You may not recognize the name of Alan Shugart, but you most likely reap the benefits of his invention every single day. Let’s take a look at the inventor of the floppy disk, something that revolutionized the storage of computer data. • With a brand-new degree in engineering physics from the University of Redlands, Alan Shugart started work at IBM in San Jose, California, the day after he graduated in 1951 at age 21. His first position was a field service engineer repairing punch card accounting machines. • Shugart rose quickly through the ranks at IBM and was transferred to their research laboratory. In 1955, he and his team were responsible for developing the first disk drive, named the IBM RAMAC, able to store five million characters of data. It was released commercially in 1959. • In 1969, Shugart developed the floppy disk, an 8-inch flexible plastic disk coated with magnetic iron oxide. The first “memory disk,” as it was called, held 100 KBs of data and provided a method of transferring data from computer to computer. • Shugart left IBM for Memorex in 1969, taking several IBM engineers along with him. He stayed with that company until 1972, when he launched his own business, Shugart Associates, that would perfect a lower-cost, mass-produced floppy disk, Two years later, after a dispute with the company’s board, he resigned.
• Seagate Technology grew to be the world’s largest producer of disk drives. • Shugart expanded his horizons in 1987 by opening Fandango, a popular five-star restaurant on California’s Monterey Peninsula. His partner was a French-born chef whose family had operated a restaurant in Provence, France, since 1737. Shugart wrote a book about the process in Fandango: The Story of Two Guys Who Wanted to Own a Restaurant, published in 1993. • As a clever way of protesting against the country’s major political parties, in 1996, Shugart entered the name of his Bernese Mountain on the ballot as a candidate for Congress. He also founded a political action committee aimed at getting citizens more involved in the political process. Shugart recorded his experiences about the dog’s unsuccessful Congressional campaign in the book Ernest Goes to Washington (Well, Not Exactly). • In 1998, when Shugart was 68 years old, the board of directors of Seagate Technology forced their founder to resign, claiming he was becoming “slow.” • Four years after leaving Seagate, Shugart published his autobiography, Al: The Wit and Wisdom of Alan Shugart. He died in 2006 at the age of 76. • “It is important to remember when starting and growing a new company that cash is more important than your mother.” – Alan Shugart
• In 1976, Shugart developed the smaller 5.25” disk drive and diskette, able to store up to 1.2 MB of data. He and a partner, a former co-worker from Memorex, started up Seagate Technology in 1979, with the goal of producing hard disk drives for the rapidly-growing personal computer market.
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mustard when his wife said, "Here, hold Johnny for a minute while I make my lunch." Balancing the baby on his shoulder, he reached for his sandwich when he noticed a streak of mustard on his fingers. A mustard lover, he licked it off, and quickly discovered it was not mustard. After his wife finished laughing, she said, "Now you know why they call that fancy mustard 'Poupon'."
Answer
King CROSSWORD
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A new father was getting ready to eat his deliTidbits Laughs cious ham sandwich smeared with spicy brown
Answer
ALAN SHUGART
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