Talk:NCSA Mosaic

Other versions

Wasn't there a version of Mosaic for Linux called RedBaron from Red Hat? I think I've got the RPM on a CD around here someplace Crusadeonilliteracy 05:53, 3 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Huh? How is that possible? the image doesnt match up with the last releases.

♠ Frankly I think there should be a subsection for each version (i.e., Windows, Mac, Linux, Unix) for historical purposes. People shouldn't think that these were developed simultaneously for all platforms in all cases. In those days it was not PC/Mac-centric like it is now. Software was developed on mainframes and then microcomputers later.--THE FOUNDERS INTENT ^TALK 15:42, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

Correct name

Since the browser was officially called NCSA Mosaic and is always referred to by that name (on their website, for example), should it be moved there? I'm sure people are far more likely to type in 'NCSA Mosaic' than 'Mosaic (browser)'.

Seems to me that no one has taken action on this. Reason?--THE FOUNDERS INTENT ^TALK 15:19, 29 November 2007 (UTC)

NCSA Mosaic redirects to this article already. If someone is looking for this browser, they will likely just enter 'Mosaic' and eventually hit the disambiguation page where 'Mosaic (web browser)' is a better entry than 'NCSA Mosaic'. Most people either never knew or have forgotten the 'NCSA' part of the name.VMS Mosaic (talk) 17:40, 29 November 2007 (UTC)

I'm also confused as to why Quarterdeck Mosaic redirects to this page. Quarterdeck was a completely different entity than NCSA. "Quarterdeck Mosaic" should probably redirect to /wiki/Quarterdeck. Side commentary: I remember paying $40 for the Quarterdeck Mosaic Suite in the mid-90s. Imagine if software companies charged people $40 web browsers now. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Fsabelhaus (talk • contribs) 16:13, 9 September 2011 (UTC)

Contradiction concerning Spyglass and NCSA Mosaic

Spyglass, Inc. licensed the technology and trademarks from NCSA for producing their own web browser but never used any of the NCSA Mosaic source code. Spyglass Mosaic was later licensed by Microsoft, and it was modified and renamed Internet Explorer.

The above comment appear to contradict the following from the Netscape_Communications_Corporation article...

Microsoft released version 1.0 of Internet Explorer (based, ironically, on the NCSA Mosaic code) as a part of the Windows 95 Plus Pack add-on.

Which is it? -- Des Courtney 21:30 24Nov2004

♠ The whole paragraph on Spyglass is really irrelevant and should be the subject of a separate article. This article is about NCSA Mosaic and shouldn't be muddied with discussions about other browsers except maybe a passing mention.--THE FOUNDERS INTENT ^TALK 14:53, 18 December 2007 (UTC)

Mosiac and Internet Explorer

Doesn't Internet Explorer use the Mosiac engine (or did at some point)? Isn't this mentionable? --65.146.19.89 22:48, 15 March 2006 (UTC)

WorldWideWeb

I gotta run, but more credit should be given up front to WorldWideWeb, the NeXT computer platform, and Tim Berners-Lee.

• No shit, dude. The little plaque is crap. WorldWideWeb was, literally, the daddy... everything after is just well, after. 2nd place. I think this article gets attention because an American (USA) wrote the software - the WWW was of course a European invention ... but not even that, it was just the invention of a European.

Now

• Is it still possible to get a legal free download of the program, just for novelty's sake? -Litefantastic 01:38, 18 September 2006 (UTC)

Yes, ftp://ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Mosaic/ but the program no longer works properly. Type any URL and you get stuck in an eternal nonloading page lookup. Bob the Wikipedian ^{(talk • contribs)} 21:28, 3 August 2009 (UTC)

Not the first

Technically, Opera 2.0 (released in 1995) was the first browser for Windows, was it not? And MultiTorg Opera was created in 1994 by the founder of Opera Software, a Windows 3.0 web browser (never released to the public, though I never give up hope that one day a copy will resurface). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 4.224.153.162 (talk • contribs)

If you check out the dates in the article, you'd see that Mosaic was developed and released in late 1992-early 1993. Thanks. --Ragib 08:44, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

What were Mosaic's Features?

This article really needs a feature description. What did the application do? Let's not assume because it was a web browser that that's a sufficient description of its functionality. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Dbarefoot (talk • contribs).

Agreed. I wouldn't expect anything other than HTML 2.0 and images though. -- intgr 07:09, 4 April 2007 (UTC)

Subtemplates for preview and release versions

It looks like this has been set up to use subtemplates to maintain version numbers in the infobox. Since Mosaic is frozen and has been for a decade, I'd like to stop using subtemplates (and get rid of the the version increment/decrement links), but I can't figure out how. Maybe someone more experienced with the infobox template can do so? Avram (talk) 17:46, 30 April 2008 (UTC)

Screenshots?

