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Doug Engelbart has died

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Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#31

Post by at-fates-hands »

mtrimpe wrote: post #20
glhaynes wrote: post #10

If you've never watched the retrospectively-named "Mother of All Demos", it's an extraordinary document of current-day technology that was somehow done in 1968. There are parts that just seem "wrong" — as seemingly-anachronistic as if Don Draper used a PowerPoint. Yet, there it is. http://archive.org/details/XD300-23_68HighlightsAResearchCnt... Edit: link had been to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJDv-zdhzMY but a u…

Another one of his hidden gems is the video where he discussed how they created a virtual tele-conferencing room by moulding CRT screens in the shapes of the head of each participant and projected their face onto it. It's the perfect example of a practical solution Doug invented decades ago that still hasn't been matched by today's technology. P.S. I was never able to find the link after I saw it once, so if someone…

>>>It's the perfect example of a practical solution Doug invented decades ago that still hasn't been matched by today's technology.

I just told one my co-workers about this and he nearly broke down crying. I asked him who he was and he went into the same example you gave. To say he was ahead of his time is an understatement.

Always sad to lose such a visionary. I'm just learning about some of these incredible people and their amazing contributions.

Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#33

Post by tqs »

Engelbart was perhaps the most important influence in realizing the computer as an interactive medium.

Around 1960, most were still thinking of the computer as a sophisticated calculator. You give it a problem, it spits out an answer. Even the idea of artificial intelligence was framed this way.

Engelbart realized the potential of the computer to augment human intelligence. High bandwidth, continuous interaction between human and computer allows the computer to be an extension of the mind. Chasing this vision led him and his team to naturally invent the mouse, bitmapped screens, hypertext, networked computers, etc.

IMO, more important than these individual inventions is Engelbart's foundational principle that technologies change what the mind is capable of thinking. And by augmenting our thinking, we enable ourselves to create new technologies. Mind and technology co-evolve. This is "bootstrapping" in the purest sense and the source of that profound feeling many of us have experienced while augmenting our minds through programming and other rich, creative interactions with computers.

Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#34

Post by Uhhrrr »

bretpiatt wrote: post #19

He predicted 'The Cloud' in 1976 and we're just catching up now, "Engelbart slipped into relative obscurity after 1976. Several of his researchers became alienated from him and left his organization for Xerox PARC, in part due to frustration, and in part due to differing views of the future of computing. Engelbart saw the future in collaborative, networked, timeshare (client-server) computers, which younger programme…

Heh - I think the younger programmers were right on that one.

Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#35

Post by oasisbob »

glhaynes wrote: post #10

If you've never watched the retrospectively-named "Mother of All Demos", it's an extraordinary document of current-day technology that was somehow done in 1968. There are parts that just seem "wrong" — as seemingly-anachronistic as if Don Draper used a PowerPoint. Yet, there it is. http://archive.org/details/XD300-23_68HighlightsAResearchCnt... Edit: link had been to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJDv-zdhzMY but a u…

In the demo video, there are some noises in the background, I'm assuming from his workstation -- rather pleasant and atmospheric. Anyone know what they are? Is it a transmission artifact? Feedback intended for the user (maybe related to the chorded keyboard)?

I've read several accounts of this presentation ( one is in _What the Dormouse Said_ ), but don't recall an explanation.

Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#37

Post by ChuckMcM »

Sad to hear he is gone. I got to talk him at one of the Computer History Fellow awards ceremonies and was struck by how clearly he thought about things. He will be missed.

Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#38

Post by jgon »

I think that what most inspires me about Dr. Engelbart was not so much the physical manifestations of his work, although these were incredible, decades ahead of their time, and in some ways still not matched, but rather the philosophy that he used to guide his work.

It was his goal of greatly increasing the abilities of an individual human, as well as increasing the ability of groups of people to work together towards a goal that will remain timeless and inspirational long after everything he created has entered the realm of the pedestrian.

Ultimately, most of the problems we face on the planet are of human origin, and even for those that aren't the solution will need to be created by us as well. As a meta-machine, a machine that can embody and or imitate almost all other mediums, the computer offers a unique opportunity to augment and enhance the reach of humanity.

As the last few weeks have shown us, this reach can be extended in a negative fashion, and can be used to complicate the problems we already face.

But Doug Engelbart saw the other side of the coin, that the computer can be used to free and uplift us, and help us come together like never before. He saw this earlier than most and he pursued it further than most. And so we can follow along in his wake and add our efforts to his, and to the greater goal of extending humanity in a positive direction.

I'll finish by encouraging everyone reading this to take a few minutes now, and perhaps every few days from here on out to think about what efforts we can each make towards furthering Dr. Engelbart's ultimate goals. Not in the spirit of guilt or of shame, but instead as an inspiration. If one man, guided by a vision of using the computer to positively affect the course of human development, can accomplish this much in a few decades, how much further could we get with each of us working as well? I hope to do what I can, and I thank Douglas Engelbart for his efforts to help guide my way.

Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#39

Post by pmelendez »

From Wikipedia article: "...after 1976 ... Engelbart saw the future in collaborative, networked, timeshare (client-server) computers, which younger programmers rejected in favor of the personal computer."

Go figure! A true visionary... He will be missed for sure.

Re: Doug Engelbart has died

#40

Post by lominming »

Mother of All Demos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJDv-zdhzMY ... It is really amazing how he conceived all these in 1968 (45 years ago!). If you think about it, what we have today is just putting on a pretty UI on top of all these concepts. We hardly moved for those innovation breakthroughs that he demoed.
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