computer science

Lotus Freelance Graphics

Lotus Freelance Graphics is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Lotus Freelance Graphics rather than just read about it. In short: Lotus Freelance Graphics is an information graphics and presentation program developed by Lotus Development Corporation following its acquisition of Graphic Communications Inc. in 1986. It was first released for DOS and OS/2 operating systems, then later released as part of the Lotus SmartSuite for Microsoft Windows.

Key takeaways

Lotus Freelance Graphics belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Lotus Freelance Graphics to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Lotus Freelance Graphics from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Lotus Freelance Graphics is an information graphics and presentation program developed by Lotus Development Corporation following its acquisition of Graphic Communications Inc. in 1986. It was first released for DOS and OS/2 operating systems, then later released as part of the Lotus SmartSuite for Microsoft Windows. (In a reference to its original developer, Graphic Communications Inc., Freelance's executable file was named GCIFL.) Pre-Windows versions of Lotus Freelance Graphics included mouse support (provided a mouse driver for the OS had also been installed). However, many users considered the 'points and vector' graphics application easier and faster from the keyboard, as it utilized many keyboard shortcuts. The Windows-compatible version allowed users to create and compile text, digital images, diagrams, basic drawings and charts (such as bar charts and pie charts) into a digital slide show. It was originally a drawing tool, but was enhanced to include charting by either manually inputting data or importing data from the Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet program. Freelance worked within DOS to produce slides comparable to those of Microsoft PowerPoint, a program originally created for the Macintosh. Because Lotus opted to develop Freelance for OS/2, Microsoft got a head start developing and promoting the Windows version of its application. When IBM then acquired Lotus, Microsoft used a licensing issue to delay IBM's access to the Windows 95 code base, allowing Microsoft Office to be released six months ahead of Lotus SmartSuite. As a result, when OS/2 failed to gain widespread adoption, Freelance became a little-used application. Freelance was eventually grafted into a new version of 1-2-3 for Windows (Smart Suite), but by then PowerPoint and Excel had become dominant. Freelance's files were much smaller (typically 50 KB for a full presentation) compared to the competition's, allowing 20 or more presentations to be stored on a single floppy disc. However, the quality of the Freelance product eventually deteriorated as IBM's support of SmartSuite dwindled.

References

External links Infoworld article 28 Sep 1987 IBM Fix list for SmartSuite for Windows 9.8 and fix packs

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Lotus Freelance Graphics

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Lotus Freelance Graphics claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Lotus Freelance Graphics before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Lotus Freelance Graphics ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Lotus Freelance Graphics

In research: Lotus Freelance Graphics appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Lotus Freelance Graphics in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Lotus Freelance Graphics is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Business software stubs, Lotus Development software, Lotus SmartSuite, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Lotus Freelance Graphics outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Lotus Freelance Graphics in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Lotus Freelance Graphics means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Lotus Freelance Graphics out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Lotus Freelance Graphics in simple terms?

Why does Lotus Freelance Graphics matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Lotus Freelance Graphics?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Lotus Freelance Graphics.