A summary of graphics terminal requirements based on application studies

Decreasing costs of graphics hardware, improvements in graphics software, and establishment of online data bases are increasing the interest in computer graphics. For new applications of computer graphics to be developed and used, the graphics terminal must meet the requirements of users and applications. Because many of the users will be nonprogrammers and the interactions will involve pictures, the applications are significantly different from those currently supported by batch computing or alphanumeric terminals. Studies of users, applications, and implementations of interactive computer graphics systems have resulted in thirty specific requirements for the display screen, the associated hardware for input, output, processing and storage, the interaction rates, the terminal packaging, and the support of the applications programmer. Comparison of existing graphics terminal alternatives in terms of the requirements indicates that eighteen of the thirty requirements are provided inadequately. Comparison of the relative importance of the requirements for different classes of applications indicates that color, image mixing, hard copy output, portability, upward compatibility, and reduced reflection, glare, and noise would be the most useful terminal improvements for developing new applications of computer graphics.