computer programming, using the programming language, BASIC, along with his friend, Paul Allen. Gates and Allen actually developed their own computer for the city of Seattle, called the "Traf-o-Data," that could monitor the traffic patterns in Seattle. They sold it to the city for $20,000. Gates and Allen wanted to start their own company, but Gates' parents would not let him until he finished high school and college. Gates continued to study computer programming, and, after scoring a 1590 out of 1600 on his SATs, he pursued his passion at Harvard University. This is where his career took off.At Harvard, he met two people who helped his career the most, Steve Ballmer, who later succeeded Gates as CEO of Microsoft, and his old friend, Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft.
When Gates was a sophomore, he and Allen designed the first software program for microcomputers. They used BASIC, a programming system mainly used on larg
e computers, and adapted it for microcomputers. The program was a success. During his junior year, Gates dropped out of Harvard and started his own company with Allen, Microsoft. Many people would say that Gates was in the right place at the right time. The microcomputer industry was young and in need of intelligent people who could write code for hours and develop new programs. At 23 years old, Gates was the head of a company that had grossed 2.5 million dollars. Gates really hit it big when he teamed up with an American institution, IBM.IBM, or "Big Blue," as it is often referred to, was one of the biggest companies in America, and they want
ed a piece of this new industry. In 1980, IBM had created their own personal computer, or "PC," and needed a software program for it. Gates offered them a new programming system, Microsoft Disc Operating System, or MS-DOS. Gates completely manipulated IBM, making it so Microsoft would be the only company that IBM could buy programming from. After many disputes with IBM, Gates was onto bigger and better things, Microsoft Windows.Microsoft Windows was a program that people with PCs could use that was very similar to the Apple personal computer. It made the PC more user friendly, and allowed people with PCs to have the same luxuries as Apple users. Apple sued Microsoft, claiming that Gates stole Apple's ideas. Overall, Microsoft won in court because they could prove that even though the operating systems had many similarities, the individual functions were different.
With the development of Windows, Gates and Microsoft had more money than they could have ever imagined. Bill Gates is America's richest man, worth over 56
billion dollars, according to Forbes Magazine. He put his money to good use, however, by developing the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, an organization dedicated to enhancing health care, reducing extreme poverty, expanding educational opportunities and access to information technology.Sources:
http://www.biography.com/articles/Bill-Gates-9307520?part=3
http://www.forbes.com/profile/bill-gates
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/exec/billg/?tab=biography
http://school.eb.com/eb/article-9036187?query=bill%20gates&ct=
Great article Olivia. I love learning about Bill Gates and his go getter attitude. He is always trying to make somthing new and I think that is the key to his success.
ReplyDeleteOlivia, way to hit upon the topics we discussed in class. It was great to read up on what the movie we watched touched upon. Your blog was very accurate, easy to read, and to the point. I really enjoyed reading it.
ReplyDeleteNice follow up to class, Olivia, with some interesting extra information.
ReplyDeleteOlivia, great job! Bill Gates was definitely one of the most important men in history considering we are now living in the age of technology. I loved the extra information you gave and the links and pictures helped out so much. Once again, awesome job!
ReplyDelete