Bill Gates

Madison Stovall

There has been many people, inventions, and changes throughout history that

have innovated the way people interact and live in the world, but no invention that has

been so useful and innovative than the modern computer. Not only providing a easy,

fast and accessible way to get information or to save data but also led to many other

technological advancements in other fields. This is how computer and its creator Bill

Gates, are the most influential invention and person in the modern world.

William Henry Gates III was born in Seattle, Washington on October 28, 1955,

The computer genius and creator of Windows, hasnt always been computer inspire

person but at one point going to pursue a career as a lawyer. Gates's parents wanted

their son to pursue a legal career, he developed an early interest in computer science

and began studying computers in seventh grade at Seattle's Lakeside School. At

Lakeside, Gates became acquainted with Paul Allen, a teenager with a similar interest

in technology who would become his future business partner.An earlier experience with

computers included debugging programs, helping computerize electric power grids, and

founding with Allen a firm called Traf O Data, which earned them $20,000 in fees for

analyzing local traffic patterns.(Bill Gates) (McGuire)

While working with the computers, Gates was responsible for what was probably the

first computer virus, which is a program that copies itself into other programs and ruins
data. Control Data Corporation, when he figured out how to cause the company's

CYBERNET computer system to crash and successfully carried out a plan to do so.

Gates invaded the network and installed a program on the main computer that sent

itself to the rest of the network's computers. Consequently, Cybernet crashed and it was

discovered that Gates was the culprit, he was severely punished and avoided

computers for his entire junior year at Lakeside. Without computers being there, Gates

made plans to go to law school.

Gates entered Harvard University in 1973 and pursued his studies for the next year

and a half. But his life changed in January of 1975 when the magazine Popular

Electronics carried a cover story on a $350 microcomputer, the Altair, made by a firm

called MITS in New Mexico. When Allen excitedly showed him the story, Gates knew

where he wanted to be: at the forefront of computer software design. Ending his

academic life, Gates dropped out of Harvard and began his career by making

computers in the garage of his parents house but soon expanded to the entire

neighborhood making them in their garage. (Bill Gates) (McGuire)

The International Business Machines (IBM) asked Microsoft, the company owned

by Bill Gates, to write a program for its new personal computer or also called the PC. At

the time, it was commonly believed that software played a minimal role to hardware. In

1980, International Business Machines (IBM) asked Microsoft to write a program for its

new personal computer (PC). At the time, it was commonly believed that software

played a subservient role to hardware. However, Gates had a contrary opinion. He

purchased an existing operating system for $75,000 and adapted it for IBMs PC. Called

the Microsoft Disk Operating System, or MS-DOS, it was sold with every IBM PC.

Pursuant to the licensing agreement, Microsoft was also entitled to sell its software to

other companies. The operating system quickly became the computer industry

standard. By the end of 1982, Microsoft sold approximately $32 million worth of

software.(Bill Gates: Explora Secondary Schools)

In conclusion Bill Gates and the invention of the computer was and still is the

most influential idea and creation that has affected human history and standard of living.

As well as push towards new and inspiring inventions and creations everyday.
 Works Cited

Bill Gates. DISCovering Biography, Gale, 2003. Student Resources in Context,

http://go.galegroup.com/ps/retrieve.do?

tabID=T001&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&searchType

=BasicSearchForm&currentPosition=1&docId=GALE

%7CEJ2102100673&docType=Biography&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=&prodId=

GPS&contentSet=GALE

%7CEJ2102100673&searchId=R2&userGroupName=j043905008&inPS=true. Accessed

12 Apr. 2017.

Bill Gates: Explora Secondary Schools. http://web.b.ebscohost.com/src_ic/detail/detail?

vid=2&sid=bbfc9a30-d323-492c-8bff-6a88c16a65ce

%40sessionmgr101&bdata=#AN=90669586&db=t6o. Accessed 18 Apr. 2017.

McGuire, William. Bill Gates. American History, 2000. ABC-CLIO, https://americanhistory.abc-

clio.com/Search/Results?q=246863. Accessed 18 Apr. 2017.