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Explore stories in Northwest history through highlights from MOHAI’s collections. Search by keyword below or browse the entire online collection by entering the asterisk symbol (*). Filter your search by type of materials.

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106 results for: Computers and Technology

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Image of Gordon Letwin, lead designer for systems software at Microsoft, Redmond,  December 1986
Photograph

Gordon Letwin, lead designer for systems software at Microsoft, Redmond, December 1986

In 1986, Microsoft was developing new software to take advantage of Intel’s recently released 80836 microchip, which was significantly faster and more powerful than previous chips. Companies had already begun building computer hardware with the new chips, but there was not yet an operating system or other software specifically designed for them. As the developer of the MS-DOS operating system…
ID Number:2000.107.112.29.01
Date:1986
Image of Terry Lindeman of DataGem at computer, January 13, 1993
Photograph

Terry Lindeman of DataGem at computer, January 13, 1993

Terry E. Lindeman founded DataGem Corp. in 1989, originally offering programs that made Windows work better for users via "shareware." As of 2019, DataGem is still in business in Seattle, offering database consulting and design based on Microsoft technologies. In this photo, Lindeman sits in front of his desktop computer. Caption information derived from captions written by Post-Intelligencer staff and…
ID Number:2000.107.113.30.01
Date:1993
Image of Craig McCaw holding cell phone, September 1986
Photograph

Craig McCaw holding cell phone, September 1986

Craig McCaw (b. 1949) was an early investor in cellular technology. McCaw's father owned a cable TV company in Centralia which Craig and his brothers inherited and ran together under Craig's leadership. In 1981, McCaw began buying cellular licenses in cities across the US, and in 1987 he sold the cable TV business and fully transitioned the company to cellular…
ID Number:2000.107.121.04.01
Date:1986
Image of Skid-steer loader clearing grounds for new Microsoft plant, Bothell, December 30, 1987
Photograph

Skid-steer loader clearing grounds for new Microsoft plant, Bothell, December 30, 1987

Microsoft, a multinational technology company with headquarters in Redmond, Washington, was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in 1975 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The company moved to Bellevue, Washington in 1979 and incorporated in 1981. The company has grown to become the world's largest software maker and a leader in cloud enterprise technology. This photo shows construction of a…
ID Number:2000.107.125.10.01
Date:1987
Image of Nancy Lofurno readying Microsoft product shipments, Bothell, December 19, 1991
Photograph

Nancy Lofurno readying Microsoft product shipments, Bothell, December 19, 1991

Microsoft, a multinational technology company with headquarters in Redmond, Washington, was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in 1975 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The company moved to Bellevue, Washington in 1979 and incorporated in 1981. The company has grown to become the world's largest software maker and a leader in cloud enterprise technology. In this photo, Microsoft employee Nancy…
ID Number:2000.107.125.10.02
Date:1991
Image of Ken Sarumaru of Sun Grade, Inc., Bellevue, December 10, 1985
Photograph

Ken Sarumaru of Sun Grade, Inc., Bellevue, December 10, 1985

Early tech entrepreneur Ken Sarumaru (who has since changed his name to Kenichi Uchikura) has had several Bellevue-based software businesses including Sun Grade Inc., designed to connect software companies with Japanese markets. Uchikura founded Pacific Software Publishing in 1987 and as of 2019, it is still operating out of Bellevue.In this photo Ken Sarumaru sits at his desk in front…
ID Number:2000.107.160.12.01
Date:1985
Image of Woman using Peoples Bank home banking program, September 20, 1984
Photograph

Woman using Peoples Bank home banking program, September 20, 1984

In 1984 sixty customers of Peoples Bank began a one-year trial of the bank's experimental new home-banking system. For a $7.50 monthly fee and a charge for each transaction, the customers could pay bills, transfer funds, check account balances, and even play a few video games on a home banking system available 24 hours a day, using their home computers.…
ID Number:2000.107.165.14.02
Date:1984
Image of Students contributing to
Photograph

Students contributing to "World's Longest Letter," Seattle, March 5, 1985

In this image 12-year-old Autumn Holmes signs her letter, the first to be entered into the computer by Steve Fleichmann as part of the thousands of letters that made up the "World's Longest Letter." The completed 1,858 foot letter was part of Operation Peace Letter sponsored by the Variety Club of the Pacific Northwest, and was to be presented to…
ID Number:2000.107.171.09.05
Date:1985
Image of Women learning keypunch at SOIC, January 1979
Photograph

Women learning keypunch at SOIC, January 1979

The Seattle Opportunities Industrialization Center, or SOIC (pronounced "So I see"), was established in 1966, largely through a grant from the Office of Economic Opportunity, the federal agency funding "war on poverty" programs. Modeled after the original OIC started by a Philadelphia minister two years earlier, the community-based program recruited, trained, and placed unemployed people in the labor market. The…
ID Number:2000.107.177.26.03
Date:1979
Image of Charles Simonyi, February 7, 1991
Photograph

Charles Simonyi, February 7, 1991

Charles Simonyi (b. 1948) is a software architect who worked at Microsoft from 1981 until 2002, leading the team that created Word, Excel, and other applications. During his time there, he served as director of application development, chief architect, and distinguished engineer. Born in Hungary, Simonyi came the U.S. in 1968. He worked at Xerox PARC from 1972 until 1980,…
ID Number:2000.107.198.07.01
Date:1991
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