Fernando J. Corbató was a Professor Emeritus at MIT, renowned for his pioneering work in the development of time-sharing and resource-sharing computer systems. He was instrumental in creating the Compatible Time-Sharing System (CTSS) and Multics, both influential systems that laid the groundwork for modern operating systems. Corbató's contributions have been widely recognized through numerous awards and fellowships, including the Turing Award (1990) and the Computer Pioneer Award (1982). He was a long-time member of the MIT Computation Center and the Laboratory for Computer Science, and held leadership positions within the department. His work significantly impacted the field of computer science and the evolution of computing technology.
A look at the social aspects of the Incompatible Timesharing (ITS) operating system, focusing on its lack of security and how that facilitated collaboration and a sense of community among users. The author argues that ITS was a forerunner to modern social media.
