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Robert Taylor (computer scientist)

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Robert W. Taylor
Born (1932-02-10) 10 February 1932 (age 94)
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Died13 April 2017(2017-04-13) (aged 85)
Occupation(s)Computer scientist, Internet pioneer
Known forLeadership in development of the Internet and personal computing; head of ARPA IPTO, Xerox PARC Computer Science Laboratory, DEC Systems Research Center

Robert William Taylor (February 10, 1932 – April 13, 2017), commonly referred to as Bob Taylor, was a pioneering figure in the development of the Internet and played a pivotal role in advancing personal computing and related fields. He led ARPA's Information Processing Techniques Office from 1965 until 1969, established and headed the Computer Science Laboratory at Xerox PARC from 1970 through 1983, and subsequently directed Digital Equipment Corporation's Systems Research Center until 1996.

Although Taylor lacked formal academic credentials or direct research experience in computer science, he was widely acknowledged for his forward-thinking leadership. Severo Ornstein likened him to a "concert pianist without fingers," a sentiment shared by historian Leslie Berlin, who praised Taylor's talent for recognizing promising technological paths even if he did not personally develop them.

Among his many accolades, Taylor was honored with the National Medal of Technology and Innovation as well as the Charles Stark Draper Prize. He famously remarked that "The Internet is not about technology; it's about communication," underscoring its fundamental purpose of connecting individuals with common interests regardless of geographical boundaries.

Early life

Born in Dallas, Texas in 1932, Robert W. Taylor was raised by his adoptive father, Rev. Raymond Taylor, a Methodist minister educated at Southern Methodist University, University of Texas at Austin, and Yale Divinity School. The family relocated multiple times throughout his youth. At age 16, Taylor began his college education at Southern Methodist University in 1948 but did not demonstrate strong academic commitment.

During the Korean War (1952–1954), Taylor served in the United States Naval Reserve. Afterward, he utilized the GI Bill to attend the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a bachelor's degree in experimental psychology in 1957, complementing it with minors in mathematics, philosophy, English, and religion. He completed a master's degree in psychology by 1959 but opted against pursuing a doctorate. His research interests gravitated toward scientific disciplines such as physiological psychology, neuroscience, and psychoacoustics rather than more subjective branches of psychology, which influenced his decision to forego doctoral studies.

Following his time at Texas, Taylor spent a year teaching mathematics and coaching basketball at Howey Academy in Florida. Seeking higher remuneration, he shifted careers to engineering, taking on the role of senior systems engineer at defense firm Martin Marietta between 1960 and 1961, where he contributed to the design of the MGM-31 Pershing missile system.

In 1962, after submitting a proposal related to flight control simulation displays, Taylor joined NASA's Office of Advanced Research and Technology as program manager overseeing crewed flight control and display technologies.

Computer career

During the Kennedy administration’s era of backing projects like the Apollo program for manned lunar missions, Taylor worked at NASA’s Washington, D.C. office. Late that year, he encountered J. C. R. Licklider, who led the newly formed Information Processing Techniques Office (IPTO) within DARPA (formerly ARPA), an agency under the United States Department of Defense. Both men shared expertise in psychoacoustics. Licklider’s visionary 1960 paper “Man-Computer Symbiosis” proposed revolutionary computer applications that deeply influenced Taylor and played a crucial role in shaping the evolution of both the internet and personal computing.

Taylor also established connections with Douglas Engelbart at the Stanford Research Institute, channeling NASA funding into Engelbart’s pioneering work on computer-display interfaces that eventually gave rise to the computer mouse. Engelbart’s landmark 1968 demonstration known as the “Mother of All Demos” featured a mouse-driven user interface that showcased significant progress in human-computer interaction.

ARPA

In 1965, Taylor transitioned from NASA to the Information Processing Techniques Office (IPTO), serving as deputy to Ivan Sutherland and overseeing funding for cutting-edge computing research at universities and corporate labs across the country. ARPA backed initiatives such as time-sharing, which enabled multiple users to interact with a single computer simultaneously. Although Taylor’s Pentagon office featured terminals connected to systems at MIT, UC Berkeley, and System Development Corporation, these user groups operated independently without interconnection.

Taylor envisioned linking these separate projects through a computer network that would allow seamless communication via a single terminal. By June 1966, after becoming IPTO director, he spearheaded the creation of the ARPANET through 1969. He convinced ARPA director Charles M. Herzfeld to redirect $1 million from missile defense funds toward this networking effort and recruited Larry Roberts from MIT Lincoln Laboratory to manage the program. Drawing inspiration from Licklider and concepts by Wesley A. Clark and Donald Davies, including packet switching technology, ARPA awarded the network contract to Bolt, Beranek and Newman. Notably, major entities like ATT Bell Labs and IBM Research declined participation. Initial skepticism from researchers concerned about network latency was gradually overcome through persistent advocacy.

