The 1998 Computer Hall-of-Fame



Charles Babbage
Charles Babbage
b. December 26, 1792, London, England
d. October 18, 1871, London, England

Inducted August, 1998

  • Designed the Difference and Analytical Engines, the earliest direct progenitors of modern computers
  • The Analytical Engine was the earliest expression of an all-purpose, programmable computer
  • The University of Minnesota named in his honor The Charles Babbage Institute Center for the History of Computing





Seymour Cray

Seymour Cray
b. 1925, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin
d. 1996, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Inducted August, 1998

  • Widely acknowledged as the "Father of the Supercomputer"
  • Credited with developing the first fully transistorized supercomputer in 1958
  • A founding employee of Control Data Corporation in 1957; directed its engineering department 1957 to 1965
  • Invented CRAY-1 vector register technology, and innovative cooling designs for the CDC 6600 and CRAY-1
  • Founded ground-breaking Cray Research in 1972




Lee Felsenstein
Lee Felsenstein
b. 1945 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Inducted August, 1998

  • Moderator of the now-legendary Homebrew Computer Club from 1975 through 1986
  • Designed the Processor Technology Sol, one of the first competitors to the Apple II
  • Designed the Osborne-I portable computer in 1981, the first mass-produced portable computer
  • Designer of the Pennywhistle modem, one of the first inexpensive modems for personal computers
  • An organizer of the Hacker's Conference in 1984
  • Currently a senior researcher and leader of rapid-prototyping engineering at Interval Research Corporation



Andrew Kay

Andrew Kay

Inducted August 1998
  • Best known as the father of the KAYPRO personal computer, the only major computer platform designed and manufactured in San Diego County
  • Inventor of the digital voltmeter for his own Non-Linear Systems in 1953



William H. Gates III
William H. Gates III
b. October 28, 1955 Seattle, Washington

Inducted August, 1998

  • Co-founded Microsoft in 1975 with boyhood friend Paul Allen
  • Wrote Microsoft's first program, BASIC for the MITS Altair, in 1975
  • Led Microsoft to become one of the world's largest corporations, helping the software industry rival established industries in economic influence and power
  • Donated nearly $1 billion to charities, including $200 million to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.








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