mex (multiple exposure) is a
windowing system created by
Silicon Graphics
Silicon Graphics, Inc. (stylized as SiliconGraphics before 1999, later rebranded SGI, historically known as Silicon Graphics Computer Systems or SGCS) was an American high-performance computing manufacturer, producing computer hardware and soft ...
, used on
68k-based
IRIS systems and early IRIS 4D systems.
Mex was originally loaded over a network through the use of GL1 routines kept on a remote host machine, usually a
VAX
VAX (an acronym for virtual address extension) is a series of computers featuring a 32-bit instruction set architecture (ISA) and virtual memory that was developed and sold by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in the late 20th century. The V ...
. When the IRIS 1400 workstation and GL2-W (
IRIX
IRIX (, ) is a discontinued operating system developed by Silicon Graphics (SGI) to run on the company's proprietary MIPS architecture, MIPS workstations and servers. It is based on UNIX System V with Berkeley Software Distribution, BSD extensio ...
) were introduced, mex was allowed to run locally. Mex was used in IRIX from the GL2-W2.1.0 release to the 4D1-2.3 release.
With the introduction of 4D1-3.0 (IRIX 3.0), and the complete migration to
MIPS processors, support for the
GL / GL2 powered mex ended in the late 1980s, replaced by
Sun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems, Inc., often known as Sun for short, was an American technology company that existed from 1982 to 2010 which developed and sold computers, computer components, software, and information technology services. Sun contributed sig ...
'
NeWS
News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different Media (communication), media: word of mouth, printing, Mail, postal systems, broadcasting, Telecommunications, electronic communication, or through the te ...
and the
4Sight window manager
A window manager is system software that controls the placement and appearance of window (computing), windows within a windowing system in a graphical user interface. Most window managers are designed to help provide a desktop environment. They ...
.
References
{{Silicon Graphics
1985 software
Windowing systems
SGI graphics