Editing ArsDigita (section)

==History==
===Foundation===
[[File:Ferrari F355 in front of the ArsDigita offices taken by Hans Masing in July 2000.jpg|thumb|right|F355 parked outside the headquarters of ArsDigita]]
ArsDigita was founded by [[Philip Greenspun]], Tracy Adams, Ben Adida, Eve Andersson, Olin Shivers, Aurelius Prochazka, and Jin Choi. Recruitment for the company was touted heavily by Greenspun, and ArsDigita became notorious among the "elite geeks" as a place where recruiting could result in significant payoffs.  During the spring of 1999, for example, recruiting 5 hires would earn the employee a [[Honda S2000]].  Recruiting 10 employees would net a [[Ferrari F355]].  A trophy [[Ferrari F355|F355]] in bright yellow was kept parked outside of the Prospect Street office in Cambridge to entice employees into recruiting.  Later in the summer of 1999, as new management was brought on board, the policy was quietly changed to a lease of the cars, not outright ownership.<ref name="Greenspun-MIT">{{Cite web|url=https://random.waxy.org/arsdigita/|title=ArsDigita: From Start-Up to Bust-Up|website=random.waxy.org|access-date=2019-09-12}} </ref>

===ArsDigita Foundation and ArsDigita University{{anchor|ArsDigita Foundation}}{{anchor|ArsDigita University}}===
The founders set up a nonprofit organization, the '''ArsDigita Foundation''', which sponsored the ArsDigita Prize, a programming contest for high-school students held in 1999, 2000, and 2001.<ref>{{Cite web |title= ArsDigita Prize |url= http://www.arsdigita.com/prize/ |access-date= April 4, 2022 |archive-date= February 1, 2002 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20020201213602/http://www.arsdigita.com/prize/ |url-status= dead}}</ref>

In 2000, a free intensive one-year post-baccalaureate program in [[computer science]] was announced, called '''ArsDigita University'''.<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=119542&page=1&singlePage=true|title=ArsDigita Offers Free High-Tech Program |last=Axelrod |first=Melanie |date= August 18, 2000 |work=ABC News |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20141026002522/https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=119542&page=1&singlePage=true |archive-date= October 26, 2014 |access-date= April 4, 2022 }}</ref> It was based on the [[undergraduate]] course of study at the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (MIT) and financed and supported by the ArsDigita Foundation.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=119542&page=1&singlePage=true|title=ArsDigita Offers Free High-Tech Program – ABC News|last=Axelrod|first=Melanie|date=2000-08-18|website=ABC News|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141026002522/https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=119542&page=1&singlePage=true|archive-date=2014-10-26|access-date=}}</ref> The majority of the instructors were professors from MIT and the program was tuition free.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WiAm3APQSBIC&dq=%22ArsDigita+University%22&pg=PT116|title=The Venture Caf?: Secrets, Strategies, and Stories from America's High-Tech Entrepreneurs|last=Esser|first=Teresa|date=2002-03-14|publisher=Grand Central Publishing|isbn=9780759527126|language=en}}</ref>

Potential recruits were required to submit solutions to a handful of [[problem set]]s used in an Internet application development course at MIT. Some of these problem sets required the use of the [[Oracle database|Oracle object-relational database management system]] behind Web pages.  Others were basic [[computer science]] problems such as computing a [[Fibonacci series]] [[recursion|recursively]] using the [[Tcl]] programming language.

