Editing Ray Tomlinson

{{Short description|American computer programmer (1941–2016)}}
{{for|the Australian basketball player|Ray Tomlinson (basketball)}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Raymond Samuel Tomlinson
| image              = Ray Tomlinson.jpg
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|1941|04|23}}
| birth_place        = [[Amsterdam (city), New York|Amsterdam, New York]], U.S.
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|2016|03|05|1941|04|23}}
| death_place        = [[Lincoln, Massachusetts]], U.S.
| education          = [[Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute]] (BS)<br>[[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (MS)
| occupation         = [[Computer scientist]]
| years_active       = 1965–2016
| known_for          = Invention of [[email]]
| spouse             = Ann Tomlinson
| children           = 2
}}
'''Raymond Samuel Tomlinson''' (April 23, 1941 – March 5, 2016) was an American<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.smh.com.au/technology/web-culture/email-pioneer-ray-tomlinson-dead-at-74-20160306-gnbspq.html|title=Email pioneer Ray Tomlinson dead at 74|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=March 6, 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://arstechnica.com/business/2016/03/e-mail-inventor-ray-tomlinson-who-popularized-symbol-dies-at-74/|title=E-mail inventor Ray Tomlinson, who popularized @ symbol, dies at 74|work=Ars Technica|date=March 6, 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/inventor-modern-email-ray-tomlinson-dies-37446206|title=Inventor of Modern Email, Ray Tomlinson, Dies|author=ABC News|work=ABC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chip.de/news/E-Mail-Pionier-ist-tot-Rest-Peace-Ray-Tomlinson_90640588.html|title=E-Mail-Pionier ist tot: Rest @ Peace, Ray Tomlinson|author=Claudio Müller|date=March 7, 2016|work=CHIP Online}}</ref> computer programmer who implemented the first [[email]] program on the [[ARPANET]] system, the precursor to the Internet, in 1971;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/mar/07/ray-tomlinson-email-inventor-and-selector-of-symbol-dies-aged-74|title=Ray Tomlinson, email inventor and selector of @ symbol, dies aged 74|work=the Guardian|date=March 7, 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2016/3/6/11168718/ray-tomlinson-dead-inventor-of-email-obituary|title=Inventor of email and savior of the @ sign, Ray Tomlinson, is dead at 74|author=Dante D'Orazio|date=March 6, 2016|publisher=Vox Media|work=The Verge}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2016/03/06/469428062/ray-tomlinson-inventor-of-modern-email-has-died|title=Ray Tomlinson, Inventor Of Modern Email, Dies|date=March 6, 2016|work=NPR.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-35741116|title=Email inventor Ray Tomlinson dies at 74|work=BBC News|date=March 6, 2016 }}</ref> it was the first system able to send mail between users on different hosts connected to ARPANET. Previously, mail could be sent only to others who used the same computer. To achieve this, he used the [[At sign|@ sign]] to separate the [[User (computing)|username]] from the name of their machine, a scheme which has been used in email addresses ever since.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://openmap.bbn.com/~tomlinso/ray/firstemailframe.html|title=The First Network Email|author1=Ray Tomlinson}}</ref> The [[Internet Hall of Fame]] in its account of his work commented "Tomlinson's email program brought about a complete revolution, fundamentally changing the way people communicate."<ref name="Internet Hall of Fame Bio" /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rpi.edu/news/alumni_classnotes/winter12-13/tomlinson.html|title=Alumni/ae Notes - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI)}}</ref> He is credited with the invention of the [[Transmission Control Protocol|TCP]] three-way handshake<ref>[[Vint Cerf|Cerf, Vinton]]; [[Yogen Dalal|Dalal, Yogen]]; Sunshine, Carl (December 1974), {{IETF RFC|675}}, ''Specification of Internet Transmission Control Protocol''</ref> which underlies [[HTTP]] and many other key [[Internet]] protocols.