In 1968, Licklider and Taylor co-authored "The Computer as a Communication Device," forecasting a revolutionary shift in digital communication: "In a few years, men will be able to communicate more effectively through a machine than face to face."

Starting in 1967, Taylor was assigned by ARPA to Vietnam to establish a centralized computing center for the Military Assistance Command in Saigon, enhancing war data reporting efficiency for the White House. This role curtailed his research activities, and by 1969 he was confident in ARPANET's success and sought to move on.

Political shifts under President Nixon and tensions with Roberts—who resented Taylor’s appointment despite his limited research background—also influenced his decision to leave ARPA. He then spent roughly one year collaborating with Sutherland and David C. Evans at the University of Utah’s computer graphics facility, which he had helped fund.

Uncomfortable with Utah's predominant LDS cultural environment, Taylor relocated in 1970 to Palo Alto, California, where he became associate manager of the Computer Science Laboratory (CSL) at Xerox Corporation’s Palo Alto Research Center (PARC).

Xerox

While Taylor assisted in recruiting scientists for PARC from the ARPA network, Xerox PARC director George Pake doubted his suitability as laboratory manager due to Taylor’s lack of a relevant doctorate and academic research credentials. Instead of pursuing Pake’s proposed computer graphics research agenda, Taylor concentrated on overseeing daily operations. In 1971, he accepted BBN scientist Jerome I. Elkind’s appointment as nominal CSL manager.

During Taylor’s tenure, PARC pioneered technologies that laid the groundwork for the Internet and personal computing, including:

Although not a programmer himself, Taylor strongly championed distributed personal computing inspired by Licklider’s vision and maintained effective collaboration among leading computer scientists. He promoted open discourse through weekly staff meetings called "Dealer," fostering problem-solving in an informal management environment.

Taylor frequently encountered conflicts with Elkind—who controlled budgets but had limited authority due to Taylor’s close rapport with researchers—and with Pake, who opposed Taylor’s influence and his stance toward Xerox’s physics division. As a result, Taylor was excluded from Xerox's 1977 "Futures Day" event unveiling the Alto in Boca Raton. Following Elkind’s prolonged absence, Taylor assumed laboratory management duties in early 1978.

In 1983, physicist William J. Spencer succeeded as PARC director. Disputes over CSL budget distribution between Spencer and Taylor revealed underlying tensions between computer science and physics departments as well as Xerox’s failure to commercialize PARC innovations effectively. After a contentious meeting involving Elkind, Taylor resigned. His departure triggered an unprecedented protest: all his scientists resigned in solidarity. By year-end, Taylor along with most CSL personnel left Xerox to establish their own Computer Corporation. Prominent computer scientists including Licklider, Donald Knuth, and Dana Scott publicly criticized Xerox CEO David Kearns for failing to retain Taylor.

DEC SRC

Taylor was recruited by Ken Olsen of Digital Equipment Corporation, where he founded the Systems Research Center in Palo Alto. This center attracted numerous former researchers from CSL. Among the notable SRC initiatives were the development of the Modula-3 programming language, the implementation of the snoopy cache in the DEC Firefly multiprocessor workstation, creation of the first multi-threaded Unix system, invention of the initial User Interface editor, the launch of the AltaVista search engine, and a networked Window System.

Retirement and death

After retiring from DEC in 1996, Taylor lived a private life in Woodside, California, following his divorce which coincided with his exit from Xerox.

In 2000, he voiced apprehensions regarding Internet governance and accessibility, highlighting the importance of responsible usage and universal access:

Will it be freely available to everyone? If not, it will be a big disappointment.

Taylor passed away on April 13, 2017, at his residence in Woodside after battling Parkinson's disease along with other health complications.

Awards

In 1984, Taylor, together with Butler Lampson and Charles P. Thacker, was honored with the ACM Software Systems Award for their work on the Xerox Alto System, which provided a practical distributed personal computing alternative to time-sharing. The trio was also designated as ACM Fellows in 1994 in recognition of this achievement.

Taylor received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation in 1999 for his pioneering leadership in shaping modern computing technologies such as computer networks, personal computers, and graphical user interfaces.

In 2004, the National Academy of Engineering awarded him alongside Lampson, Thacker, and Alan Kay the prestigious Draper Prize for their contributions to developing the first effective networked personal computers.

The Computer History Museum named Taylor a Museum Fellow in 2013, acknowledging his influential role in advancing computer networking, online communication systems, and contemporary personal computing.

See also

Further reading

  • Features early publications with an introduction by Taylor

External links

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