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Removed the last paragraph, because it contained inapropriate style.

Transparency (computing) originally referred to internal coding techniques to make the main application logic 'transparent', i.e. clear, by removing the detail of resource or device management logic, say, from the main problem solving logic. In many ways the concept was very similar to 'encapsulation', the called routines obscured their funcions from the application and allowed device independence and many other similar abstractions. Refer to IBM and Honeywell programming mannuals - cicra 1969.

Contents 1 Is this doublethink? 1.1 A level issue 1.2 Interesting! 1.3 Two meanings

[edit] Is this doublethink?

I believe most of this article to be the opposite of accurate...

So far, in my dealings in computer science and engineering, "transparency" has been referred to as a property that a process or piece of software has when its internal workings are exposed; i.e., the proverbial walls of the box containing the software are transparent so that the inside can be seen. A transparent application is a glass box or white box, as opposed to a black box.

The following is the first paragraph of the article, with "transparency" replaced by "opacity":

In human-computer interaction, computer opacity is an aspect of user friendliness which relieves the user of the need to worry about technical details (like installation, updating, downloading or device drivers). For instance, a program that automatically detects the monitor resolution is more opaque compared to one that asks the user to enter it manually.

It makes more sense this way, because an opaque program would hide the details from the user, but a transparent one would not.

Anyway, I'm not sure whether this is a mere foible of terminology or the person who originated this article had the wrong idea. Either way, the current content is unfortunate. 208.58.69.100 14:55, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] A level issue

I absolutely agree with the misuse of the term transparent in this article, that should be changed for opaque. Besides, the idea could express the different levels of transparency of computer programs, but this would never be used to change the correct term opaque (hiden, veiled) with its opposite transparent (sight, exposed). July 2007. (this edit was by 89.128.1.68)

Unfortunately, both meanings are used (nowadays). I believe the correct and historically earlier meaning of transparency is "the innards are exposed" (like in a mechanical watch with a transparent housing), but the interpretation is "invisible" (like a transparent window pane) is becoming increasingly popular. I would change the article to clearly mention that both versions exist. They do, maybe not in theoretical informatics, but surely in colloquial use. --Dr. Hok 16:31, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Interesting!

I can see your point, although I do not agree. I edited the article to at least explicitly clear the confusion - although not to clear it your way. I'm leaving dispute tag to be verified by yet another reviewer.

To quote Cambridge Dictionary

 transparent
 1 If a substance or object is transparent, you can see through it very clearly:
   Grow the bulbs in a transparent plastic box, so the children can see the roots growing.
   Her blouse was practically transparent!
 2 clear and easy to understand or recognize:
   I think we should try to make the instructions more transparent.

In a field of computing I see the use of meaning 1 with an emphasis on see through it , see the roots disregarding they are in the box.

BTW removed (irrelevant or wrong):

In human-computer interaction, computer transparency is an aspect of user friendliness which relieves the user of the need to worry about technical details (like installation, updating, downloading or device drivers). For instance, a program that automatically detects the monitor resolution is more transparent compared to one that asks the user to enter it manually.

Some communication networks are 8-bit clean, allowing users to transfer arbitrary files over them without needing to know how this particular network will interpret control characters.

--Kubanczyk 17:37, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

Hm.. It wouldn't be very hard to use your example from the cambridge dictionary to come to the opposite view (compared to your edit of the article). I read a C programming tutorial several years ago which compared transparent and opaque data structures. The former contains elements (the "roots") that are completely visible and accessible from the outside. The latter contains the same elements, but allows access only through well-defined interfaces (which is object-oriented without objects in a way). I believe you would call the latter transparent, because it's the usage and not the implementation that counts, right? --Dr. Hok 09:06, 31 July 2007 (UTC)

Mmmmm... nope. Such structure is transparent, but transparent-as-in-common-language not transparent-as-in-IT. I think what you call opaque and transparent is more commonly reffered in IT as information hiding and white-box respectively. Let me rephrase: In a field of computing I see the use of meaning 1 with an emphasis on see the roots as they were before an intermediate layer of plastic was introduced versus see the roots despite they are internal details of a container. I think the NFS example says it all. Of course you are more than welcome to make an edit. --Kubanczyk 15:07, 31 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Two meanings

In my IT experience, I often hear "transparent" as something that let you see beyond (through it, without having it as an obstruction to your sight) more than a box that let you see what is inside methaphor

To talk about "theoretical informatics" we would need a reference (article, software engineering book, whatever) where the term is formally defined. Cambridge Dictionary definitions are not useful here, because we are discussing specific technical jargon that does not necessarily follows dictionary definitions.

I believe the article is better served if both understandings (and even other more specific uses of the word) are presented, preferably with the references. Flavio Costa (talk) 21:18, 6 April 2008 (UTC)