==Early life and education==
Tomlinson was born<ref name="The Guardian">{{Cite web |date=March 14, 2016 |title=Ray Tomlinson obituary |url=http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/mar/14/ray-tomlinson-obituary |access-date=November 3, 2022 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref> in [[Amsterdam (city), New York|Amsterdam, New York]], but his family soon moved to the small, unincorporated village of [[Vail Mills, New York|Vail Mills]], [[Broadalbin, New York]].<ref name="New York Times">{{cite news |last=Grimes |first=William |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/08/technology/raymond-tomlinson-email-obituary.html |title=Raymond Tomlinson, Who Put the @ Sign in Email, Is Dead at 74 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=March 7, 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Subik|first1=Jason|title=Broadalbin native put the @ in your e-mail address|url=http://www.dailygazette.com/news/2010/oct/17/1017_emailinventor/|access-date=April 4, 2016|work=The Daily Gazette|date=October 17, 2010|location=Schenectady, NY}}</ref> His father Raymond Tomlinson worked in carpet mills and later worked in the grocery business. His mother Dorothy Tomlinson worked for a dry cleaner.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Marquard |first=Bryan |date=March 12, 2016 |title=Ray Tomlinson, @ 74; pioneer of e-mail |work=The Daily Star |url=https://www.thedailystar.net/op-ed/politics/ray-tomlinson-74-pioneer-e-mail-789802}}</ref> He attended Broadalbin Central School in nearby Broadalbin, New York.<ref>{{cite news |last=Varghese |first=Sam |url=http://www.itwire.com/business-it-news/networking/71752-email-inventor-ray-tomlinson-dead-at-74.html |title=Email inventor Ray Tomlinson dead at 74 |work=iTWire |date=March 7, 2016 }}</ref> Later he attended [[Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute]] (RPI) in [[Troy, New York]], where he participated in the co-op program with [[IBM]]. He received a bachelor's degree in [[electrical engineering]] from RPI in 1963.<ref name="TechRepublic" />

After graduating from RPI, he entered the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (MIT) to continue his electrical engineering education. At MIT, Tomlinson worked in the Speech Communication Group, focusing on [[speech synthesis]]. He became interested in computers after seeing students play ''[[Spacewar!]]''.<ref>{{cite interview |last=Tomlinson |first=Ray |date=June 5, 2009 |title=Oral History of Raymond (Ray) Tomlinson |url=https://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/access/text/2016/03/102702118-05-01-acc.pdf |interviewer-last1=Weber |interviewer-first1=Marc |interviewer-last2=Hendrie |interviewer-first2=Gardner |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |publisher=Computer History Museum |pages=2–3 |access-date=April 7, 2025}}</ref> Enthralled by the video game, he spent more time working with digital systems and integrated them into his thesis project. He developed an analog–digital hybrid speech synthesizer as the subject of his thesis for the master's degree in electrical engineering, which he received in 1965.<ref name="New York Times" />

==Career==
In 1967, he joined the technology company of Bolt, Beranek and Newman (BBN; now [[Raytheon BBN]]), where he helped develop the [[TENEX (operating system)|TENEX]] operating system including the [[ARPANET]] [[Network Control Program (ARPANET)|Network Control Program]], implementations of [[Telnet]], and implementations on the self-replicating programs [[Creeper (program)|Creeper and Reaper]].

Tomlinson also developed CPYNET, a file transfer program designed to transmit files between computers connected to the ARPANET. In 1971, he was asked to adapt an existing program called [[SNDMSG]]—which allowed users to leave messages for others on the same [[time-sharing]] computer—so that it could run on TENEX.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21694354-raymond-samuel-tomlinson-died-march-5th-aged-74-email-pioneer |title=Ray Tomlinson, who sent the first e-mail, has died |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |date=March 7, 2016 }}</ref> He incorporated [[Source code|code]] from CPYNET into SNDMSG, enabling users to send messages to others on ''different'' computers over the network. This innovation marked the creation of the first networked email system.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kawamoto |first=Dawn |url=http://www.informationweek.com/software/creator-of-network-email-ray-tomlinson-dies/d/d-id/1324592 |title=Creator Of Network Email Ray Tomlinson Dies |work=InformationWeek |date=March 7, 2016 }}</ref>

The first email Tomlinson sent was a test message between two computers placed side by side.<ref name="Los Angeles Times">{{cite web |last1=Sell |first1=Sarah Skidmore |title=Raymond Tomlinson dies at 74; inventor of modern email |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-raymond-tomlinson-20160308-story.html |website=Los Angeles Times |access-date=April 8, 2025 |date=March 7, 2016}}</ref> The content of the message was not preserved, and Tomlinson later described it as insignificant, likely consisting of a random string such as "[[Top row (keyboard)|QWERTYUIOP.]]" This is often misquoted as "The first e-mail was QWERTYUIOP."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://openmap.bbn.com/~tomlinso/ray/mistakes.html|title=Frequently Made Mistakes|author1=Ray Tomlinson|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301021534/http://openmap.bbn.com/~tomlinso/ray/mistakes.html |archive-date=March 1, 2021 }}</ref> He later stated, "The test messages were entirely forgettable and I have, therefore, forgotten them."<ref>{{cite news| url=http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/internet-star-least-473-years-old/ | work=The New York Times | title=Internet Star @ Least 473 Years Old | first=Robert | last=Mackey | date=May 4, 2009 | access-date=May 22, 2010}}</ref>

