Source: Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum / Jan Braun (CC BY-NC-SA)

Many call the Xerox Alto the first computer with a graphical user interface. Actually, the idea of a GUI directly influenced the development of the machine from it’s inception.

After it’s introduction in March 1973 round about 2000 units were produced and sold. Despite the heavy price tag.

The machine’s user interface was kind of groundbreaking. And in 1979 Steve Jobs arranged a visit to Xerox PARC for a demonstration of exactly that technology.

As history has it, Apple engineers used the concepts they saw at Xerox to build the desktop operating systems for the Apple Lisa and Macintosh systems.

That is reason enough to keep this machine alive, at least as an emulation. The team behind LivingComputers thought so too and developed a JS based emulator, which runs in your browser. 

Batteries and software included! Give the HN find of the week a try. Fun stuff.