Creation of Microsoft

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Two young hackers were intrigued by the Altair, having seen the article in Popular Electronics. They decided on their own that the Altair needed software and took it upon themselves to contact MITS owner Ed Roberts and offer to provide him with a BASIC which would run on the Altair. BASIC (Beginners All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) had originally been developed in 1963 by Thomas Kurtz and John Kemeny, members of the Dartmouth mathematics department. BASIC was designed to provide an interactive, easy method for upcoming computer scientists to program computers. It allowed the usage of statements such as print "hello" or let b=10. It would be a great boost for the Altair if BASIC were available, so Robert's agreed to pay for it if it worked. The two young hackers worked feverishly and finished just in time to present it to Roberts. It was a success. The two young hackers? They were William Gates and Paul Allen. They later went on to form Microsoft and produce BASIC and operating systems for various machines.

Computers: From the Past to the Present
The Creation of Microsoft: Last modified July 30, 2006
©1994-2006 by Michelle A. Hoyle