That's ok Farrukh - you're
not even half as relieved to hear this as (the ebXML) Alan Kotok is.
:)
Joe
From: Farrukh Najmi
[mailto:Farrukh.Najmi@Sun.COM] Sent: Fri 6/2/2006 8:58
PM To: regrep@lists.oasis-open.org;
ebxml-dev@lists.ebxml.org Subject: Re: [regrep] [Fwd: Sad news: Alan
Kotok]
I am relieved to hear that I was under the incorrect impression that
this was the Alan Kotok who has contributed to the success of ebXML for many
years. Thankfully *that* Alan Kotok is alive and well and this sad news is about
a different distinguished colleague. Sorry for any confusion this may have
caused. Farrukh Najmi wrote:
Those who had the good fortune to know Alan
Kotok will undoubtedly be saddened by this news. This is also on top at the
w3c page at:
http://www.w3.org/
-------- Original
Message -------- Subject: Sad news: Alan Kotok Resent-Date: Thu, 01
Jun 2006 12:57:14 +0000 Resent-From: ab@w3.org Date: Thu, 01 Jun 2006 08:56:34
-0400 From: Tim Berners-Lee <timbl@w3.org> To: w3c-ac-members@w3.org, ab@w3.org, chairs@w3.org,
tag <tag@w3.org>
2006-06-01
Dear Colleagues,
It is with tremendous sorrow that we share
the news that our great friend, colleague, and mentor Alan Kotok has
passed away. He died peacefully in his sleep over the US Memorial Day
weekend.
Alan's W3C involvement goes back before its formal inception,
when he was still employed at Digital Equipment Corporation. His early
ideas shaped W3C, and helped lead it to what it is today.
Long
before Alan came to W3C, his experience established him as one of the
early wise men of computer science.
His interest in computing and his
gifts were apparent in his undergraduate days at MIT.
One of
Alan's undergraduate creations was the first video game, Spacewar, which
he and several classmates created for the PDP-1 in 1962. Alan was also
part of the team which invented the joystick, an icon of many young
computer gamers' experiences. As a member of the MIT Tech Model Railroad
Club, he proved to be highly adept at understanding complex technical
systems and making them do new things.
Alan wrote a number of
important programs for early DEC and IBM computers, including the
well-known Kotok-McCarthy chess program at MIT, which became his B.S.
thesis.
Alan spent 34 years with Digital Equipment Corp. in numerous
leadership roles. He served as Technical Director for product strategy
and development groups in Telecommunications, Storage, and Internet.
He was chief architect of the PDP-10 family of computers, a logic
designer for the DEC PDP-6 computer and played a key role in the
development of the DECsystem-10 timesharing computer system. Alan
provided thought leadership as a member of the Corporate Strategy
Group which advocated early adoption and integration of Internet and
Web-based technologies.
Alan held a wide range of roles at W3C. He
carried the title of Associate Chairman, but he also served as the MIT
site manager, managed the Systems Team, and worked closely with the
Advisory Board. His contributions to membership and financial issues were
highly valued.
True to the talents he showed in his undergraduate
days, Alan shone as a problem solver, especially in important and complex
areas: patent policy development, Patent Advisory Groups, whatever
processes, policies and procedures were needed to improve the W3C as a
standards body. His precision of thinking and language was a welcome
feature to many W3C meetings.
His dry wit and attention to detail on
the outside did not hide the kindness and generous heart within. His
passion for trains, early music, and pipe organs were well known; one
recent AC meeting included a special tour of the Tech Model Railroad Club,
which ended up being one of the most popular events W3C held.
Alan
is survived by his three children and one grandchild. His wife, Judie,
passed away last year. Those who wish to contact Alan's family may send
email to Amy van der Hiel <amy@w3.org>.
We have opened a
publicly archived mailing list, public- memoria@w3.org, http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Publi
c/public-memoria/ to which remembrances and photographs are welcome to be
sent.
The W3C Team and our organization was immeasurably better for
his presence. We will all miss him for who he was, and all that he
achieved.
Tim and Steve
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Regards,
Farrukh
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