hard drive. The software ran in CGA 640x200 monochrome graphics mode. Unlike early versions of Microsoft Windows, Visi On could work with multiple applications at the same time. Visi On also had built-in documentation and help files. Visi On, interestingly, had the peculiar requirement of the use of Mouse Systems-compatible computer mice; regular PC mice would not function.
Visi On was likely targeted toward very expensive PC workstations. Visi On was written in a subset of C, so it was probably expected that a third-party might port the software to Unix, but that never occurred. In 1984, VisiCorp's assets were sold off to Control Data Corporation. Visi On was likely too ahead of its time, especially on the commodity PC platform. Worse in 1983 was Visi On's inability to run a large variety of applications and regular DOS programs.
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