The Early Years
1981-1989
The Communication Studio Inc.
John Vaughan and William Porter
The Communication Studio (TCS) was one of the first interactive design service bureaus to be active during the "the early years" of graphically-sophisticated interactivity in the US (1981-1989)....
This page is still under construction...
Here are some early (circa 1978) treatments for a business card. I'd just moved to New York City and was still working in the video/animation/graphics arena, since digital and interactive online didn't really exist much.
Still, the initial digital interactive UI environment was primarily visual, so the little eyeball made the transition to the new technology in 1981.
The You-Eye Guy was a theme - and still is, sorta. Note that he lives on as the TCS logo on this site.
Early Daze
I was one of the first graduates of the masters degree Interactive Telecommunications Program at NYU in 1981. Since I had some design skills - as well as some credibility in the interactive arena - I was lucky enough to be involved in some of the first forays into interactive online "before we called it The Web".
By late 1982 it was clear that there actually was a future in this stuff - and that I had more on my plate than I could handle.
Two Guys in a Loft
I'd met William Porter in 1977 when we were both on staff at Automation House video studio (my first serious media job in NYC). Bill is one of those exceptional people who really "got it" very early on the curve - and brings a lot to the table. His strategic understanding of new media was neatly complemented by his sophisticated artistic skill and deep technical acumen.
Starting in 1982, Bill and I partnered on a number of cutting edge interactive projects "before we called it The Web", including: BBDO/Time Warner Cabletext, NBC Teletext, IBM/ChinaComm, AT&T, AutoZone, the Information Industry Association, and the Sony/Ford Videodisc.
Perhaps even more significantly, we collaborated on the creation of a suite of software productivity tools for the graphically-sophisticated interactive arena:
- TextUp CMS & Templates
- Environment Interactive Database
- Show Page Presenter
- Edna Code Disassember
As well as some really great concepts that never quite got beyond prototype stage (though, who knows?)
- Phoenix Smart Art Platform
- MIDI-Vidi Music/Graphic Construction Set
- FaceDancer Stylesheet Manipulator
Bill has since continued his career, successfully providing professional digital video / animation / robotic multicamera systems through his company Whitehorse Productions.
Vision Deferred
Under Development: To be continued....
"John Vaughan is a pre-eminent designer of user interface software and systems. His work in the field is well known and highly respected."
William Porter, Colleague, The Communication Studio (1983-88)
Early IBM PC's, early Apples, Macs, Sony PC's, Atari, Texas Instruments, Commodores, PDP8-based graphics systems, video, videodisks, NAPLPS, Prestel, Teletel early "browser" platforms