Of possible interest - ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Fri, 15 Mar 2002 08:28:44 -0600 From: Paul Kasley <kasley(a)fnal.gov> Reply-To: greenkeys(a)mailman.qth.net To: greenkeys(a)mailman.qth.net Subject: [GreenKeys] News item for WC2XPF John F. Auwaerter,76, Pioneer who helped create computer language by Krystyna Slivinski Special to the Tribune John F. Auwaerter, 76, of Park Ridge, was a pioneer in the telecommunications industry who was instrumental in the development of the American Standard Code for Information Interchange, or the ASCII computer language. The code was the first 8-bit standard code that allowed characters, such as those found on a keyboard, to be represented by the same codes on many different kinds of computers. "That was a major change in standardization for the telecommunications industry," said Sylvan Silberg, a fellow former research engineer at Teletype Corp. The code was developed in the 1960s through Mr. Auwaerter's involvement an Institute of Electrical Engineers committee, Silberg said. "He traveled all over the world defining what this code would represent. This is the code that is still used in PCs today," Silberg said. Mr. Auwaerter died of cancer Saturday, Feb. 23, in Fountain Hill, Ariz. Born in Chicago, Mr. Auwaerter served two years in the Navy as an ensign stationed in the Pacific in World War II. He was a graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston, where he received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in the late 1950s. After working as an engineer at General Electric in Baltimore, Mr. Auwaerter joined Teletype Corp. in Chicago. At the same time, he attended DePaul University and got a law degree in the late 1950s. Despite the law degree, Mr. Auwaerter's career remained focused on telecommunications. During the late 1950s, he was responsible for developing a nationwide network that provided up-to-date weather reports every 15 minutes, which teletypes supplied to the Federal Aviation Administration. "He knew how to get the most out of people and make them love it," Silberg said. His other achievements included the creation of a secure high-speed communication network for the federal government in the 1960s. He retired from Teletype in the early 1980s as vice president of sales. "He was quite dynamic and brilliant," said his daughter, Mary Loftus. "He was in charge in whatever he got involved in." Other survivors include two grandchildren. A memorial service will begin at 11a.m. Friday in St. Paul if the Cross Catholic Church, 320 S. Washington Ave., Park Ridge. --Chicago Tribune, March 14, 2002, Thursday (verbatim from Trib) ----------------------------------------------------- Paul Kasley W9TS Fermi National Accelerator Lab, Batavia, IL ----------------------------------------------------- If you push hard enough, it will fall over. _______________________________________________ GreenKeys mailing list GreenKeys(a)mailman.qth.net http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/greenkeys