Who invented the Graphical User Interface (GUI)?

Xerox PARC first developed the technologies and paradigms behind the GUI. Before Xerox’s intervention, research into UI design was conducted by researchers at the StanfordResearch Institute with the development and use of text-based hyperlinks manipulated by amouse/pointing device. Xerox further refined and extended this hypertext system into a graphical system. It was the basis for the primary interface for the Xerox Alto Computer1which the majority of modern day GUI’s are derived from. However, Apple Computers areconsidered the true pioneers and developers of the GUI as they opened up the market in the early 80’s (®ikovsk_ 2003). Another term used for this type of interface is PUI, whichstands for PARC User Interface, which also stands for “Perceptual user interface”(Wikipedia2, 2003).