Feb 09, 2024 13:00:00

[Obituary] John Walker, founder of CAD software developer 'Autodesk', passes away

On February 2, 2024,

John Walker , co-founder of the software development company Autodesk and developer of the CAD software AutoCAD , passed away.

John Walker (1949 - 2024) - SCANALYZER / The Happening World - Scanalyst
https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/t/john-walker-1949-2024/4305

John Walker leaves us - Through the Interface
https://www.keanw.com/2024/02/john-walker-leaves-us.html

Born in 1949, Walker came from a family of doctors, but pursued his dream of becoming an astronomer by attending Case Western Reserve University . However, while attending the same university, he encountered the new world of computers, and from then on decided to pursue a career in computers rather than astronomy. Mr. Walker then studied computer science at Case Western Reserve University's Project Chi(X) Computing Center and earned a degree in electrical engineering.

He met his future wife, Roxy, at Thanksgiving in 1972, and they married the following year. A few months later, the two moved to California for Mr. Walker's new job. From 1974 to 1975, Mr. Walker developed a computer virus called ANIMAL that self-replicated on the UNIVAC 1100 , and this is sometimes named as one of the first computer viruses.

After that, he moved to various jobs around the Bay Area of California, but in late 1976, he started working on

the TMS9900 , the world's earliest released 16-bit microprocessor by Texas Instruments. Designed a unique circuit board. This circuit board design led to the launch of the venture company Marinchip Systems and the establishment of Autodesk in 1982.

Mr. Walker started developing computer applications at Autodesk, and the first application he completed was ``AutoCAD'' for CAD and drafting. AutoCAD is widely used as a general-purpose CAD in the architecture, civil engineering, and mechanical fields at the time of writing this article.

Mr. Walker is also known for his writing activities on his own website Fourmilab . Mr. Walker has published ``The Autodesk File'' on Fourmilab, which summarizes the origins of Autodesk with his own hands, so if you are interested, please check it out.

The Autodesk File
https://www.fourmilab.ch/autofile/

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