PC software pioneer Gary Kildall's life and mysterious death at Monterey bar Subscribe to KSBW on RU-vid now for more: bit.ly/1lOewHS Get more Monterey news: www.ksbw.com Like us: / ksbw8 Follow us: / ksbw Instagram: / ksbw_8
Totally agree with you. I started to program back in 1983 just when I started to study physics, but professionally since 1988, and I has been witness many times, even until today, exactly of what you are saying regarding good guys swimming among sharks in the ocean of the computer world.
@@GabrielMartinezValois I'm a retired programmer myself, I suspect most are that known of Gary. Show me an industry where you don't have to swim with the sharks and I'll show you an industry that's in decline. I have noticed, over the many intervening years, that the waters of technology do seem to be abundantly populated with sharks, perhaps more so than other industries but I've my doubts on that point.
eh, CP/M was a dead end really. MS-DOS just prolonged the misery a decade or so for PC users, but Mac folk had moved into what we have now by the late 80s.
Everyone should have just populated the world with $3,000 tiny-screened Macs to populate the world with computers instead of hackable, upgradable Z80 and Intel clones. What was wrong with their thinking?
So Gates basically showed he wasn't above using someone else's sweat to deal himself into the game. This is why the world doesn't need that type making decisions for it.
Misinformation. Gary taking his wife flying had nothing to do with losing the IBM contract. Gary had the contract in the bag, but Gates mother was a very well connected and wealthy socialite, and personally knew John Opel, who was the CEO of IBM at the time. She personally went to appeal to him to choose MS-DOS instead of CPM. Opel agreed to do so, and the rest is history. The only reason they sent some guys from IBM to meet with Gary was to try to hustle him to allow them to sell CPM along side MS-DOS, but at a very noncompetitive price, so that at least CPM was under their umbrella so it wouldn't be competition.
Gary's mistake was hiring his wife to be the manager of his company. She refused to sign an NDA on the spot when the IBM guys arrived. Gary was not exactly astute when it came to business and hiring your wife instead of a with business degree is not exactly smart. Also there were quite a lot of good computer companies that fell by the wayside that were better than the big 3 of Apple/IBM/Commadore which dominated computer sales in the late 70s. Its hard to convince consumers on the superiority of a computer when everyone's version of a computer was just a text-only BASIC prompt.
He didn't take his wife out flying. Matter of fact, he was pissed at his wife for deferring the decision to him. She could have done that but she didn't.
There’s nothing like Computer Chronicles. I live in the PNW and was lucky to have stumbled onto the show through Internet Archive. I wish we had a show like that today. RIP GK
Every time I hear the IBM story it strikes me how weird it is to for them to just show up unannounced to make an industry-changing deal and then be peeved that a busy guy isn't there. Something not straight, there.
I knew one of the many VPs for IBM, that dealt with the OS negotiations, and he said that Kildall could have sued IBM and won over MS-DOS being a basic clone of CPM. He said that they chose Microsoft because they felt that Microsoft would do anything that IBM needed to get the system done, and they were right, they obviously underestimated Gates business savvy and ruthlessness. That being said, Gary Kildall was an extremely wealthy man, and ridiculously intelligent. If he had lived, he would be better remembered, because he would have definitely done many more things in the computer industry.
Used to live in that neighborhood in PG and must have driven or walked pass the house hundreds of times. Thank you for sharing a fascinating piece of history.
A wonderful person who should (unfortunately is) never be forgotten. Nowhere Gates and his ilk. Gary was amazing just like the real computer was amazing. All honor and respect to truly valuable people ❤❤❤
Whats not mentioned here is Bill Gates's father was a well known and respected investor in Seattle (he helped Starbucks get going) and had many connections. Bill Gates mother had a personal connection with the chairman of IBM through her non-profit.
Fascinating and tragic story. I grew up in Monterey, and I remember Digital Research. I didn't know this whole backstory, however. I feel like there are still questions I need to ask my parents while they're around.
