Turing Award Histories

What if you could read and watch extended interviews with almost 2,000 of the smartest people in computer science and engineering? People who have shaped the field, who have made many of the most important discoveries and who have founded multibillion dollar companies. In these interviews they tell their stories, talk about their influences, their education, about the obstacles they overcame and about their contributions to the field.

What’s more, you can read and watch these interviews for free.

Sounds like a wonderful resource?

I’m talking about the archive of Oral Histories at the Computer History Museum (CHM).

The CHM archive of Oral Histories has often been an essential part of the research that goes into Chip Letter posts. But even leaving aside their value as the starting point for research, these interviews are a tremendous resource.

Why do I love them so much?

• True Giants In Their Field: We can hear from those who have made a huge contribution to computer science and engineering.

• The Real Person: When we have the audio or video of the interview we can get a real ‘feel’ for the interviewee, their enthusiasm, their charm, (or grumpiness) and their skills in communicating their expertise. Even the (usually very lightly if at all) edited transcript can often convey this too.

• No Axe to Grind (Usually): The obvious comparator is with ‘long form’ podcast interviews. But here the interviewee isn’t promoting their own book or podcast or product or doing PR on behalf of their company. They might have a score or two to settle though, which sometimes adds to the fun!

• The Whole Picture: Usually taken at the end of a career we often get a complete ‘biography’ in a couple of hours, not just the story so far.

• Expert Interviewers: Last but not least, the interviewers are usually highly knowledgable, often colleagues or experts in the field.

Of course, as unedited conversations they are less polished than books or articles, but that’s all part of the charm. And the interviews often go well beyond technical subjects. One of my favourite starts to an Oral History, is from Victor Poor who worked on the Datapoint 2200 Terminal:

Gardner Hendrie: Vic Poor has agreed to an oral history interview for the Computer History Museum and, right at the beginning, we thank you for being willing to do this. I think probably maybe the best place