To distinguish destination addresses from local usernames, Tomlinson selected the [[At sign|@ symbol]] to indicate the recipient's location (user@host), a format that remains standard in [[Email address|email addressing]]. The symbol was chosen because it was not used in usernames or in TENEX programming, and it intuitively conveyed the intended meaning.<ref name="The Guardian" /><ref name="New York Times" /><ref name="Time">{{cite magazine |last1=Fitzpatrick |first1=Alex |title=How One Man Saved the '@' Symbol |url=https://time.com/4249407/tomlinson-history-at-symbol/ |magazine=Time |access-date=April 8, 2025 |date=March 7, 2016}}</ref> The @ sign, which was relatively obscure at the time, was added to the [[Museum of Modern Art]]'s architecture and design collection in 2010, credited to Tomlinson and described as a "defining symbol of the computer age."<ref name="The Guardian" /><ref name="New York Times" /><ref name="Time" /><ref>{{cite web |last1=Antonelli |first1=Paola |title=@ at MoMA |url=https://www.moma.org/magazine/articles/834 |website=Museum of Modern Art |access-date=April 8, 2025 |date=January 19, 2023}}</ref>

Initially, the email messaging system was not considered significant. Its development was not directed by his employer, and Tomlinson pursued the idea independently, stating that it "seemed like a neat idea."<ref name="New York Times" /> Upon demonstrating the system to a colleague, he remarked, "Don't tell anyone! This isn't what we're supposed to be working on."<ref>{{cite magazine| url=https://www.forbes.com/asap/1998/1005/126.html | magazine=Forbes | date=October 5, 1998 | access-date = February 2, 2016 | author = Sasha Cavender | title = Legends}}</ref> Despite its informal origins, the system quickly gained popularity within the ARPANET research community and became one of the network's most enduring applications.<ref name="The Guardian" /> Tomlinson later remarked that he was not particularly surprised by the eventual widespread use of email, stating, "I see email being used, by and large, exactly the way I envisioned."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hicks |first1=Jesse |title=Ray Tomlinson, the inventor of email: 'I see email being used, by and large, exactly the way I envisioned' |url=https://www.theverge.com/2012/5/2/2991486/ray-tomlinson-email-inventor-interview-i-see-email-being-used |website=The Verge |access-date=April 8, 2025 |date=May 3, 2012}}</ref>

Tomlinson said he preferred "email" over "e-mail," joking in a 2010 interview that "I'm simply trying to conserve the world's supply of hyphens" and that "the term has been in use long enough to drop the hyphen."<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/q-a-ray-tomlinson-sent-the-first-email-but-his-inbox-is-still-a-mess/| work=Motherboard | title=Ray Tomlinson Sent the First Email But His Inbox Is Still a Mess | first=Alex | last=Pasternack | date=April 20, 2010 | access-date=March 7, 2016}}</ref>

==Later life and death==
Tomlinson remained at BBN for the rest of his career, serving as a principal scientist.<ref name="Los Angeles Times" /> In his personal life, he maintained a minimal relationship with consumer technology. [[Adrienne LaFrance]] of ''[[The Atlantic]]'' described him as a "self-professed Luddite," noting that he did not own a mobile phone and had only recently created a [[Facebook]] account.<ref>{{cite web |last1=LaFrance |first1=Adrienne |author1-link=Adrienne LaFrance |title=Remembering Raymond Tomlinson, the Father of Email |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/03/raymond-tomlinson/472605/ |website=The Atlantic |access-date=April 11, 2025 |date=March 7, 2016}}</ref>

Tomlinson died of a [[heart attack]] on March 5, 2016, at his home in [[Lincoln, Massachusetts]], at the age of 74.<ref name="TechRepublic">{{cite web|url=http://www.techrepublic.com/article/email-inventor-ray-tomlinson-dies-at-74/|title=Email inventor Ray Tomlinson dies at 74|author=Evan Koblentz|date=March 5, 2016|work=TechRepublic}}</ref><ref name="New York Times" /> News of his death drew attention and tributes from the technology community, including a message from [[Vint Cerf]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Ray Tomlinson: Email inventor dies aged 74 |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-07/email-inventor-ray-tomlinson-dies-aged-74/7225748 |access-date=April 11, 2025 |agency=AFP |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |date=March 7, 2016}}</ref> co-developer of the [[TCP/IP]] protocol and a founding architect of the Internet.