“Bill is basically unimaginative and has never invented anything, which is why I think he's more comfortable now in philanthropy than technology. He just shamelessly ripped off other people's ideas.” ~ Steve Jobs
Indeed, Gates did rip off other people's ideas, but Steve Jobs wasn't the model example of original ideas. Just ask the people at Xerox Park in Palo Alto about that/
@@dmac7128 Know your history (and spelling of PARC). Jobs (and lots of people) already knew of the mouse and GUI. The visits to PARC were about technology and commercialization not invention.
@@dmac7128 The correct spelling is PARC. Jobs and other Apple employees already knew of the mouse and GUI. The visits to PARC were about technology and commercialization not invention.
In the 1980s I was a mainframe COBOL programmer dabbling with home computers (reading Byte Magazine, really). I bought a Radio Shack Model 16 because it could run COBOL and had dual 8-inch floppies. Cost me $5,000. I scorned the IBM PC because all the components were priced separately and COBOL cost twice as much. Little did I think that IBM would take over the non-Apple home computer market and become the popular choice. I had read about CP/M quite a bit. The problem back then was that every maker had their own hardware, but only CP/M could be a cross-platform OS. Maybe the Pick operating system also. MS-DOS limited you to the IBM PC, but it turned out that that was good enough when all the attention went to IBM. In hindsight the path looks obvious. But back then IBM seemed like a Johnny-come-lately to the home computer market. It wasn't called a PC until IBM named it the Personal Computer. Perhaps that word choice of "personal" made a difference. Either way, the PC took off unexpectedly and Microsoft did too.
Gates stole the serial mouse from Xerox, GUI from Apple and OS from Digital Research. There's also the kid who 'fell' to his death on a trip with Gates before MS took off.
I know how he feels. I've had things like this done to me more than once. The regret and anger. Sometimes i break out into a drenching sweat thinking about what should have been mine and how evil some ppl are. It comes and goes several times a day. Sometimes, that's just the timeline that's meant to be. Maybe in a parallel universe, he did get that deal and didn't go flying.
How the Story has Changed over the Years this is far different from how the story was told right after it happened it has bin cleaned up and is not the same as told Unfortunately they have tried to make Bill look Good
It has been generally known Gary Kildall made CP/M the first OS for personal computers but was outsmarted by Bill Gates. This presentation sheds some new light on Kildall's story, and from a local TV station where news reporters drive a short distance to interview people. First PC I had used CP/M, later got another with MS-DOS. Looking back, I see Gary Kildall extremely brilliant considering he had to create something completely new. But it is a common tale throughout history where really smart people get outsmarted by business oriented people.
Did Bill Gates outsmart or trick Gary Kildall???? BG seems like a calculating schemer that will do anything to be on top. They aren't so much anymore IBM never played or plays fair when wanting to buy a business. There are no boundaries that the C-suite guys will do to get their hands on something that is selling better and made better. Buy it or do what needs to done in shutting business down, "whatever it takes". Or they will, harass business/company owners to buy their business lowballing and when not accepted they will also do "whatever it takes" to get it. The funny this that I though IBM went out of business years and years ago. I don't even see anything with IBM.
thanks for the informative video. It's amazing that you accurately recounted that much History in under 10 minutes. I can't believe how efficiently this was shot/edited. More youtubers should take notice and try to do the same. I knew nothing about Gary Killdall or the IBM deal prior to seeing this; and I feel like I just watched a full length documentary. Bravo 👏
Wow I guess I’ve heard his name before but never knew this story! I started working in software in 1990 after deploying the first PC-based Flight Records system for our Army pilots in 1988. Gary Kildall remember that name.
The text on the plaque reads: IEEE MILESTONE IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING AND COMPUTING The CP/M Microcomputer Operating System, 1974 Dr. Gary A. Kildall demonstrated the first working prototype of CP/M (Control Program for Microcomputers) in Pacific Grove in 1974. Together with his invention of the BIOS (Basic Input Output System), Kildall's operating system allowed a microprocessor- based computer to communicate with a disk drive storage unit and provided an important foundation for the personal computer revolution. April 2014
Obviously it's just a guess, but the three things I picked up here from this vignette - regret, withdrawal from his close friends and connections, and the bar, the alcohol - are in conjunction with each other.
