A minimal window system architecture for distributed environment

In this paper, we assert that window system plays a fundamental role in supporting multiple interaction channels distributed over a finite number of I/O devices. For historical as well as technical reasons, window systems usually deal with the issues which concern distribution of window system components, heterogeneity, user interface, multimedia, and distributed application support. We propose a minimal window system architecture which allows separate treatment of these issues. The minimal window-system architecture serves as a basis for discussing the influence of these issues on each other. Also in the viewpoint of the transparency facilities inherent in a distributed system, a window system model based on the minimal window system is proposed for the distributed environment