Collaborative Development and New Devices for Human-Computer Interaction

The article pays tribute to the emergence in 1993 of graphical browsers that allow users to address electronic information with a point-and-click interface, and places this development on a par with other important historical events that shaped society and the life of the individuals. It describes the resistance that some voiced at the time to the prompt economical utilization of the Internet's new possibilities. It goes on to describe current technical developments in the human-computer interface environment that could be very, perhaps even comparably, important. It concludes with an appeal for the courage to develop technical innovations, particularly in difficult economic times.