It’s easy to forget that there was a time before the internet, but everything we take for granted now: instant and affordable chat and video between people separated by the length of the planet, phones that can track our runs and the ability to get instant news updates from around the world comes off the back of seriously pioneering work.
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The Internet Society has honoured 32 of those pioneers, including Netscape founder Marc Andreessen, Reddit co-founder online activist Aaron Swartz and software freedom activist Richard Stallman by inducting them into the Internet Hall of Fame.
“This year’s inductees represent a group of people as diverse and dynamic as the Internet itself,” noted Internet Society President and CEO Lynn St. Amour. “As some of the world’s leading thinkers, these individuals have pushed the boundaries of technological and social innovation to connect the world and make it a better place.”
The Internet Hall of Fame is an annual awards program that has been established by the Internet Society to publicly recognize a distinguished and select group of visionaries, leaders and luminaries who have made significant contributions to the development and advancement of the global internet.
According to the Internet Hall of Fame site, inductees fall into three categories: Pioneers “were integral to the early design of the internet”; Innovators “built on that foundation through technological, commercial or policy advances”; and Global Connectors “helped expand the internet’s growth and use around the world”.
The inductees are:
Pioneers
David Clark
Significant contributions to early Internet protocols and architecture
David Farber
Instrumental in developments of the early Internet; created the first operational Distributed Computer System
Howard Frank
Co-wrote proposal that won contract to design network structure for the ARPAnet
Kanchana Kanchanasut
Brought the Internet to Thailand
J.C.R. Licklider (posthumous)
Championed the vision of a world-wide computer network
Bob Metcalfe
Led the invention, standardization, and commercialization of the Ethernet
Jun Murai
Developed the first inter-university network in Japan and considered Father of the Internet in Japan
Kees Neggers
Instrumental in the development of the Internet in the Netherlands
Nii Quaynor
Pioneered Internet development and expansion throughout Africa
Glenn Ricart
Set up the first Internet Exchange Point
Robert Taylor
Leader in the development of modern computing technology and computer networks
Steve Wolff
Developed first open computer network in the U.S. to support research and higher education
Werner Zorn
Led team that created infrastructure to connect Germany to the Internet
Connectors
Karen Banks
Networking leader who used information and communications technologies and applications as tools for social change
Gihan Dias
Instrumental in establishing the academic Internet and first email system in Sri Lanka
Anriette Esterhuysen
Helped establish email and Internet connectivity in Southern Africa
Steve Goldstein
Guided the connection of approximately 25 countries to NSFNET, including those in Europe, Latin America and east Asia.
Teus Hagen
Initiated European Unix User Group and started EUnet
Ida Holz
Instrumental in development of first networks that underpinned the Internet in Latin America
Qiheng Hu
Led the NCFC project team to bring the Internet to mainland China
Haruhisa Ishida (posthumous)
Leader in introducing UNIX computing and internetworking to Japan
Barry Leiner (posthumous)
Envisioned and helped establish Internet Activities Board, which led the effort to set Internet technical standards
George Sadowsky
Aided in deployment of information technology to more than 50 developing countries
Innovators
Marc Andreessen
Co-authored the first widely-used browser, Mosaic, and co-founded Netscape
John Perry Barlow
Co-founded the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Francois Flückiger
Convened meeting that led to Réseaux IP Européens (RIPE), and contributed to the creation of the pan-European Internet backbone
Stephen Kent
A leader in the architecture of network security systems
Anne-Marie Eklund Löwinder
Innovator in implementation of DNS Security Extensions technology and usage procedures
Henning Schulzrinne
Co-developed protocols that are used by almost all Internet telephony and multimedia applications
Richard Stallman
Founded the Free Software Foundation
Aaron Swartz (posthumous)
Co-authored version of RSS, co-owner of Reddit, and early architect of Creative Commons
Jimmy Wales
Fueled the user collaboration and sharing trend as founder of Wikipedia
