[TUHS] Re: Origins of the frame buffer device

[Paul Winalski <paul.winalski@gmail.com>]

On 3/8/23, Clem Cole <clemc@ccc.com> wrote:
(regarding the issue of the definition of "workstation")
> And herein lies the issue.  The term was taken from the
> engineering/architecture style definition of the 50s/60s - where someone
> had a desk/table/bench and *area to do 'work'*.

Correct.  According to etymologyonline.com, the term "workstation"
dates from 1950, and in the computer sense from 1972.  It is a place
(station) where one does one's work.  In a jeweler's shop the bench
where watches are cleaned and repaired could be called the
workstation.

Since the early 1980s when I first encountered them, I've always
regarded the distinction between a workstation, a PC, and a word
processor to be a matter of how the machine is used rather than the
hardware itself.  All three (workstation, PC, WP) are single-user
computing devices.  The distinction is that PCs are for non-business
use and word processors are limited-function devices.  A computer
workstation is a single-user, general-purpose computer used for
business or technical purposes.

>> Would a Tek 4014 connected to a VAX count?

If the VAX were only being used by one person at a time (i.e., not a
timesharing system), then I would say yes.  IMO the PDP-1 was often
used as a workstation.

-Paul W.