==Awards and honors==
* In 2000, he received the [[George Stibitz|George R. Stibitz]] Computer Pioneer Award from the [[American Computer Museum]] (with the Computer Science Department of [[Montana State University - Bozeman|Montana State University]]).<ref name="American Computer & Robotics Museum SWA">{{cite web|title=The Stibitz/Wilson Awards|url=http://www.compustory.com/museum-honorees.html|website=American Computer & Robotics Museum|access-date=March 6, 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304030344/http://www.compustory.com/museum-honorees.html|archive-date=March 4, 2016}}</ref>
* In 2001, he received a [[Webby Award]] from the [[International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences]] for lifetime achievement. Also in 2001 he was inducted into the Rensselaer Alumni Hall of Fame.<ref name="Rensselaer Alumni Hall of Fame">{{cite web|title=Raymond S. Tomlinson: Inventor of Network Electronic Mail|url=http://www.rpi.edu/about/alumni/inductees/tomlinson.html|website=Alumni Hall of Fame|publisher=Rensselaer|access-date=March 6, 2016}}</ref>
* In 2002, ''[[Discover (magazine)|Discover]]'' magazine awarded him its Innovative Innovating Award of Innovation.<ref name="Internet Hall of Fame Bio" />
* In 2004, he received the [[IEEE Internet Award]] along with [[Dave Crocker (network engineer)|Dave Crocker]].<ref name="Internet Hall of Fame Bio" />
* In 2009, he along with [[Martin Cooper (inventor)|Martin Cooper]] was awarded the [[Prince of Asturias Awards|Prince of Asturias Award]] for scientific and technical research.<ref>{{cite press release
 |title       = The fathers of the mobile phone and email, Prince of Asturias Award Laureates for Technical and Scientific Research
 |publisher   = Fundación Príncipe de Asturias
 |date        = June 17, 2009
 |url         = http://fundacionprincipedeasturias.org/en/press/news/the-fathers-of-the-mobile-phone-and-email-prince-of-asturias-award-laureates-for-technical-and-scientific-research/
 |access-date  = June 17, 2009
 |url-status     = dead
 |archive-url  = https://archive.today/20120716133104/http://fundacionprincipedeasturias.org/en/press/news/the-fathers-of-the-mobile-phone-and-email-prince-of-asturias-award-laureates-for-technical-and-scientific-research/
 |archive-date = July 16, 2012
}}</ref>
* In 2011, he was listed 4th in the [[MIT150]] list of the top 150 innovators and ideas from [[MIT]].<ref name="Internet Hall of Fame Bio" />
* In 2012, Tomlinson was inducted into the [[Internet Hall of Fame]] by the [[Internet Society]].<ref name="Internet Hall of Fame Bio">{{cite web|title=Official Biography: Raymond Tomlinson|url=http://www.internethalloffame.org/official-biography-raymond-tomlinson|website=Internet Hall of Fame|access-date=March 6, 2016}}</ref>
* In 2022, Email Day, an annual, national holiday was established in honor of Ray Tomlinson and his creation of email. April 23 (Tomlinson's birthday) was chosen.<ref>{{Cite web |access-date=January 11, 2023 |title=National Email Day |date=April 21, 2022 |url=https://nationaltoday.com/national-email-day/}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite web |url=http://motherboard.tv/2010/4/20/q-a-ray-tomlinson-sent-the-first-email-but-his-inbox-is-still-a-mess--2 |title=Q+A: Ray Tomlinson Sent the First Email, But His Inbox Is Still a Mess |last=Pasternack |first=Alex |date=April 20, 2010 |website=Motherboard.tv |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324004022/http://motherboard.vice.com/2010/4/20/q-a-ray-tomlinson-sent-the-first-email-but-his-inbox-is-still-a-mess--2 |archive-date=March 24, 2012}}
* {{cite web |last=Raz |first=Guy |title=The Man Who Made You Put Away Your Pen |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120364591 |publisher=New England Public Radio |date=November 21, 2009}}
* {{cite web |last=Ward |first=Mark |title=H@ppy birthday to you |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/sci_tech/2000/dot_life/1586229.stm |publisher=BBC |date=October 8, 2001}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160508191537/http://openmap.bbn.com/~tomlinso/ray/home.html Tomlinsons' e-mail webpage]

{{Internet Hall of Fame}}
{{Prince of Asturias Award for Technical and Scientific Research}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomlinson, Ray}}
[[Category:1941 births]]
[[Category:2016 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American inventors]]
[[Category:American computer programmers]]
[[Category:American electrical engineers]]
[[Category:Email]]
[[Category:Engineers from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Inventors from New York (state)]]
[[Category:MIT School of Engineering alumni]]
[[Category:People from Amsterdam, New York]]
[[Category:Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute alumni]]
[[Category:Webby Award winners]]