About Doug Engelbart0

Portrait of Doug Engelbart holding the original mouse
Douglas C. Engelbart (1925-2013)
Shown here with original mouse
Photo courtesy US News

Dr. Douglas C. Engelbart established an unparalleled track record in predicting, designing, and implementing the future of organizational computing. From his early vision of turning organizations into augmented knowledge workshops, he went on to pioneer what is now known as collaborative hypermedia, knowledge management, community networking, and organizational strategies such as networked improvement, lean/design thinking, and his ABC strategy for bootstrapping organizational effectiveness – "getting better at getting better."1

Well-known technological firsts include the mouse, display editing, windows, cross-file editing, outline processing, hypermedia, and groupware. Integrated prototypes were in full operation under the NLS system, as early as 1968. In the last decade of its continued evolution, thousands of users have benefited from its unique team support capabilities.2

After 20 years directing the Augmentation Research Center (ARC) at Stanford Research Institute (now SRI International), and 11 years as Senior Scientist first at Tymshare, and then at McDonnell Douglas Corporation, Engelbart founded the Bootstrap Institute* with his daughter Christina, which he directed for 20 years, working closely with industry and government stakeholders to facilitate a collaborative implementation of his strategic vision. The Bootstrap Institute was subsequently renamed the Doug Engelbart Institute.3

Engelbart received numerous awards for outstanding lifetime achievement and ingenuity, including the National Medal of Technology, the Lemelson-MIT Prize, and ACM's 1997 A.M. Turing Award. His life's work, with his "big-picture" vision and persistent pioneering breakthroughs, has made a significant impact on the past, present, and future of personal, interpersonal, and organizational computing.4

See also5

National Medal of Technology & Innovation


On December 1, 2000, the White House bestowed on Douglas Engelbart the National Medal of Technology and Innovation,
the highest award in it's class
President Clinton congratulating Doug Engelbart
See Honors for complete list of Doug's awards


Honorable Mention


Watch President Obama cite Doug Engelbart's innovations:

"So much of our information age began right here, at Stanford... It was from here in 1968 where researcher Douglas Engelbart astonished an audience..."
– President Barak Obama


In Memoriam

Engelbart upon receiving 1987 PC Magazine Award Douglas Carl Engelbart
(1925-2013)
See Remembering Doug for photos, tributes, and news from his passing.
You can also post your own Tribute to Doug Engelbart.
He will be missed...