[1] It is heavily influenced by the Self programming language, but modified to be more suited to needs of mobile and embedded devices.
The main intention behind Newton project, was to develop a device capable of replacing a computer while being portable.
With limited battery and memory, the developers were looking for programming language capable of meeting these challenges.
[3] Concurrently Apple was developing another dynamic programming language called Dylan, which was a strong candidate for the Newton platform.
One of the advantages of NewtonScript's prototype based inheritance was reduced memory usage, a key consideration in the 128 KB Newton.
The prototype of a GUI object could actually be stored in ROM, so there was no need to copy default data or functions into working memory.
NewtonScript's "differential inheritance" therefore made efficient use of the Newton's expensive flash RAM by storing the bulk of the default data and code in the PDA's cheaper and much larger ROM.