Did Kildall write the text of the Grolier's CD-Rom Encyclopedia or just the coding? It was a brilliant. Subjects condensed so much, to fit on a disk, that they became extremely easy to understand. It was a marvel.
He surrounded himself with capable people, directed them towards opportunities he saw, & made sure those opportunities saw fruition. Captain of the ship steers it to glory or into a reef. He chose glory. Sadly for Gary he did not.
Well let's see. Bill Gates had an early contract with Apple Computer to write a program in the computer language BASIC but Bill never delivered. IBM had lost an Antitrust case and so, was not going to be allowed to dominate the Desktop Computer market with Computer AND Operatimg System. IBM therefore helped found Microsoft and gave Bill Gates the Operating System (to guarantee a Market for IBM Computers). Later, the protection that IBM enjoyed from its BIOS was reverse engineered and Compaq Computer became the first of many PC Clone companies. There is nothing different about Windows 95, 98, NT, SE, ME, Vista, XP, etc., they were all the same Operating Systems (proven to me when I asked). Bill Gates used a trick with making sure the on-board applications were not backward compatibile so that anyone convinced to "upgrade" was now no longer able to share files electronically with anyone who hadn't. Bill Gates made money selling the same Operating System (on a new computer) with a new name every year. Computer makers kept their mouths shut because they made huge profits as well. The look may have been slightly better and yes it used more memory and disk space but all of it was to entice people to "upgrade". When you hear about a shortage of raw materials for smartphones, batteries or whatever, remember what Bill did. He is talentless and unable to understand what he was told in meetings so he would just pretend to get angry, demand results and leave. Bill Gates has been evil his whole life. Some recent claims about him are not true BUT there is so much about him that is little known and very evil that I am frankly, quite glad that people have stopped thinking he is or ever was "special".
leverage the MS-DOS monopoly on PCs to the Office suite monopoly then the Windows monopoly. Fortunately in the 2020s nobody has to use that stuff any more.
Gary was good, but I too was around back then and I am afraid this story is full of errors. No mention of Ed Roberts, really? Beat Gary by a few years. CPM was used in several IBM products. like their original disk writer. I know as I have a rather large floppy on my desk, next to my THINK sign, that can verify it. Gary did get ripped off, but he was not the writer of the 1st "PC" OS. Commercially successful, but not 1st and definitely not the last victim of IBM and MS. Depression took the guy out, and that is a shame. Dying like that with no one knowing the truth is just sad.
A news station everybody. A news station making a documentary on computers was not able to figure out how to setup a stereo audio track, and gave you this abomination.
Gary Kildall is not forgotten if you’re a computer history buff. If you look hard enough, you’ll actually find a lot more people who made greater contributions to the industry that don’t ever get any media attention The story of him and Bill Gates and IBM has been told a bunch of times. It’s sad that he died so young, but I don’t think his contributions have been downplayed.
Kildall's wife screwed this up when she was nonchalant about a deliberately cryptic call from IBM. Gates had cautioned IBM not to let on what they were about to discuss with Kildall.
Didn't know that about BG, because public image was and just some ordinary wiz kid and boyish face just added to the truth. We need to know the whole story, because I sure it's really interesting. I miss the good old days of 60 Minutes (the entertainment/soft ball one presently.). Watching Mike Wallace chasing (he must have been on the track team.) some unscrupulous lying disgusting theif, or doctor, charity, etc.. There needs to journalist's and ones who investigate with true unbiased reporting. Now we have soft ball news reporters and news.
I think the problem was they wanted her to sign a NDA on the spot, she didnt know what to do. Something a lawyer should handle. I think that was the problem with Gary having his wife as a manager instead of hiring a professional with a degree in business. The late 70s and early 80s were simply a brutal time to be in the computer business. Its hard to market a product that does nothing but run a BASIC prompt.
