Douglas Engelbart Inventor Of Computer Mouse, Passes Away

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You know that thing, everybody clicks on ? Yea, the one named after a mammal, isn't it one of the greatest things to ever exist? Imagine using a computer with just a key-board, boy does it sound difficult. Douglas Carl Engelbart, the man who came up with the ingenious device, mouse, sadly passed away this July 2. The American inventor has died due to kidney failure at age 88.

 
Douglas Engelbart Inventor Of Computer Mouse, Passes Away

The man has done it all, he served as a radar technician for the United States Navy in World War 2. He had a Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering at Oregon State College, he worked for National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics at the Ames Research Center, he had a masters degree in Science and Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley. As a cheery on the cake, he also had multiple patents to his name.

 

Perhaps his work with SRI International is what led him to being one of the biggest pioneers in the tech field. He and his team were responsible for developing computer interface elements such as bitmapped screens, hypertext and the mouse. Engelbart applied for a patent for a wooden shell with two metal wheels in 1967 and received it in 1970.

"This invention relates to visual display systems, and more particularly, to device for alternating the display at selected locations," read the patent, filed by Douglas on June 21, 1967."

Douglas was asked in an interview about how the device came to be called as mouse - he replied "No one can remember, who came up with the name. In the lab, the very first one we built had the cord coming out the back. It wasn't long before we realised that it would get in the way, and then we changed it to the front. But when it was trailing out the back like that, sitting there, just its funny little shape."

Douglas has many honours to his name National Medal of Technology, the United States' highest technology award, honorary doctorate from Yale University, amongst others. It will be a understatement to say, he will be missed.

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