Alan Kotok - Timeline

By alexabowsher

  • The Beginning of Alan Kotok

    The Beginning of Alan Kotok
    Alan Kotok was born in 1941. Many people state that even through his childhood he had an interest in electrical engineering.

  • MIT

    MIT
    Kotok goes to MIT at the young age of 16. He was very interested in the developments of chess computer games. Eventually, he proceeded to join the MIT Model Railroad Club and became infatuated with designing new gaming systems and software. He worked alongside John McCarthy and many interests were due to the work of McCarthy.

  • Kotok joins MIT Model Railroad Club

    Kotok joins MIT Model Railroad Club
    In the late 1950's, Kotok took an interest in computers when joining the MIT Model Railroad Club.

  • Their First Video Game is Created

    Their First Video Game is Created
    The MIT Model Railroad Club created its original video game called Space War. This was built on a PDP-1 computer.

  • The Joystick

    The Joystick
    The innovation of Spacewar was a huge advancement. This was also the beginning of the joystick that was required for this game. In this game specifically, the joystick allowed the player to move a ship around. This eventually created large advancements in other video games and their capabilities. This created the opportunity for more video games with many further challenges. For many, a keyboard could also be used in place of a joystick.

  • BSEE

    BSEE
    Kotok received his BSEE from MIT at only 20 years old.

  • Graduation into Work

    Graduation into Work
    After graduation, Kotok went to work at DEC and helped design the PDP-6 and PDP-10.

  • PDP-6

    PDP-6
    Kotok assisted in developing the PDP-6 as an assistant logic designer.

  • MSEE

    MSEE
    Kotok went to get his master's from MIT and graduated in 1965.

  • Teaching at UC Berkely

    Teaching at UC Berkely
    Kotok taught logic design at UC Berkely for about 1 year.

  • MBA

    MBA
    Kotok got his MBA from Clark University in 1978.

  • VAX 8600

    VAX 8600
    Kotok contributes to the innovation of the VAX 8600 as a system architect.

  • Retirement

    Retirement
    Alan Kotok retired from Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in 1996, after 34 years of different leadership positions.

  • W3C Chairman

    W3C Chairman
    In 1997, Kotok became the chairman of the W3C shortly after retiring from DEC.

  • The Death of Kotok

    The Death of Kotok
    In 2006, Kotok died of a heart attack where he left his innovations and knowledge to be expanded by others.