Jonathan A. Titus
Jonathan A. Titus has had many accomplishments throughout his life time. He created the first published kit microcomputer and has been author and co-author of many different books.
Short biography
Hobbyists have been an integral part of the electronics world, and every so often one hobbyist develops an invention that makes an impact within industry. In Jonathan A. Titus' case, he was a computing hobbyist who had the desire to build his own computer. At the time Titus decided to design this computer, the smallest computers were Digital Equipment Corporation's (DEC) PDP-8 series of machines, which took up the space of about two microwave ovens. Titus successfully built his own computer, the Mark-8, in 1973, based on an Intel 8008 microprocessor. The Mark-8 may not have been the first home-built computer that worked, but it was the first to offer a kit design explained in detail in a national magazine. The Mark-8 kit let other hobbyists follow in Titus's footsteps.
Titus on IBM PC History
"In the mid '70s, relatively inexpensive memory and microprocessor ICs made it possible for knowledgeable electronic experimenters to build their own computers. Prior to that, the smallest computers-minicomputers-took the space of a large microwave oven, cost thousands of dollars, and found use only in special applications. But by 1975, commercial "hobby computer" kits such as the MITS Altair 8800 and the IMSAI 8080, provided a basic front panel of lights and switches, a power supply, and a motherboard. The kit suppliers also offered a range of CPU, memory, and I/O boards. The resulting "systems" looked much like minicomputers. Hardy souls programmed these hobby computers-no one then called them personal computers-in assembly language. Some hobbyists, and a few people who saw business uses for small computers, wrote programs using a BASIC interpreter developed by a small software company called Microsoft, then based in Albuquerque, NM, the home of MITS. In the late '70s, hobby computers evolved from boxes with lights and switches to sleek packages that came with a keyboard and built-in software. Apple Computer offered its first commercial computer-the Apple II-in 1976, which Radio Shack answered the next year with its TRS-80." (Source: Test & Measurement World, 9/15/2001).
Links
Below are some selected articles that refer to Jon Titus and the significance of Mark-8.
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The First Do-It-Yourself Personal Computer by Larry Steckler (in "Solomon's Memory" by Les Solomon)
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The History of the Computer (See Section 16.5 The Golden Era-the 8-bit Microprocessor)
Jon Titus on the Future of Computing Video
Interview Part 1 - New Technologies
Jonathan Titus answers questions about important trends in computing, his view on biocomputing and neurocomputing from an engineering standpoint, and hands on expericence with new technologies.
Interview Part 2 - Professional Writing
Jonathan Titus answers questions about the importance of being a well-versed writer in today's technologies companies. He also answers questions about books that he has been writing and new ones he is working on.
Interview Part 3 - Education
Jonathan Titus answers questions about trends in education and the effective ways of getting younger generations of students involved in electrical engineering.
MMD 1 Mini Computer
Presentation of Mark 8 Microcomputer by David Larsen