Odyssey

Not many people that spend their day in front of their computer screens playing Halo or other MMORPGs are aware that Bill Gates was responsible for writing probably the first ever color graphics game for the IBM PC!

I remember playing this game in 1990 and spending a couple hours on it. Click on the Wikipedia link above for more information about the game. Trivial by today’s standards, Donkey was a really fun game at the time. Not to mention the wow factor of using an expensive PC to play games on it.

This came to my mind while I was responding to a post on JobsBlog about a TV program where Bill Gates will grant a wish to a kid. I have always admired Gates for what he has done for the industry as a whole (the anti-competitive practices notwithstanding), and have always aspired to be like him some day. Only time will tell if my wish would be granted.

ADDENDUM: While I am at the topic of Mr. Gates, I would like to share this funny video where Dr. Dave Bradley “compliments” Gates for making the “Three Finger Salute” so pervasive. I was Dr. Bradley’s assistant for about a year, and his “I love Me” collection has to be one of the most inspirational things I have seen in my life.