The should be added to this article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.60.66.250 (talk) 17:05, 28 August 2008 (UTC)

Firefox revisionism

The article said "Mosaic's direct descendant on the coder line, via Marc Andreessen, was Netscape Navigator. Netscape Navigator's code descendant is Mozilla Firefox.".

This is pure revisionism, as the code descendant of Netscape is Mozilla, later renamed Mozilla Application Suite, and now maintained as SeaMonkey.

Mozilla Firefox is an interface fork of Mozilla, both using the same framework called Gecko. While it could be argued that Firefox did ultimately descend from Netscape's code, Mozilla was first. BenoitRen (talk) 17:42, 22 January 2009 (UTC)

Agree, what is a "descendant on the coder line" anyway, an elevator on a subway? 87.194.223.13 (talk) 12:51, 27 February 2009 (UTC)

final link in the chain

Having issues with this, especially since the protocols listed don't necessarily depend on each other, eg there is no chain, there is an amorphous set of protocols that are constantly improved, forked and repurposed, and on top of that there is no end to the chains that do temporarily form, each day brings an extra link, however small. Sure for a while the web was the pinnacle, but now technologies are being layered on top of it, and HTTP is being pushed into 'middleware', the middle of the protocol stack, eg. AJAX. So there is no "final". If we mean, final in terms of creating the web as it was in 1993, then I don't see why gopher, for example is listed, or why TCP comes before IP. etc.... 87.194.223.13 (talk) 13:02, 27 February 2009 (UTC)

Development of Mosaic (first releases)

The reference to ftp://ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Mosaic/Windows/Archive/MosaicHistory.html yields different release dates (e.g. Nov 11, 1993 for version 1.0) than the article. The reason is that the reference holds only for the Windows versions, not for the XWindows versions. For these [1] is a better reference, hence the article text itself may be correct. But someone should correct the wrong reference.--129.13.186.2 (talk) 00:51, 15 September 2009 (UTC)

ports

Shouldn't we think of explaining what ports were avaible?mabdul 12:37, 3 March 2010 (UTC)

starting a list applications based on mosaic:

• Mosaic-CK
• VMS Mosaic
• MMosaic
• AMosaic
• netscape
• internet explorer
• IBM WebExplorer
• Internet in a Box (== Air Mosaic)
• Enhanced Mosaic (Enhanced NSCA Mosaic) (Spyglass Enhanced Mosaic)
• SPRY Mosaic
• TueV Mosaic for X
• Pathworks Mosaic
• WebRouser

more? mabdul 19:46, 29 November 2010 (UTC)

A bunch of "compatible" UAs, maybe to avoid intimidations. Well, this one is from the MIT/Verisign's country, Linux Mosaic, after actually free, a kool person for sure, NB's one is being taken by now as a report on Pellow's masterpiece and a port on erwisE and "Arena" (perhaps Guido van Rossum's client as well).

File:Mosaiclogo.png Nominated for Deletion

An image used in this article, File:Mosaiclogo.png, has been nominated for deletion at Wikimedia Commons in the following category: Deletion requests November 2011 What should I do? Don't panic; a discussion will now take place over on Commons about whether to remove the file. This gives you an opportunity to contest the deletion, although please review Commons guidelines before doing so. If the image is non-free then you may need to upload it to Wikipedia (Commons does not allow fair use) If the image isn't freely licensed and there is no fair use rationale then it cannot be uploaded or used. This notification is provided by a Bot --CommonsNotificationBot (talk) 12:23, 1 December 2011 (UTC)

Merge all forks

As long as the articles on forks of Mosaic (Mosaic-CK and VMS Mosaic) are not of much use, I suggest merging them into a new section of this article (say, Descendants). IMO such merge will both improve this article (demonstrating the lasting impact of Mosaic) and the coverage of descendents, potentially allowing to discuss the differences between the forks. — Dmitrij D. Czarkoff (talk) 12:52, 10 July 2012 (UTC)

 Done in lack of opposition. — Dmitrij D. Czarkoff (talk) 12:06, 2 August 2012 (UTC)

Late one, kinda same as merging all into LineMode. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.14.248.102 (talk) 13:57, 12 September 2012 (UTC)

My AV is from Slovakia

Interesting historical record, same to a client available in January 1993. Of course if someone is not mosaic-x, no support. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.66.221.90 (talk • contribs) 22:20, 10 September 2012‎ (UTC)

In regard, a kool timeline of a humble guy: [2] (not so difficult), [3] (how Google does it?), [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12]. UAs were all Mosaic (or just in Verisign TLDs?). Nothing for Nicola Pellow, sorry.— Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.14.248.102 (talk) 14:14, 12 September 2012 (UTC)

19980203 (none original IP, sorry).