window system
Software which allows a {workstation}'s screen to be divided
into rectangular areas which act like a separate input/output
devices under the control of different {application} programs.
This gives the user the ability to see the output of several
processes at once and to choose which one will receive input
by selecting its window, usually by pointing at it with a
{mouse}.
Examples are the {X Window System}, and proprietary systems on
the {Macintosh} and {NeXT}, {NeWS} on {Suns} and {RISC OS} on
the {Archimedes}. See also {WIMP}.