[rebootthesystem]

AutoCAD used a separate monitor connected directly to an S-100 graphics card. You'd enter commands into the AutoCAD command line interface and do the drafting on the graphics monitor.

That also explains the way ACAD works. Had the program been created in the post-terminal age it is likely it would have been a point-and-click application, like, say, SolidWorks. Instead, they relied on commands such as "line", "circle", "pline", etc. typed into the console. You could also type the parameters rather than clicking around.

ACAD also came with a version of Lisp (AutoLISP) you could use to extend its capabilities. In general terms the approach was to use AutoLISP to create a DSL that made drafting much easier for your particular application.

For example, I had a set of programs that created a DSL I could use to layout circuit boards more efficiently than through raw command drafting. If I remember correctly, I could type "dip" and my code would ask a series of question to ultimately place a, say, DIP 16 package with certain size pads and holes on the current layer.

The degree of automation one could be achieved through AutoLISP was remarkable.

[drudru11]

Ah - that makes sense.

That pattern of cmd driven UI was very common in those days. I think just about every EDA package does that. However, instead of Lisp, they used TCL.

Thanks for sharing this. I think it is always great when people achieve powerful automation.