We bid farewell to Thomas Eugene Kurtz, a pioneering computer scientist and mathematician, who passed away on November 12, 2024, at the age of 96. Kurtz made significant contributions to the world of computing, most notably as the co-creator of the BASIC programming language alongside John Kemeny.
In the early 1960s, Kurtz and Kemeny developed BASIC to make computer programming accessible to students who were not computer science majors. This revolutionary idea led to the creation of the Dartmouth Time-Sharing System (DTSS), which allowed multiple users to access a computer simultaneously using Teletype terminals.
BASIC quickly became one of the most widely used programming languages, especially during the personal computer boom of the 1980s. Its simplicity and ease of use opened the doors of computer programming to millions of people around the world.
Thomas Kurtz's legacy lives on in the GCBASIC project.
Another Great Pioneer has moved on, but his legacy will never be forgotten by the millions who used BASIC as an introduction to computers, many of whom went on to achieve even greater things. Even Microsoft Started by selling a BASIC Interpreter in the form of a ROM Bios, and not the Operating Systems that they are now famous for.
Without BASIC we probably would never had had the Home Computer and Micro Revolution that disrupted the Mainframe and Mini Computer strongholds.
The Prophet is Dead but My his Legacy live on in GCBasic and other variants.
👍
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Last edit: Chris Roper 2024-11-17
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A sad loss.
We bid farewell to Thomas Eugene Kurtz, a pioneering computer scientist and mathematician, who passed away on November 12, 2024, at the age of 96. Kurtz made significant contributions to the world of computing, most notably as the co-creator of the BASIC programming language alongside John Kemeny.
In the early 1960s, Kurtz and Kemeny developed BASIC to make computer programming accessible to students who were not computer science majors. This revolutionary idea led to the creation of the Dartmouth Time-Sharing System (DTSS), which allowed multiple users to access a computer simultaneously using Teletype terminals.
BASIC quickly became one of the most widely used programming languages, especially during the personal computer boom of the 1980s. Its simplicity and ease of use opened the doors of computer programming to millions of people around the world.
Thomas Kurtz's legacy lives on in the GCBASIC project.
See https://computerhistory.org/blog/in-memoriam-thomas-e-kurtz-1928-2024/
Another Great Pioneer has moved on, but his legacy will never be forgotten by the millions who used BASIC as an introduction to computers, many of whom went on to achieve even greater things. Even Microsoft Started by selling a BASIC Interpreter in the form of a ROM Bios, and not the Operating Systems that they are now famous for.
Without BASIC we probably would never had had the Home Computer and Micro Revolution that disrupted the Mainframe and Mini Computer strongholds.
The Prophet is Dead but My his Legacy live on in GCBasic and other variants.
Last edit: Chris Roper 2024-11-17
All respect...