Oct 15, 2011 what can we learn from dennis ritchie. In 2011, thompson, along with dennis ritchie, was awarded the japan prize for information and communications for the pioneering work in the development of the unix operating system. Dennis ritchie is the father of the c programming language, and with fellow bell labs researcher ken thompson, he used c to build unix, the operating system that so much of the world is built on. However, due to the april earthquake and tsunami, the prizes this year were distributed at the. C was the descendant of the b programming language developed by bell labs. Ritchie american computer scientist known for his invention of the c programming language and for his development with kenneth l. While writing multics, thompson created the bon programming language. Dennis ritchie studied physics and then moved on to pure computer science via maths. Why you shouldnt trust ken thompson breakfast bytes. It offers a number of features seldom found even in larger operating systems, including.
Dennis ritchie wrote, it began in 1969 when ken thompson discovered a littleused pdp7 computer and set out to fashion a computing environment that he liked. In the 1960s1970s, ken thompson coinvented the unix operating system along with dennis ritchie at bell labs. Dennis ritchie and ken thompsons creation of the unix operating system and the c programming language were pivotal developments in the progress of computer science. Dennis ritchie was born in bronxville, new york, in 1941. September 9, 1941, bronxville, new york, usa death. October 12, 2011 was an american computer scientist. Without dennis ritchie, there would be no steve jobs zdnet. Inductee dennis ritchie, who invented unix, transformed.
Ritchie received a bs degree in physics in 1963 and a phd in applied mathematics in 1967 from harvard university. To dennis ritchie, i thank you for giving all of us the technology to be the technologists we are today. Created the b programming language with ken thompson in 1969 created the c programming language with brian kernighan in 1972 helped develop the unix operating system helped develop the multics operating system. He also worked on the language b, the operating system plan 9, and the language go. Ken thompson, along with dennis ritchie, is the original author of unix. While a graduate student, ritchie had a parttime job at mit project macs multics timesharing project. The only equivalent thing that i can remember was when ken thompson revealed, in his acceptance for the turing award, that i cannot be trusted. His phd thesis was on recursive functions, but he got bored with it and never submitted it. For his cocreation, with ken thompson, of the unix operating system, and for development of the c programming language. Nov 26, 20 ken thompson, dennis ritchie and brian kernighan join other notable technologist in electronic designs engineering hall of fame for their work including the c programming language.
He created the c programming language and, with longtime colleague ken thompson, the unix operating system and b programming language. Ken thompson and dennis ritchie explain unix bell labs. Ken thompson the cocreator of unix in his spare time developed a computer game called space travel. So it is the most important operating system ever developed. Thompson were cited jointly for their development of generic soperating systems. Later in 1998, ken thompson and dennis ritchie were awarded together the u. He also assisted dennis ritchie in creation of the plan 9 operating system in 1995 and the inferno operating system in 1996 at bell labs. Kenneth lane thompson, american computer scientist and cowinner of the 1983 a. In 1969, thompson and colleague dennis ritchie created the. Dennis ritchie worked in association with ken thompson, the prominent computer scientist who was credited with the creation of the original unix. For his cocreation, with dennis ritchie, of the unix operating system, and for development of the c programming language. Kenneth lane thompson american computer scientist britannica. In 2011 ken thompson, along with dennis ritchie, was awarded the japan prize for information and communications for the pioneering work in the development of unix operating system ritchie was found dead on october 12, 2011, at the age of 70 at his home in. Ritchie and thompson were awarded the turing award from the acm in 1983, the hamming medal from the.
Dennis ritchie and ken thompson were two ferociously bright bell programmers who had been assigned to work with mit on the design of an impossibly complex. After graduation, ritchie and ken thompson joined the bell laboratories computing sciences research center in murray hill, nj. The japan prize, one of the highest honors awarded for outstanding contribution to science and technology, was awarded jointly this year to ken thompson and dennis ritchie for the creation of unix. Meet 2019 inductees ken thompson and dennis ritchie. He is notable for his work on the unix operating system. This is one of the two most significant achievements of ritchies career, the other being the development of the c programming language. Created the b programming language with ken thompson in 1969. Ritchie and the american computer scientist kenneth l. It cant have seemed like that at the time, since the reason it got developed at all is that ken and dennis only had a pdp11 at bell labs and they. Ritchie was born on september 8th, 1941 in bronxville, new york and graduated from harvard university with degrees in physics and applied mathematics. In 1978, the c programming language book was published by dennis ritchie and brian kernighan. Vcf east 2019 brian kernighan interviews ken thompson.
