The trend seems to be that GUIs are defenestrating, kinda like Unix & DOS used to be

GUIs = graphical user interfaces

Defenestrating = elimination of openings, specifically windows

It was the brainiacs at Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center that first came up with the new ideas of how  to interface to computers that we all use today: mouse, windowed programs on the screen, white background/black text, and so on.

Until then, the norm was keyboard only, one program running at a time that monopolized the screen, monochrome text on black background.

But the trend is now reversing:

- the most popular computer in the world today is the smartphone: no mouse, no windows.

- Apple has said it wants to port its full-screen interface from iOS (iPhone) to Mac OS X: no windows

- Linux-based MeeGo effectively eliminates windows from its UI.

I wonder if this trend will become the new norm, or just an interesting aside in the history of computing.

Comments

[clarkin]

Defenestrating = throwing something or someone through a window (which might be more apt!)

[Kevin E.]

Meegoo just went bye bye. Intel will try to foster it a long a little, but without the backing of Nokia, I don't see how it will survive.

[wally]

I've read early reviews of the proposed Unity interface that is eventually to be used in Ubuntu, and I believe this is true there, as well.

[Tony]

I can see why this might be good on a small screen. But on a 24" monitor? On multiple monitors? No thanks.

[Madhumati Ramesh]

I would like to see apps similar to the ones on smart phones such as New York Times, Yahoo, Gmail, Weather, Facebook, etc on a desktop. This way there will be no menu related to a browser when you use them. The concept of navigating to these "sites" using a "URL" and a "browser" is not understood by majority of the population who wants to use them.