The great technology handoff

The great technology handoff

Xerox PARC pioneered the modern personal computer experience, developing the graphical user interface (GUI), desktop metaphor, Ethernet, and integrating the computer mouse into its groundbreaking Xerox Alto computer, yet these profound innovations were largely commercialized by other companies.

The magic of Xerox PARC

Chapter 1

The birth of a dream lab

Chapter 2

Designing the future's interface

Chapter 3

Connecting the world together

Chapter 4

The great technology handoff

Ch 4 · The great technology handoff

Out of the PARC

BETA

steve Sort each groundbreaking invention to discover how PARC shaped the modern computer.

steve The day Steve Jobs visited PARC

steve How Apple and Microsoft built on PARC's ideas

steve Why Xerox corporate missed the revolution

steve The lasting legacy of a generous lab

steve The great technology handoff

Xerox PARC, bright and bold, GUI, mouse, stories told! Then the world took the vision, a new future to unfold!

How Apple and Microsoft built on PARC's ideas

steve Apple used PARC's concepts to create the Macintosh, while Microsoft followed close behind with Windows.

Fun Fact

The stock trade: Steve Jobs allowed Xerox to buy 100,000 shares of Apple stock at pre-IPO prices in exchange for the PARC tour.

Why Xerox corporate missed the revolution

steve Xerox executives in New York failed to understand the value of PARC's digital inventions, focusing only on copiers.

Quiz

How long did the famous 1979 tour of PARC for Steve Jobs and his team last?

Gossip

Was Xerox foolish or generous for sharing their tech?

Quiz

What did Steve Jobs trade to Xerox in exchange for the guided tour of PARC?

Quiz

Why did Xerox corporate executives decide not to sell the Alto to the public?

Quiz

What did Steve Jobs famously say Xerox was sitting on during his visit?

Quiz

To which research institute did Xerox donate PARC in 2023?

Quiz

Which Apple computer, released in 1984, brought PARC's GUI concepts to the masses?

Quiz

In what year did Steve Jobs famously visit Xerox PARC?

Quiz

Which tech giant developed Windows after seeing the GUI concepts popularized by Apple and PARC?