Windows for Pen Computing is a

software suite A software suite (also known as an application suite) is a collection of computer programs (application software, or programming software) of related functionality, sharing a similar user interface and the ability to easily exchange data with eac ...

for

Windows 3.1x Windows 3.1 is a major release of Microsoft Windows. It was released to manufacturing on April 6, 1992, as a successor to Windows 3.0. Like its predecessors, the Windows 3.1 series ran as a shell on top of MS-DOS. Codenamed Janus, Windows 3 ...

, that

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washin ...

designed to incorporate

pen computing Pen computing refers to any computer user-interface using a pen or Stylus (computing), stylus and tablet, over input devices such as a keyboard or a mouse. Pen computing is also used to refer to the usage of mobile devices such as tablet computers ...

capabilities into the Windows

operating environment In computer software, an operating environment or integrated applications environment is the environment in which users run application software. The environment consists of a user interface provided by an applications manager and usually an app ...

. Windows for Pen Computing was the second major pen computing platform for

x86 x86 (also known as 80x86 or the 8086 family) is a family of complex instruction set computer (CISC) instruction set architectures initially developed by Intel based on the Intel 8086 microprocessor and its 8088 variant. The 8086 was intr ...

tablet PC A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being comput ...

GO Corporation GO Corporation was founded in 1987 to create portable computers, an operating system, and software with a pen-based user interface. It was famous not only for its pioneering work in Pen-based computing but as well as being one of the most well ...

released their

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also i ...

PenPoint OS The PenPoint OS was a product of GO Corporation and was one of the earliest operating systems written specifically for graphical tablets and personal digital assistants. It ran on AT&T Corporation's EO Personal Communicator as well as a number ...

, shortly before Microsoft published Windows for Pen Computing 1.0 in 1992. The software features of Windows for Pen Computing 1.0 includes an

on-screen keyboard A virtual keyboard is a software component that allows the input of characters without the need for physical keys. The interaction with the virtual keyboard happens mostly via a touchscreen interface, but can also take place in a different form ...

, a notepad program for writing with the stylus, and a program for training the system to respond accurately to the user's handwriting. Microsoft included Windows for Pen Computing 1.0 in the Windows SDK, and the operating environment was also bundled with compatible devices. Microsoft published

Windows 95 Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented operating system developed by Microsoft as part of its Windows 9x family of operating systems. The first operating system in the 9x family, it is the successor to Windows 3.1x, and was released to manufacturi ...

in 1995, and later released Pen Services for Windows 95, also known as Windows for Pen Computing 2.0, for this new

. Windows XP Tablet PC Edition superseded Windows for Pen Computing in 2002. Subsequent Windows versions, such as

Windows Vista Windows Vista is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was the direct successor to Windows XP, which was released five years before, at the time being the longest time span between successive releases of ...

and

Windows 7 Windows 7 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was released to manufacturing on July 22, 2009, and became generally available on October 22, 2009. It is the successor to Windows Vista, released nearly ...

, supported pen computing intrinsically.

References

External links

The Unknown History of Pen Computing
contains a history of pen computing, including touch and gesture technology, from approximately 1917 to 1992.

- an article that mentions Windows Pen in passing

* ttp://www.winhistory.de/more/wfp.htm Windows für Pen Computer
Windows for Pen Computer
(German link above translated by Google)
Notes on the History of Pen-based Computing (YouTube)
1992 software Handwriting recognition

Pen Computing Pen computing refers to any computer user-interface using a pen or Stylus (computing), stylus and tablet, over input devices such as a keyboard or a mouse. Pen computing is also used to refer to the usage of mobile devices such as tablet computers ...

Microsoft Tablet PC Tablet computers {{windows-stub

See also

References

External links