Donald Knuth is an extraordinary man. As well as inventing 'Literate Programming' and writing the most important textbook on programming algorithms, he is also famous for designing and programming one of the most widely-used digital typesetting systems ever, even designing the fonts that went with it. He also pioneered the use of 'Open-source' software. Knuth is a man of engaging charm and enthusiasms who combines a knowledge of history, music, art and mathematics with a unique insight into the art of computer programming.… Read more
Dave Moore is one of the world's top DBAs and best-known for being the architect of the famous DBXray(tm) product by BMC Software, Dave Moore has a reputation for his substantial knowledge of Oracle internals. He has developed many products that assist Oracle DBAs and Developers. He has experience as a developer specializing in Oracle, Java and PL/SQL, and responsible for Space Expert, SQL Explorer and SmartDBA Cockpit.… Read more
Simon Peyton Jones is a Principal Researcher at Microsoft Research's lab in Cambridge. Although he is best known as the developer of the definitive Haskell Compiler, his influence on the development of the new generation of functional languages such as F# has been profound. He has also been in the forefront of the development of parallel programming using Software Transactional memory. We sent Richard Morris across the road to find out more.… Read more
For our first feature on working DBAs and their lives, we chose Grant Fritchey, the self-styled Scary DBA, who has been so successful in the past year with his books and presentations. How does he manage to pack so much into his life? we sent Richard Morris to find out. … Read more
What do military networks and a 19th Century Difference Engine have in common? Tucker Taft; industry leader in compiler construction and programming language design, and SoftCheck CTO. Tucker has taught disseminated his encyclopaedic knowledge at Harvard University, and has worked tirelessly to improve the Ada language for 20 years. We sent Richard Morris to find out about more about the man and his two-decade-long project.… Read more
Joe Celko, the Database Developer and writer from Austin Texas, is not a man to mince his words. His encyclopedic grasp of SQL and relational Databases in general comes from a mix of academic knowledge and practical experience. In discussions he can be fascinating, cantankerous, amusing and satirical, but he is never ever dull, as Richard Morris found out when we sent him to interview the SQL language's most famous advocate.… Read more
Stephen Johnson, one of the team that developed UNIX, can claim to be the man who originally wrote the software tool that has been the longest continuously advertised and marketed software tool ever, since 1984. Lint for C and C++ was not his only success, though. He wrote YACC too, still used after 35 years, the Portable C Compiler, and possibly his greatest achievement, the MATLAB compiler.… Read more
After developing the first native C++ compiler, the Zortech C++, and writing the Symantec Java compiler, Walter Bright created D (C Done right). He has written a number of commercial compilers for a number of languages, and D is the culmination of everything he has learned in over twenty years. As a result of all this experience, he has interesting views on compilers and languages.… Read more
The development of Object-oriented programming, the windowing User-interface, Ethernet and the Laptop all had essential contributions from a brilliant, visionary, former professional Jazz and Rock guitarist. Alan Kay. His second career as a computer scientist led to him being the creative catalyst at Xerox, Atari and Apple. Alan is driven by the vision of the computer's potential role in education, to build a better society.
… Read more
Luca Cardelli is probably best known for Polyphonic C# and Biocomputing, but he has designed a number of experimental languages and published a variety of papers on Theoretical Computing subjects such as type theory and operational semantics. He is now Principal Researcher at Microsoft Research in Cambridge, and head of the Programming Principles and Tools and Security groups. We sent a slightly apprehensive Richard Morris to ask him about DNA Computing… Read more
After inventing the QuickSort algorithm, and designing the compiler for the Algol 60 programming language, Tony Hoare went on to apply axiomatic semantics to compiler design and his work and writings have since had a great influence on software engineering, and the way we specify, design, implement, and maintain computer programs. Now, at 75, he is working at Microsoft research on projects that will filter through to .NET languages.
… Read more
Charles Moore is one of the greatest ever programmers. The 'Forth' language he invented is still in use today, particularly by NASA, and has never been bettered for instrumentation and process control. He still argues persuasively that the only way we can develop effective software quickly is to embrace simplicity. Like Niklaus Wirth, he remains a radical whose views have become increasingly relevant to current software development… Read more
Many famous geeks work away at their programs without considering the wider implications of what they, and others, are doing. Richard Stallman isn't like that. Richard (rms) is one of the great brains behind Linux Distros, as he wrote the GNU compilers and GNU debugger. He is driven by strong opinions about the nature of free software, and the restrictive nature of software copyright. We sent our intrepid reporter, Richard Morris, to find out if Richard Stallman really required journalists to read parts of the GNU philosophy before an interview, for "efficiency's sake".… Read more
It is difficult to begin to estimate the huge extent of the contribution that Niklaus Wirth has made to IT as it exists today. Although now retired for ten years, he remains a abiding influence on the design of computer languages. It is likely that the first structured computer language you ever learned was written by him. He still has fascinating views on contemporary software trends, as Richard Morris found out when he spoke to him.… Read more
Occasionally, readers of Simple-Talk will ask quizzically if the 'Geek of the Week' that the editors have chosen really is a true 'geek'. Nobody could ever ask that about Craig Newmark, the founder of the famous website 'CraigsList'. The site is uncompromisingly geeky in attitude, spartan in appearance but immensely popular, and supported by an army of enthusiasts. One can say exactly the same about the admirable Craig Newmark himself. … Read more
Marc Wick is the genius behind GeoNames, the free Web Service that powers a number of popular GPS applications and games. It is an open-source database of geographical information that is used by hundreds of applications from iPhone apps to political organizations. Its data is used for research and geo-visualizations in universities around the world. It underpins a large number of geography-aware applications and can be loaded into SQL Server Spatial and used with the new geospatial features of SQL Server 2008… Read more
Anders Hejlsberg, the creative genius behind C#, and much of the .NET framework, had already been famous for sixteen years as a compiler-writer before he joined Microsoft twelve years ago. His BLS Pascal, Turbo Pascal, and Delphi had revolutionized the way that we develop software. Today, he is still bubbling with new ideas and radical initiatives.… Read more
Gail Shaw, the fabled 'gilamonster', earned her MVP, and the gratitude of a great number of SQL Server professional seeking technical help, through her expert forum posts on SQL Server Central. She brings great enthusiasm to everything she does, including SQL Server, and has come to be a huge influence on the communities she joins. … Read more
Richard Morris talks to Michael Meeks, a young Geek who has made a huge impact on the quality of Open source software in the past eight years. He is a Cambridge graduate, a committed Christian, and is modest about his impressive achievements. He gives an interesting interview too!… Read more
Cartoonist, mathematician, historian and environmentalist. Larry Gonick proved that learning could be fun by producing a wide range of educational books, all done as comic strips. Many present-day geeks attribute the awakening of their enthusiasm for science to coming across one of Larry's books.… Read more