Does anyone else here remember GEM? It came as the operating system on Samsung or Sony PC's. It was a graphical operating system in 1980! It had write, draw, and presentation. I had friends using Apple that couldn't believe I was using a PC. Gary Kildall was a creator, Gates just a thief.
An unrecognized genious, that’s how it always goes. What a sad end. I’m glad people are getting to know his work through pieces like this one. Thank you.
It's incredibly annoying when you upload an edit that obviously had a long commercial break and a huge amount of restating in the middle to youtube, we don't need to hear the same stuff twice.
On the next episode of DRAGON BALL Z!!!! A mysterious businessman is searching for the Z fighters but will anybody be there to defend against this menace?! GOKU WHY ARE YOU ON A PLANE? FRIEZA IS GOING TO FIGHT MICROSOFT! ON THE LAST EPISODE OF DRAGON BALL Z! GOKU WENT FOR A PLANE RIDE INSTEAD OF FIGHTING FRIEZA!
_A name, a destiny!_ so they say, here in Italy. With one high-flying oversight, *Kildall KILLeD it ALL off.* Greek tragedy, in the age of intelligent machines.
@@madigorfkgoogle9349 hmm sounds like you have some inner troubles you need to work through. Please don't insult the beautiful cosmos ever again. Good luck to you
Imagine being a multi-millionaire, living in pacific grove, having good friends and being successful, but being so obsessed over one deal gone wrong that you let it drive you to depression. That's a fragile soul.
Strange soundmix (music only from the right speaker, commentator voice only in the left) but the video was very interesting and enjoyable nonetheless. And yes, I would like to know more about Gary Kildall because he does sound like a real prodigy.
No mention was made of the fact that Gary and his company made the operating systems for Commodore computer which was the main competitor to IBM and Apple in the late 70s and early 80s. Gary made very efficient graphical interfaces for his OS that almost put Apple out of business due to their bloated graphical interface on the Macintosh
Something doesn't add up about the 'IBM charged more for CP/M' story. Why couldn't the owners of the operating system sell it separately for $40, or even less? Why just accept what IBM was doing? I suspect there is a lot of 'hindsight is 20/20' going on here and regret for missed opportunities.
He did. Gary and his company provided the operating systems for Commodore computers which was the main competitor to IBM and Apple in the late 70s and early 80s. This documentary should have mentioned that. Apple almost went out of business because they could not make graphical interfaces on their OS work efficiently enough to compete with Commodore.
You know if IBM hadn't considered the personal computer just a toy and decided to write their own operating system for it, they might still be top of the heap in the tech world. They had thousands of programmers working for them and had their own operating system for their mainframes. All they had to do was edit it down for the desk top machine's capacity. But then again most corporate giants can't abandon what got them to the top in favor of some new trend. Think - Kodak, Xerox, GE, and even Apple if it hadn't pivoted to the iphone.
Great piece on Gary Kildall, but the sound and music is unbalanced, I am a sucker for technology history documents, one always wonder how things could had been different or are there other ways that PC could have developed and evolved.
drafted during the Vietnam War to serve as an instructor at the Naval Post-Graduate School in Monterey . . . now that was a cushy gig. SCP did rip off CP/M lock, stock & barrel, MS was dealing hot goods to IBM with that deal.
Look at Bill Gates now, please stop comparing yourself to others, there is no comparison. Be incomparable by others, stand out, and be you, do that by a surprising price difference. Be expensive, you are worth it. Great report, and way to go Gary.
Verry sad, I know firsthand about the stealing of ideas. Im just about done with the internet. If turn my computer and phone off what will the internet have to steal then?
Sounds like a real legend of computer technology. But open source really did take over from the big corporates like Gates, look at the success of Linux and look at Bitcoin's incredible rise, presidential candidates now incorporating it in US fiscal policy. Wonder what Kildall would have thought of those projects, he would have been impressed I am sure. Its great he is commemorated, his pioneering spirit lives on and inspires so many.
