Thus passes a titan

Not many people know who Dr. Edward Roberts was, but his affect on your life is apparent by the simply fact that you're reading this on-line.

Edwards invented the first personal computer, the MITS Altair 8800, in 1975.

The Altair was little more than a switchboard with a few lights and no screen, but it inspired the likes of Bill Gates, the founder of software giant Microsoft to get into the software business in the first place.

Before the Altair, the personal computer, then called microcomputers, was something for hobbyists to build and tinker with in their garages.

Gates and his partner Paul Allen had bigger ideas. Commercial software was not an economically viable business, it was simpler for large mainframe owners to simply code their own since so few businesses owned computers.

"Ed was truly a pioneer in the personal computer revolution and didn't always get the recognition he deserved," Gates wrote on his website. "We will always have fond memories of working with Ed in Albuquerque."

Roberts' box was just what Gates and his partners needed to create their first product: Microsoft Basic. Anyone who has ever heard of Windows can figure out the rest of the story.

Roberts left the computer industry nearly 30 years ago to become a doctor, but his legacy has touched the lives of everyone who's ever used a modern computer.

We should be thankful for the contributions that men like Roberts and Gates have made to world. It is impossible to imagine what technology would look like today without early enthusiasts like them.

Roberts died Thursday, April 1, of pneumonia. He was 68.