Mary Allen Wilkes
Encyclopedia
Mary Allen Wilkes is a former computer programmer and hardware engineer, most known for her work with the LINC
computer. She left computer science and became an attorney. She is a graduate of Wellesley College, class of 1959.
Lincoln Laboratory
from 1959 to 1963. While there, she simulated the LINC
on the TX-2
computer. She also wrote many LINC operating systems and designed the LINC console. During that time, she used a computer in her home, usually considered to be the first home computer user. This claim is dependent on the definition of a "home computer."
. In St. Louis, she designed the multiply macromodule.
LINC
The LINC was a 12-bit, 2048-word computer. The LINC can be considered the first minicomputer and a forerunner to the personal computer....
computer. She left computer science and became an attorney. She is a graduate of Wellesley College, class of 1959.
MIT Lincoln Laboratory
Wilkes worked in the MITMassachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
Lincoln Laboratory
Lincoln Laboratory
MIT Lincoln Laboratory, located in Lexington, Massachusetts, is a United States Department of Defense research and development center chartered to apply advanced technology to problems of national security. Research and development activities focus on long-term technology development as well as...
from 1959 to 1963. While there, she simulated the LINC
LINC
The LINC was a 12-bit, 2048-word computer. The LINC can be considered the first minicomputer and a forerunner to the personal computer....
on the TX-2
TX-2
The MIT Lincoln Laboratory TX-2 computer was the successor to the Lincoln TX-0 and was known for its role in advancing both artificial intelligence and human-computer interaction.- Specifications :...
computer. She also wrote many LINC operating systems and designed the LINC console. During that time, she used a computer in her home, usually considered to be the first home computer user. This claim is dependent on the definition of a "home computer."
Washington University
In 1965, Wilkes left MIT and began working at the Computer Systems Laboratory at Washington University in St. LouisWashington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university located in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1853, and named for George Washington, the university has students and faculty from all fifty U.S. states and more than 110 nations...
. In St. Louis, she designed the multiply macromodule.
Notability
She is noted in the field of Computer Science for:- Developing the assemblerAssembly languageAn assembly language is a low-level programming language for computers, microprocessors, microcontrollers, and other programmable devices. It implements a symbolic representation of the machine codes and other constants needed to program a given CPU architecture...
-linker model used in modern programming compilers. - Some consider her to be the first person to use a home computer, which she built. Depending on the definition of "home computer", Konrad ZuseKonrad ZuseKonrad Zuse was a German civil engineer and computer pioneer. His greatest achievement was the world's first functional program-controlled Turing-complete computer, the Z3, which became operational in May 1941....
is cited as being a home computer user before Wilkes. - Conceptualized and implemented the first operating systemOperating systemAn operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
to sit between a program and the actual computer hardware.