Post by Yuliya on Feb 4, 2004 11:18:04 GMT -5
www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-01-29-famous-programmer_x.htm
Inventor of Ctrl-Alt-Delete combo retiring
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. (AP) — David Bradley spent five minutes writing the computer code that has bailed out the world's PC users ever since.
He programmed one of the most well-known key combinations around: Ctrl-Alt-Delete. It forces obstinate computers to restart when they no longer follow other commands.
"I didn't know it was going to be a cultural icon," Bradley said. "I did a lot of other things than Ctrl-Alt-Delete, but I'm famous for that one."
Bradley, 55, is retiring from IBM Corp. on Friday after 28 1/2 years.
By 1980, Bradley was one of 12 people working to create the IBM PC. The engineers knew they had to design a simple way to restart the computer should it fail. Bradley wrote the code to make it work.
Bradley, who will continue teaching at North Carolina State University after retirement, was once mentioned as a clue in the TV game show Jeopardy.
"After having been the answer on final Jeopardy, if I can be a clue in The New York Times' Sunday crossword puzzle, I will have met all my life's goals," Bradley said.
USA Today, 1/29/2004
Inventor of Ctrl-Alt-Delete combo retiring
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. (AP) — David Bradley spent five minutes writing the computer code that has bailed out the world's PC users ever since.
He programmed one of the most well-known key combinations around: Ctrl-Alt-Delete. It forces obstinate computers to restart when they no longer follow other commands.
"I didn't know it was going to be a cultural icon," Bradley said. "I did a lot of other things than Ctrl-Alt-Delete, but I'm famous for that one."
Bradley, 55, is retiring from IBM Corp. on Friday after 28 1/2 years.
By 1980, Bradley was one of 12 people working to create the IBM PC. The engineers knew they had to design a simple way to restart the computer should it fail. Bradley wrote the code to make it work.
Bradley, who will continue teaching at North Carolina State University after retirement, was once mentioned as a clue in the TV game show Jeopardy.
"After having been the answer on final Jeopardy, if I can be a clue in The New York Times' Sunday crossword puzzle, I will have met all my life's goals," Bradley said.
USA Today, 1/29/2004
