People following the Future Salon for a while know that I am a big fan of Doug Engelbart best known for inventing the computer mouse as well as being a pioneer of human-computer interaction, including GUIs, hypertext, and networked computers.[More: Wikipedia] Doug and his team were so far ahead of everyone in 1968. [Check out the videos of their demo.]
At the Planetwork Conference this year I met Eugene who is cofounder of the Blue Oxen Associates think tank. It turns out that Doug Engelbart is on the advisory board of Blue Oxen. That peaked my interest and Eugen told me the following story about how he got to know him. He went to interview Doug for a magazine and he asked him whether it doesn't fill him with pride, to see his invention on every desk of the offices he is working in. I am paraphrasing here, but Doug's reply was: "No, I am frustrated if I think of where we could be."
I think it is high time to get an update from him on where we could be and what we can do to make his vision come true ASAP. This is why I am so happy that Doug will keynote at the Accelerating Change 2004 conference at Stanford 5-7th of November. More details soon.
Attention: As a Future Salon reader you can get a blogger discount when registering use the "AC2004-BLOGGER" code and $50 will be reduced from your fees. If you sign up before September the 30th you also get the early bird special and will only pay $300.
If I were you I would sign up soon, where else can you get this line up of diverse speakers in an intimate setting of 300 people for such a prize?
Comments