Today, 50 years after its beginnings, unix and unixlike systems continue to run machinery from supercomputers to. Turing award, the highest honour in computer science. Jan 25, 2011 when ken thompson and dennis ritchie began creating the unix operating system in 1969, they did not envision that their work would become a backbone of the computer revolution that has transformed. Oct 15, 2011 dennis ritchie and ken thompson were two ferociously bright bell programmers who had been assigned to work with mit on the design of an impossibly complex multiuser operating system called multics. The c programming language sdf public access unix system. Bell labs luminaries dennis ritchie and ken thompson to. Dennis ritchie y ken thompson proyecto inicio grupo 22. Ritchie, born september 9, 1941, bronxville, eastchester, new york, u. The fact that ritchie was able to introduce the feature of portability of unix operating system across different machines as well as platforms is what makes his works truly commendable in the creation and distribution of the unix. The book covered a brief definition of the c language and a peerless introduction to different styles and techniques of programming in c. The prize is normally given to the recipients at a lavish banquet in tokyo attended by the emperor. Ritchie and ken thompson bell laboratories unix is a generalpurpose, multiuser, interactive operating system for the digital equipment corporation pdp1140 and 1145 computers.
Coinventors thompson and ritchie invented the unix operating system, a multitasking, multiuser operating system, during the 1960s and 1970s. In 1983, ken thompson was named fellow by bell labs. The invention of unix in the 1960s and 1970s dennis ritchie and ken thompson invented unix, arguably the worlds most important computer operating system. Ritchie were cited jointly for their development of generic operating systems theory and specifically for. There have been three versions of unix pdp the unix time. This is the basis of ios, macos, linux, android, and more. National medal of technology for their unix development. Review of the unix timesharing system paper previous message. I joined in the enterprise, though most of the ideas, and most of the work for that matter, were his.
Thompson of unix, an operating system not tied to any existing computer hardware. May 06, 2019 in the 1960s1970s, ken thompson coinvented the unix operating system along with dennis ritchie at bell labs. Ken thompson was an electronics enthusiast in the days when the transistor was new and there were still things worth building. Today, 50 years after its beginnings, unix and unixlike systems continue to run machinery from supercomputers to smartp. Ken thompson left with dennis ritchie right kenneth lane thompson born 4 february 1943 is a computer scientist and winner of the 1983 turing award, together with dennis ritchie.
Permission to copy without fee all or part of this material is granted. Oct 15, 2011 dennis ritchie worked in association with ken thompson, the prominent computer scientist who was credited with the creation of the original unix. The legacy cannot be overstated, as unix, its descendants and lookalikes, and its architecture can be found on most computers in existence today. Ken thompsons cc hack presented in the journal, communication of the acm, vol.
We are honored to have ken thompson and dennis ritchie join the national inventors hall of fame the invention. Reflections on trusting trust eindhoven university of. As denniss siblings, lynn, john, and bill ritchieon behalf of the entire ritchie familywe wanted to convey to all of you how deeply moved, astonished, and appreciative we are of the loving tributes to dennis that we have been reading. When ken thompson and dennis ritchie began creating the unix operating system in 1969, they did not envision that their work would become a backbone of. Dennis macalistair ritchie was a renowned american computer scientist, best remembered for creating the c computer programming language and his contributions to the development of unix operating system. Thompson and the american computer scientist dennis m. As dennis s siblings, lynn, john, and bill ritchie on behalf of the entire ritchie familywe wanted to convey to all of you how deeply moved, astonished, and appreciative we are of the loving tributes to dennis that we have been reading. It certainly was for ken thompson and the late dennis ritchie, two of the greats of 20thcentury information technology, when they created the unix operating system, now considered one of the most. His work at bell labs began in 1967 and began working with ken thompson in 1968.
Mug shot of computer scientist dennis ritchie, who with ken thompson have been awarded a 2011 japan prize for information and communications for their work creating the unix computer operating. In the 1960s at bell labs, thompson and dennis ritchie worked on the multics operating system. Oct 06, 2015 in 1983, ken thompson was named fellow by bell labs. In 2011 ken thompson, along with dennis ritchie, was awarded the japan prize for information and communications for the pioneering work in the development of unix operating system ritchie was found dead on october 12, 2011, at the age of 70 at his home in berkeley heights, new jersey, where he lived alone.
Review of the unix timesharing system messages sorted by. Dennis ritchie dennis ritchie developed the c programming language with ken thompson at the bell labs computing sciences research center. Two luminaries in the world of computing sciences, dennis ritchie and ken thompson, of lucent technologies bell labs, have been awarded the u. Dennis ritchie engineering and technology history wiki. Ken thompson was born in new orleans, louisiana, in 1943. Born in 1941, ritchie and started work at bell labs in 1967. Dennis ritchie standing and ken thompson with a pdp11, circa 1972 source. Obviously, the person who had most influence on my career was ken thompson. Ken thompson, dennis ritchie and brian kernighan join other notable technologist in electronic designs engineering hall of fame for their work including the c programming language. His father, alistair ritchie, was a scientist at bell labs and wrote a book on circuit theory.
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