The National Medal of Technology (http://www.technology.gov/medal/default.htm) is the highest honor awarded by the president of the United States to America’s leading innovators. It recognizes people who have made lasting contributions to America's competitiveness, standard of living, and quality of life through technological innovation, and those who have made substantial contributions to strengthening the nation’s technological workforce. The following Windows IT Pro Hall of Fame inductees were awarded the medal:
Steven P. Jobs and Stephen Wozniak (1985): For their development and introduction of the personal computer, which sparked the birth of a new industry extending the power of the computer to individual users.
Robert N. Noyce (1987): For his inventions in the field of semiconductor ICs, for his leading role in the establishment of the microprocessor that has led to much wider use of more powerful computers, and for his leadership of research and development in these areas, all of which have had profound consequences both in the United States and throughout the world.
David Packard (1988): For extraordinary and unselfish leadership in both industry and government, particularly in widely diversified technological fields which strengthened the competitiveness and defense capabilities of the United States.
Gordon E. Moore (1990): For his seminal leadership in bringing American industry the two major postwar innovations in microelectronics—large-scale integrated memory and the microprocessor—that have fueled the information revolution.
Grace Murray Hopper (1991): For her pioneering accomplishments in the development of computer programming languages that simplified computer technology and opened the door to a significantly larger universe of users.
William H. Gates III (1992): For his early vision of universal computing at home and in the office; for his technical and business management skills in creating a worldwide technology company; and for his contribution to the development of the PC industry.
Vinton Gray Cerf and Robert E. Kahn (1997): For creating and sustaining development of Internet protocols and continuing to provide leadership in the emerging industry of internetworking.
Kenneth L. Thompson and Dennis M. Ritchie (1998): For their invention of the UNIX OS and the C programming language, which together have led to enormous growth of an entire industry, thereby enhancing American leadership in the Information Age.
Douglas C. Engelbart (2000): For creating the foundations of personal computing including continuous, real-time interaction based on cathode-ray tube displays and the mouse, hypertext linking, text editing, on-line journals, shared-screen teleconferencing, and remote collaborative work. More than any other person, he created the personal computing component of the computer revolution.
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