After running from September 2000 through July 2001, seeing the first class to graduation, the dissolution of the ArsDigita Foundation forced the program to shut down. Most of the course lectures were videotaped.  The tapes and other course materials are available free under the [[Open Content License]] from aduni.org, a website maintained by the alumni of the university. That site exists to carry on the school's mission of supplying free education, and streams ~150GB/month of lectures to thousands of people around the world.  A 4-DVD set containing the videos and course materials ([[problem set]]s, exams, solution sets, and course notes) is also available for a fee.  The tapes were made available on Google Video in 2008 allowing easier and more flexible access.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/tech/DailyNews/arsdigita000818.html|title=ABCNEWS.com : Education Free for All – ArsDigita Offers Free High-Tech Program|last=Axelrod|first=Melanie|website=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|date=2000-08-18|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021005204519/http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/tech/DailyNews/arsdigita000818.html|archive-date=2002-10-05|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://aduni.org/~abangert/adu_archive/press/mercury_news.html|title=Tuition-free computer school is set for launch|last=Gillmore|first=Dan|date=2000-04-13|publisher=Mercury News|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060925024237/http://aduni.org/~abangert/adu_archive/press/mercury_news.html|archive-date=2006-09-25|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wideopen.com:80/upside/853.html|title=Wide Open News – Open Source University Teaches Ways of the Web|last=Williams|first=Sam|date=2000-05-03|publisher=Wide Open – RedHat|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020806191413/http://www.wideopen.com/upside/853.html|archive-date=2002-08-06|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://scriptingnews.userland.com:80/backissues/2000/04/16|title=Scripting News|last=Winer|first=Dave|date=2000-04-16|publisher=Userland.com|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010216222217/http://scriptingnews.userland.com/backissues/2000/04/16|archive-date=2001-02-16|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://aduni.org/~abangert/adu/ad_hb.html|title=Earn a computer degree – for free|last=Bray|first=Hiawatha|date=2000-04-24|publisher=The Boston Globe|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020806062500/http://aduni.org/~abangert/adu/ad_hb.html|archive-date=2002-08-06|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://slashdot.org/articles/01/03/31/1515211.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021029012925/http://slashdot.org/articles/01/03/31/1515211.shtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=2002-10-29|title=Slashdot {{!}} ArsDigita U. Cuts On-Campus Admissions|date=2002-10-29|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://slashdot.org/articles/00/04/15/2234237.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021029011851/http://slashdot.org/articles/00/04/15/2234237.shtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=2002-10-29|title=Slashdot {{!}} ArsDigita University|date=2002-10-29|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref>

Former instructor [[Holly Yanco]] became a [[University of Massachusetts Lowell]] computer science professor and was named a 2013 Woman to Watch.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/techflash/2013/05/2013-women-to-watch-holly-yanco.html|title=2013 Women to Watch: Holly Yanco|last=Resende|first=Patricia|date=2013-05-06|website=bizjournals.com|publisher=MHT, Boston Business Journal|access-date=2019-09-11}}</ref>

===Dissolution===
Approximately 180 ArsDigita employees were hired at the company's peak, but with the [[Dot-com bubble|crash of the dot-com economy]], many of ArsDigita's clients went out of business. Others cut back heavily on their technology initiatives.  The weight of payroll and offices in [[Cambridge, Massachusetts|Cambridge]], [[Berkeley, California]], Washington D.C., and [[Ann Arbor, Michigan]] soon overwhelmed the company.  The Ann Arbor office was closed in September, 2000, with the other offices following over the next few months. 

ArsDigita took $38 million in [[venture capital]] investment from [[Greylock Partners|Greylock]] and [[General Atlantic]] in 2000 to provide working capital for expansion of its product line. Greenspun said<ref name=Greenspun-MIT/> the venture capitalists staged an internal coup to drive the founders out of the management structure and installed incompetent professional managers with little idea of how to run a software products company, resulting in the collapse of the company  and a lawsuit between the founding shareholders and the venture capitalists over control of management.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://unicast.org/stuff/arsdigita/ |title=Index of /Stuff/Arsdigita |access-date=2007-09-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120717003826/http://unicast.org/stuff/arsdigita/ |archive-date=2012-07-17 }}</ref> Michael Yoon, who was an ArsDigita employee at the time, said ArsDigita had other management problems as well.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://michael.yoon.org/arsdigita.php|title=ArsDigita: An Alternate Perspective|date=2013-01-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115123445/http://michael.yoon.org/arsdigita.php|access-date=2019-09-27|archive-date=2013-01-15}}</ref> The lawsuit was settled out of court with Greenspun receiving $7.6M.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.eveandersson.com/arsdigita-history |title=Eve Andersson, "Diary of a Start-Up" |access-date=October 4, 2022 |archive-date=December 14, 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041214094043/http://www.eveandersson.com/arsdigita-history |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>

In 2002, ArsDigita's main assets (including the pinball machine and several pieces of artwork) were acquired by [[Red Hat]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.redhat.com/about/presscenter/2002/FAQ_ArsDigita.html|title=redhat.com {{!}} Questions about Red Hat and ArsDigita answered|date=2011-06-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608015730/http://www.redhat.com/about/presscenter/2002/FAQ_ArsDigita.html|access-date=2019-09-27|archive-date=2011-06-08}}</ref>