Computing legend and inventor, Raymond Tomlinson, has passed away.
Famed for pioneering the first networked messaging software that allowed users to send mail files to recipient computers, Tomlinson’s SNDMSG made history with the first email sent in 1971. Tomlinson used the “@” symbol in his program for sending messages to users, making “user@host” the modern email standard.
The Internet Hall of Fame had this to say about the innovator:
Tomlinson’s email program brought about a complete revolution, fundamentally changing the way people communicate, including the way businesses, from huge corporations to tiny mom-and-pop shops, operate and the way millions of people shop, bank, and keep in touch with friends and family, whether they are across town or across oceans. Today, tens of millions of email-enabled devices are in use every day. Email remains the most popular application, with over a billion and a half users spanning the globe and communicating across the traditional barriers of time and space.”
Thank you, Ray Tomlinson for the good work you’ve done in furthering the field of communication.
