Pen-Based Computing History Museum
Under Construction
2026 / SUMMER EXHIBITION
GCFeatured Exhibition

GO Corporation
and the Vision of
Pen-Based Computing

GO Corporation's PenPoint, released in 1991, was the first operating system designed from the ground up for pen input rather than keyboard — pioneering gesture commands, embedded handwriting recognition, and a notebook metaphor that would echo through every stylus and touch system that followed.

GO Corporation and the Vision of Pen-Based Computing
Now on view
Permanent collection
Artifacts
Approx. 30,000
Catalogued
167
Timeline span
1987 — 2007
Recorded events
1472 milestones

Exhibitions
now on view.

One Special Exhibition Drawn directly from the museum's collection of artifacts, magazines, and primary documents.
GC Featured Exhibition
Under Construction GO Corporation and the Vision of Pen-Based Computing

GO Corporation and the Vision of Pen-Based Computing

GO Corporation's PenPoint, released in 1991, was the first operating system designed from the ground up for pen input rather than keyboard — pioneering gesture commands, embedded handwriting recognition, and a notebook metaphor that would echo through every stylus and touch system that followed.

Featured artifacts.

From the collection 18 recently catalogued objects, drawn from 167 in the permanent collection.
View all artifacts
PenMagic Software Inc. 1993
PenMagic Numero 2.0 Product Fact Sheet (Front)

PenMagic Numero 2.0 (Product Fact Sheet)
Creative Digital, Inc. 1997
Creative Digital - The Handheld Computer Almanac (Cover)

The Handheld Computer Almanac
Software Partners, Inc. 1994
Software Partners, Inc. - FreeStyle Version 1.0 Package (Front)

Software Partners, Inc. – FreeStyle Version 1.0 (Magic Cap)
PenWorld, Incorporated 1994
Personal Electronics News - Issue 16 - March/April 1994 (Cover)

Personal Electronics News, Issue 16, March/April 1994
aha! software corporation 1994
aha! InkWriter for Windows 2.0 Quick Reference (Cover)

aha! InkWriter 2.0 for Windows Quick Reference
Palmtop Publications 1997
Palmtop Journal - Issue 12 (Cover)

Palmtop – Issue 12
GO Corporation 1994
Startup: A Silicon Valley Adventure - Jerry Kaplan (Cover)

Startup: A Silicon Valley Adventure Story
aha! software corporation 1993
aha! InkWriter Handbook - PenPoint (Cover)

aha InkWriter Handbook (PenPoint)
GO Corporation 1992
GO Corporation - Using PenPoint (Cover)

GO Corporation – Using PenPoint
Addison-Wesley Publishing Company 1992
GO Corporation - PenPoint Architectural Reference Volume II (Cover)

GO Corporation – PenPoint Architectural Reference – Volume II
Addison-Wesley Publishing Company 1992
GO Corporation - PenPoint User Interface Design Reference (Cover)

GO Corporation – PenPoint User Interface Design Reference
Addison-Wesley Publishing Company 1992
GO Corporation - PenPoint Application Writing Guide (Cover)

GO Corporation – PenPoint Application Writing Guide
GO Corporation 1992
GO Corporation - PenPoint Development Tools (Cover)

GO Corporation – PenPoint Development Tools
Addison-Wesley Publishing Company 1992
GO Corporation - PenPoint Architectural Reference - Volume I (Cover)

GO Corporation – PenPoint Architectural Reference – Volume I
EO, Incorporated 1993
EO, Inc. - Personal Communicator 440 Order Form Letter (John Jerney)

EO, Inc. – Personal Communicator 440 Letter and Order Form (John Jerney)
EO, Incorporated 1993
EO Inc - Personal Communicator 440 Order Form Letter (March, 1993)

EO, Inc. – Personal Communicator 440 Letter and Order Form
EO, Incorporated 1993
EO, Inc. - Personal Communicator 440/880 Brochure - Photocopy (Front)

EO, Inc. – Personal Communicator 440/880 Brochure (Photocopy)
WPDO 1993
Worldwide PenPoint Developers Organization - Available Videotapes - July 8, 1993 (Page 1)

Worldwide PenPoint Developers Organization – Available Videotapes (July 8, 1993)

A chronology.

1987 — 2007 Selected from the museum's 1472 catalogued timeline events.
View full timeline
1995Software
Intuit Announces Pocket Quicken Connect for Macintosh and Windows
Pocket Quicken Connect provides the only seamless link between Intuit's best-selling Quicken and the new Quicken ExpensAble products on the desktop and…
1996Publication
Industrial Tablets Capture 64% of $ 1.7 Billion U.S. Handheld Market in 1996 According to Recent Research by Mobile Insights Inc.
Leading makers of industrial tablets, such as Telxon, Norand, Symbol, and Fujitsu Personal Systems, will this year ship over $ 1.1 billion…
1997Organization
General Magic Spins Out Software Modem Technology Group to Newly Formed AltoCom, Inc.
In accordance with its recent announcement articulating its strategic plan to offer an Internet-based network service solution, General Magic announces that it…
1998Software
Quicken Personal Finance Software to be Available For Palm Computing Platform
New Pocket Quicken from LandWare transforms 3Com connected organizers into mobile money managers.
1999Software
ON Technology Announces Plans for Out-of-the-Box Integration Between Meeting Maker and Palm Computing Platform Connected Organizers
Premier enterprise calendaring and scheduling system to synchronize with Palm Computing organizers for both Macintosh and Windows platforms.
2002Publication
Worth Magazine Editors Pick the Best of Everything in Products and Services
Worth Magazine editors choose Sony Clie NR70V as best PDA and Palm i705 as runenr-up.
2004Organization
Survey: Psychiatrists Using Handheld Computers to Improve Quality of Patient Care
Skyscape survey finds key psychiatric reference use on PDAs helps reduce medical errors.

The collection.

Browse 167 artifacts Indexed by category from the collection.
    KE

    Keyboard

    1 item →
    MA

    Magazine

    49 items →
    TA

    Tablet

    2 items →
    RD

    Royal daVinci

    1 item →
    DA

    Dauphin

    2 items →
    JS

    John Wiley & Sons

    3 items →
    GS

    Gaia Software

    2 items →
    CA

    Casio

    3 items →
    BO

    Book

    13 items →
    ZO

    Zoomer

    2 items →
    ID

    Internal Document

    1 item →
    AC

    aha! software corporation

    23 items →
    WM

    Wireless for the Corporate User Magazine

    2 items →
    VB

    Visitor's Badge

    1 item →

    Pen-Based Computing,
    the newsletter.

    Eight volumes · Sixty five issues The original newsletter — every issue digitized in full (soon).
    Pen-Based Computing – June 20, 1991 – Volume 1, Number 3

    Volume 1 · Issue 03 Pen-Based Computing – June 20, 1991 – Volume 1, Number 3

    16 pp
    Pen-Based Computing – January 22, 1991 – Volume 1, Number 1

    Volume 1 · Issue 01 Pen-Based Computing – January 22, 1991 – Volume 1, Number 1

    16 pp
    Pen-Based Computing – August, 1991 – Volume 1, Number 4

    Volume 1 · Issue 04 Pen-Based Computing – August, 1991 – Volume 1, Number 4

    16 pp
    04 · Donate

    Donate an
    artifact.

    The museum collects hardware, software, manuals, photographs, marketing collateral, oral histories, and ephemera related to the early history of stylus-based computing.

    Learn how to donate →
    05 · Subscribe Coming Soon

    PBCHM
    Monthly.

    Learn about new acquisitions, recovered manuals, oral histories, and unearthed discoveries.

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