Steve 667, re: "the Wang WP program ..."
Yes and no. I didn't write the machine-language code that Wang used in its dedicated WP systems. What I wrote was BASIC code that did the same and more for Wang's "2200" desktop computers (circa 1973). Up until then, displays never supported more than 64 characters per line (Wang WP included). A friend smuggled the world's first "80x24" display controller out of Wang's R&D labs just long enough for me to finish my coding.
It wasn't easy. Doing "wordwrap" with a totally unbuffered keyboard and 1.2 "milli"-second RAM meant checking interrupts before processing even the smallest routine. Writing code capable of keeping up with a 120 WPM typist took many sleepless nights. But ... I did it.
WP on the 2200 "minicomputer" (not unlike the DEC PDP-8) started a war within Wang ... because Dr. Wang's son Fred was in charge of the dedicated WP division. And, he didn't want to see WP appear on any kind of general-purpose computer (even if it was made by Wang). However visionary Dr. Wang might have been, his son's vision couldn't extend much further than the length of his penis. And so, word processing for desktop computers was withheld from the mass market until it was "reinvented" by others for the IBM PC.
By the time Freddie Wang had a handle on what I was doing, I had developed a combination General Ledger/WP/Payroll system for the Wang 2200 (1978). Wang's district and area directors were gung-ho about having their people sell it. Freddie killed it as "a cross-competitive effort". As a result, at least one Wang VP was shipped off to China and an internal battle commenced. Not long after, Dr. Wang contracted cancer and eventually died. Meanwhile, it became common knowledge that Fred Wang was spending more time ferrying pretty girls around in his sportscar than he was in "taking care of business". It only took a few years for Wang -- IBM's greatest potential competitor at the time -- to be defeated by greed and lust. The banks took over its assets and today it is but a shadow of its former self.
It was an interesting and exciting time. Some have suggested that, were it not for Wang, I might now be in the "big" seat in Redmond and that Big Bill would have a law practice somewhere. But I respect BB and know different. I am pleased to have been there at the time, to contribute what I could to our industry, and to see what Mr. Gates has made of what was once a "garage" industry.
To all the would-be programmers of the future who think that "everything that needs to be done has been done" ... I think not. There will always be room for the next young man with energy and imagination.
Craig |
