Tim Anderson (programmer): Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|American computer programmer}}

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{{Short description|American computer programmer}}

{{Infobox person

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| image_size =

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| birth_date = February{{birth year and age|1954|02}}

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| alma_mater = [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] {{small|([[Bachelor of Science|BSc]], 1975; [[Master of Science|MS]], 1977)}}

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| known_for = ''[[Zork]]'', co-founder of [[Infocom]]

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'''Tim Anderson''' is an American [[computer programmer]] best known for co-creating the [[adventure game]] ''[[Zork]]'',<ref>{{Cite news |last=Woyke |first=Elizabeth |date=August 22, 2017 |title=The Enduring Legacy of Zork |work=MIT Technology Review |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2017/08/22/149560/the-enduring-legacy-of-zork/}}</ref> one of the first works of [[interactive fiction]] and an early descendant of ''[[Colossal Cave Adventure|ADVENT]]'' (also known as ''Colossal Cave Adventure'').<ref name=enduring>{{Cite web |date=May 2, 2014 |title=GDC 2014 - Zork Post-Mortem |url=https://adventuregamers.com/articles/view/26224 |website=Adventure Gamers}}</ref> ''Zork'' was originally developed from 1977 to 1979 in the [[MDL programming language]] on a DEC [[PDP-10]] computer by Anderson, [[Marc Blank]], [[Bruce Daniels]], and [[Dave Lebling]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lammle |first=Rob |date=June 15, 2014 |title=A Brief History of Zork |url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/29885/eaten-grue-brief-history-zork}}</ref> All four were members of the Dynamic Modeling Group at the [[MIT]] Laboratory for Computer Science.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Anderson |first=Tim |last2=Galley |first2=Stu |title=The History of Zork |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116035446/http://www.csd.uwo.ca/Infocom/Articles/NZT/zorkhist.html |access-date=June 27, 2023}}</ref> After the success of ''Zork'', Anderson and the other members of the team would go on to found [[Infocom]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nooney |first=Laine |date=Fall 2017 |title=Let's Begin Again |journal=American Journal of Play |volume=10}}</ref>

==Career==

While attending [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]], Anderson got his start in game development by developing the game ''Trivia'' (1976) alongside future collaborator [[Marc Blank]] for the [[Digital Equipment Corporation|DEC]] [[PDP-10]], the school's mainframe, playable over [[ARPANET]].<ref name=zorkhist>{{Cite web |last1=Anderson |first1=Tim |last2=Galley |first2=Stu |title=The History of Zork |url=http://www.csd.uwo.ca/Infocom/Articles/NZT/zorkhist.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116035446/http://www.csd.uwo.ca/Infocom/Articles/NZT/zorkhist.html |access-date=June 27, 2023|archive-date=January 16, 2009 }}</ref> ''Trivia'' proved itself popular with the limited userbase of ARPANET, leading Anderson and Blank, as well as [[Bruce Daniels]] and [[Dave Lebling]] to collaborate on a new game.<ref name=zorkhist/> All four were members of the Dynamic Modeling Group at the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science, with all but Blank working by day writing software for [[DARPA]], which afforded them access to MIT's mainframe, even after they had graduated.<ref name=enduring/> The team had spent a considerable amount of time working on solving the game ''[[Colossal Cave Adventure]]'', mostly referred to at that time as simply ''Adventure''.<ref name=zorkhist/><ref name=down/> The team enjoyed ''Adventure'', but found themselves frustrated with the limited interface of the game, specifically its two-word command structure.<ref name=enduring/> Bolstered by their earlier experience writing games for the PDP-10, the team set out to create what would eventually become ''Zork''. Originally developed from 1977 to 1979 in the [[MDL programming language]] for the PDP-10, ''Zork'' would prove immensely popular on ARPANET.<ref name=enduring/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lammle |first=Rob |date=June 15, 2014 |title=A Brief History of Zork |url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/29885/eaten-grue-brief-history-zork}}</ref> After the success of ''Zork'' on its limited platform, Anderson and the other members of the team founded [[Infocom]], initially with no actual business plans, but settling on [[porting]] ''Zork'' to home computers.<ref name=zorkhist/><ref name=down>{{cite journal |last1=Briceno |first1=Hector |last2=Chao |first2=Wesley |last3=Glenn |first3=Andrew |last4=Hu |first4=Stanley |last5=Krishnamurthy |first5=Ashwin |last6=Tsuchida |first6=Bruce |title=Down From the Top of Its Game: The Story of Infocom, Inc. |date=December 15, 2000}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nooney |first=Laine |date=Fall 2017 |title=Let's Begin Again |journal=American Journal of Play |volume=10}}</ref>

