The Computer History Museum, the world’s largest museum dedicated to preservation and presentation of artifacts and stories of the information age, announced today that it has named 30-year computer industry veteran Al Kossow as Robert N. Miner Software Curator. As a result of a generous gift, the Robert N. Miner Software Curator position at the Computer History Museum was established in February 2006 to honor the many accomplishments and legacy of software pioneer and Oracle co-founder, Bob Miner.
As software curator, Kossow will assume responsibility for both preserving and expanding the museum’s extensive collection of historic software and related materials. Kossow will also play a key role in development of the museum’s future software theme room.
A long-standing volunteer with the museum and a key member of the museum’s PDP-1 restoration team, Kossow most recently served as senior software engineer at Apple Computer (from 1986 to 2005). He has worked on research and product development projects in the fields of interactive computer graphics, operating systems, real-time control, and as a software liaison to CPU vendors. Kossow also created bitsavers.org, which is one of the largest on-line archives of historic computer hardware and software documentation in the world.
“We welcome Al to the collections and exhibitions staff as part of our growing museum team. His unique expertise in the software arena will prove invaluable as we expand our software collection, and plan the next phase to exhibit, preserve, and present the history of software that is so fundamental to computing,” said John Toole, executive director and CEO of the Computer History Museum.
“I am excited to join the museum at this important time in the development of its software collection,” said Kossow. “I am looking forward to participating in creating this world-class museum here in the heart of Silicon Valley.”
The Computer History Museum (CHM) in Mountain View, California, a 501(c)3 public benefit organization with a 25-year history as part of the former Boston Computer Museum, preserves and presents for posterity the artifacts and stories of the information age. Dedicated to exploring the social impact of computing technology, CHM is home to the world's largest and most significant collection of historic computer-related objects, software, documents, still and moving images and personal stories.
The museum celebrates computing history and its people through an acclaimed speaker series, dynamic website and other public events. CHM also offers self- and docent-led tours of "Visible Storage," a display of 600 items from its collection. Its newest exhibit, "Mastering the Game: A History of Computer Chess," opened in September 2005, joining its other popular exhibit, "Innovation in the Valley." Future phases will feature full exhibits and educational programs, including the museum’s signature “Timeline of Computing History” scheduled to open in the fall of 2009, theme galleries, a research center, and much more. Please visit www.computerhistory.org or call 650.810.1010 for hours of operation and tour times. Admission is free.
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