[kwlug-disc] Mobile PR&bravado, or is there a historic design/architecture path?

[Mikalai Birukou]

In Android docs, "Introduction to activities" initial section "The 
concept of activities" ( 
https://developer.android.com/guide/components/activities/intro-activities#tcoa 
) says, quote:

"""

The mobile-app experience differs from its desktop counterpart in that a 
user's interaction with the app doesn't always begin in the same place. 
Instead, the user journey often begins non-deterministically. For 
instance, if you open an email app from your home screen, you might see 
a list of emails. By contrast, if you are using a social media app that 
then launches your email app, you might go directly to the email app's 
screen for composing an email.

"""

But, when I click on mail-to or something like that tag in a browser, 
Thunderbird opens "screen for composing an email".


Was that a mobile PR & bravado BS to dress preexisting concepts into 
"activities" lingo for a shine new at the time platform, or was 
aforementioned UX historically developed first on mobile.

Are there any pointers?