The home computer ports of ''Zork'' would prove immensely successful, and Infocom grew rapidly, focusing on producing new text adventures, as well as branching out into business software.<ref name=down/> Anderson would take on the title of "senior scientist, special-projects programmer" within the company, mostly assisting with development of new games.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rouse |first1=Richard |title=Game Design: Theory and Practice |date=2004 |isbn=9781556229121 |page=180 |edition=2}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Ivory |first1=James |title=Virtual Lives |date=2012 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9781598845860 |page=124}}</ref> The company's expansion into business software ultimately caused them to de-emphasize game production, which lead to their eventual demise in 1989.<ref name=down/><ref>{{cite web |title=Stick to What You Know: Infocom and the Perils of Expansion |url=https://www.computerhistory.org/revolution/computer-games/16/196 |website=The Computer History Museum}}</ref>

After Infocom shut down, Anderson held a variety of positions in the defense and business sectors, including serving as the [[Chief technology officer|CTO]] of OffRoad Capital, a [[dot-com bubble]] startup for investing in private equity online.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Waldrop |first1=Mitchell |title=Computing's Johnny Appleseed |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/2000/01/01/236431/computings-johnny-appleseed/ |work=MIT Technology Review |date=January 1, 2000}}</ref><ref name=patch>{{cite web |last=McNamara |first=Neal |date=2023-03-22 |title=Sudbury 2023 Candidate Profile: Timothy Anderson, Goodnow Board |url=https://patch.com/massachusetts/sudbury/sudbury-2023-candidate-profile-timothy-anderson-goodnow-board |website=Sudbury Patch |access-date=2025-05-14 |language=en}}</ref> The San Francisco-based firm maintained the first Internet site that allowed high-net-worth individuals to invest electronically in established, growing companies.<ref>{{cite news |last=Young |first=Eric |title=Big money doesn't always open doors |newspaper=The Sacramento Bee |date=September 2, 1999}}</ref>

==Personal life==

Anderson obtained his bachelorsbachelor's degree from MIT in 1975, and his masters in 1977, both in Computer science.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Marcott |first=Amy |date=July 15, 2009 |title=Five MIT-Developed Video Games that Revolutionized the Industry |url=https://alum.mit.edu/slice/five-mit-developed-video-games-revolutionized-industry |website=Slice of MIT}}</ref> Since 1996 Anderson has lived in [[Sudbury, Massachusetts]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-02-20 |title=About Tim |url=https://anderson4goodnow.org/about-tim/ |access-date=2023-06-28 |website=Tim Anderson for Goodnow Library |language=en-US}}</ref> and has been active in local politics, seeking election on more than one occasion.<ref name=patch/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Razzaq |first=Zane |date=March 10, 2022 |title=Friends again? Four vie for two seats on Sudbury Board of Library Trustees |url=https://www.metrowestdailynews.com/story/news/2022/03/10/four-vie-two-seats-board-library-trustees-sudbury-ma/9319752002/ |access-date= |website=MetroWest Daily News |language=en-US}}</ref>

==References==

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[[Category:Living people]]

[[Category:People from Sudbury, Massachusetts]]

[[Category:VideoAmerican video game programmers]]

[[Category:Year1954 of birth missing (living people)births]]

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