Carla Killough McClafferty - Tech Titans. Profiles Series, Book 3

BILL GATES

STEVE JOBS

A few developments over the centuries, like the printing press, telegraph, radio, and television, have made titanic-sized changes in the way people share information. Each new development was a revolutionary improvement over the one before it. But perhaps the biggest technological leap of all has taken place with the creation of the computer. Computers have allowed information to be processed, used, and shared in ways it never had been before.

Like most technology, improvements in computers came slowly through the years. Then, in the 1970s, a new generation of computer whiz kids entered the scene. From that point on, one brilliant programmer after another has come up with innovative ways to use computers.

The six men featured in this book have changed computing forever. Each of them built on the technology that was available to him. Each of them created something new and exciting. Each of them has changed the way we live today. Bill Gates was instrumental in bringing computers into the homes and offices of the general public. The beautifully designed products of Steve Jobs have successfully put computers in our phones. Jeff Bezos has not only changed how we buy books, but in some cases how we read them, too. Sergey Brin and Larry Page have made it possible to find the answer to almost any question in seconds, with just a few keystrokes. Mark Zuckerberg has changed the way we socialize and stay connected with our friends.

Computers are part of everyday life for many people. On any given day, we may use our computers to find directions to a location, order a book or even a pizza, research a project and write a paper for school, play a video game, send messages to our friends (whether they live next door or on the other side of the globe), or share photographs and videos with the world.

Today, because of the groundbreaking work of these men, information of every kind is available at all times. Never before have so many facts and so much knowledge been at our fingertips. These six men are modern technology titans.

Bill Gates is a computer programmer and businessman. He is best known for cofounding Microsoft, the worlds largest personal-computer software company.

William Henry Gates III was born on October 28, 1955. He was named after his father, William Henry Gates II. To avoid confusion, the family called the boy Trey. Today Trey is better known as Bill Gates. Gates was the second child in the family, joining his older sister, Kristianne (Kristi). Gatess father was a lawyer. His mother, Mary Maxwell Gates, had been a schoolteacher before her son was born. Even after Gatess younger sister, Elizabeth (Libby), was born, their mother continued to be actively involved in various community and business projects.

At the family dinner table, Gatess parents discussed the latest business or volunteer efforts in which they were involved with their children. They encouraged their three kids to ask questions. The close-knit family spent a lot of time together and enjoyed working on puzzles and playing competitive trivia and card games. It was a lot of fun for all of them, but each member of the Gates family took games seriously because winning was important to each of them.

As Bill Gates grew up, he was curious about everything. He read the World Book encyclopedia in alphabetical order just for fun. He was shy, but he excelled academically at math and reading. His parents insisted that Gates get out of his comfort zone by participating in things he was not so good at, like football and soccer.

Gates had an intense personality and a tendency to challenge his parents. By the time he was almost out of elementary school, he often ignored his mothers wishes that he clean his bedroom and come to dinner. He was so disagreeable and stubborn that his parents were concerned. It seemed their son fought them over everything.

Since Gates had become difficult to handle, his parents decided to send him to a professional counselor. He went to that counselor for about a year. Gates would later recall that the counselor helped him understand there was no benefit to fighting with his parents, and that they were on his side no matter what. After this realization, Gates was more agreeable and things seemed to smooth out for the family.

When the time came to attend junior high, Gatess parents became concerned about him again. They wondered how he would do at a large public school. He was short and thin for his age, and he was still very shy. Another of their concerns was that Bill needed to go to a school that would satisfy his intelligence and curiosity. They decided to enroll him at Lakeside, an elite private school.

Bill Gates entered seventh grade at Lakeside. At first he didnt like their strict rules, like wearing a jacket and tie, calling the teachers master and going to chapel every morning. But soon he found some friends who shared his interests in business and computer companies.

Then something happened at Lakeside School that changed his life.

Keyboard for a Teletype computer.

The Mothers Club had a garage sale. From the proceeds, they rented a Teletype terminal that was connected to a computer at the University of Washington. They also purchased some computer time for the Lakeside students to use. At this time, in 1968, Teletype terminals were connected by phone lines to a mainframe computer in another location. The mainframe was a huge computer powerful enough to run many programs simultaneously.

When the new teletype computer terminal was installed at Lakeside, there was one big problem. The teachers didnt know how to work it or what do with it. They allowed students like Gates, who were eager to work with the computer, the freedom to figure it out by using it. Gates took the manuals home and studied them. Ultimately, he, his friend Paul Allen, and a few other students became the schools computer experts. By the time he was in the eighth gradeand way ahead in mathhe was excused from math class to work on the computer.

Gates was amazed by what the computer could do. After working with it for a few months, he wrote his first software program. It was a tic-tac-toe game. He was fascinated by the fact that when he programmed software he would have instant resultsthe program would either work perfectly or it would fail. He dreamed that someday individuals would be able to have computers of their own. Gates would later say, Im sure that one reason I was so determined to help develop the personal computer is that I wanted one for myself.

Gates and his friends quickly used up all the prepaid time the Lakeside Mothers Club bought for them, and they wanted morea lot more. Gates had to figure out how to pay for his own computer time. Gates and Allen found a local company that allowed them to have free computer time in exchange for finding problems with their computer software. They worked there mostly at night. Sometimes after his parents went to bed, Gates would sneak out of the house and go back to the computer center to use the computer all night long. Along the way, he learned everything he could about computers and studied every computer manual he could get his hands on.