Tellagraf

From HandWiki
Short description: Software package

ISSCO's[1] Tellagraf is an early software package designed to allow end-users to "turn out full color, professional quality charts" with initial results displayed on a screen, modified as needed, and then "a final 'hard-copy' can be made .. or made into 35mm color transparencies for projection onto a screen."

Users of Tellagraf often had access to CueChart and Disspla software.[2]

Terminals with varying degrees of graphics, such as the DEC's VT100 and Tektronix's Tektronix 4xxx family of text and graphics terminals.[3] were supported, and the software ran on popular computing platforms.[4][5]

History

Four years are important to Tellagraf's early history:[6]

  • 1978: ease of use
  • 1980: graphic-artist quality
  • 1982: introduction of CueChart, and recognition by IEEE.[4]
  • 1983: "quality graphics enters the mainstream of data processing with ..."

Tellegraf was eventually acquired by Computer Associates and renamed CA-Tellegraf.[7][8] SAS users found it helpful.[9]

Universities,[10] research institutes[11] and financial services firms were among early users.[12]

Tellagraf, CueChart and Disspla were separate software packages, but often computer sites having one had all three.[13]

Disspla

Disspla is a package of data plotting subroutines that can be used from high level languages.[14] It was also acquired by Computer Associates.

ISSCO Graphics

ISSCO Graphics (Integrated Software Systems Corporation),[15][16][17] vendor of Tellagraf, CueChart and Disspla, had considered acquiring[18] Breakthrough Software, whose software focus involved PC DOS, as a means of getting into the PC arena,[19] but backed off when Computer Associates made an offer to acquire ISSCO.[20]

By early 1987 it was reported that "Issco users breathe sigh of relief" that all was well.[21]

The ISSCO User's Group was founded in 1976.[22]

ISSCO, which was founded in 1970[1] by Peter Preuss,[23] was acquired by Computer Associates in 1986.[24]

Tellaplan

In 1983 ISSCO introduced "Tellaplan, a project planning, report and schedule charting system for Tell-A- Graf users in IBM MVS or CMS or Digital Equipment Corp. VAX computers"[25] atop which they built "two visual project management software packages" three years later.[26]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 James C. Condon (March 27, 1983). "Charts on computer graphics are trending upwards". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1983/03/27/jobs/charts-on-computer-graphics-are-trending-upwards.html. 
  2. ↑ "Guide to using Cuechart, Tellagraf, and Disspla at ANL". https://www.researchgate.net/publication/255046055. "Guide to Curchart, Tellagraf, and Disspla at ANL provides information necessary for using the three ISSCO graphics packages at Argonne" 
  3. ↑ Judith Bird (1986). "Mainframe graphics for business presentations". Data Processing 28: 26–27. doi:10.1016/0011-684X(86)90188-7. "... software such as Issco's Tellagraf at. &6500, input device like a VT100 screen or Tektronix 4702 costing. E2 000-4000 and an output device, such as an HP". 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 D Michalopoulos (1982). nbin proucs - IEEE Xplore. doi:10.1109/MC.1982.1654116. 
  5. ↑ Cuechart with Tell-a-Graf is machine- and device-independent, permitting it to operate with most major computers and ...
  6. ↑ "Tellagraf graphics software". Computerworld: p. 28. September 27, 1982. https://books.google.com/books?id=dpKltAUoYAAC. 
  7. ↑ CA-TELLAGRAF User's Guide. 1987. https://books.google.com/books?id=dqtVcgAACAAJ. "Title, CA-TELLAGRAF User's Guide, Volume 2. CA-TELLAGRAF User's Guide, Computer Associates International." 
  8. ↑ "CA Tellagraf Overview". https://www.cnet.com/products/ca-tellagraf. 
  9. ↑ Dorothy Hu Huang. "Utilizing SAS Software to generate ... CA-Tellagraf as an example". http://www.sascommunity.org/sugi/SUGI88/Sugi-13-274%20Huang.pdf. "Utilizing SAS Software to generate command language programs, using CA-Tellagraf as an example" 
  10. ↑ Some even wrote their own quick-start guide: Computing Center Memo. University of Michigan Computing Center. 1983. https://books.google.com/books?id=BYFQAAAAMAAJ. "The reason for this is that the color set for the background is generated by the camera, and then the picture generated by *TELLAGRAF is drawn on top." 
  11. ↑ "Arizona's Industrial Rock and Mineral Resources: Workshop Proceedings". 1983. https://books.google.com/books?id=Gs1RAQAAMAAJ. "The box plots were prepared by using CA–TELLAGRAF to generate the linework and text." 
  12. ↑ TELLaGRAF & CueChart (LBKL). October 1983. 
  13. ↑ "Merging Graphics". February 25, 1998. http://rcsg-gsir.imsb-dsgi.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/documents/latex/node53.html. "The plots can be created with any of the available graphics packages on VM/CMS-- DISSPLA, TELLAGRAF, etc." 
  14. ↑ Jukka Kiijarvi. "Lunowa - Programming - Data Plotting Software". http://www.kolumbus.fi/jukka.kiijarvi/clunowa/programming/graphics/graphics.html. 
  15. ↑ "capture retro*graphics on your dectm terminal. - IEEE Xplore". https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/1674529. "... ISSCO. DISSPLA and TELLAGRAF are registered trademarks of Integrated Software Systems Corp" 
  16. ↑ a proprietary conversational graphics program from ISSCO of San Diego, CA.
  17. ↑ TELL-A-GRAF in MTS, Dave Whipple, Computing Center Memo 450, University of Michigan, March 1983.
  18. ↑ Greg Johnson (August 13, 1985). "Software Firm Seeking". The LA Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1985-08-13/business/fi-1548_1_personal-computer-software. "buying a company that would give ISSCO ... for the personal computer market." 
  19. ↑ "Issco agrees to buy maker of Time Line". InfoWorld: 31. October 13, 1986. https://books.google.com/books?id=pDwEAAAAMBAJ. 
  20. ↑ "Breakthrough to Withdraw from Merge Plans with ISSCO". InfoWorld: 16. December 15, 1986. https://books.google.com/books?id=bDwEAAAAMBAJ. 
  21. ↑ following what was reported as "frosty reception by users." "Issco Sigh of relief". ComputerWorld: p. 8. March 2, 1987. https://books.google.com/books?id=SZ4AAehqfn0C. 
  22. ↑ "Dave Lavery - Program Executive for Solar System Exploration (NASA)". February 1987. https://www.linkedin.com/in/davelavery. "Proceedings of the 12th Annual ISSCO Users Group Meeting, Los Angeles California,. February 1987" 
  23. ↑ "About Peter and Peggy Preuss". https://preuss.ucsd.edu/about-preuss/about-peter-and-peggy-preuss.html. 
  24. ↑ Calvin Sims (June 2, 1987). "Software giants plan merger". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/02/business/software-giants-plan-merger.html. 
  25. ↑ "Tellaplan system". ComputerWorld: p. 29. July 4, 1983. https://books.google.com/books?id=JF4iQwmmCwYC. 
  26. ↑ Enterprise, I. D. G. (1986-10-27). "New products: Issco". https://books.google.com/books?id=nI091j0HhhwC.