Man, who could have predicted back in 1978 that this collection of nerds, dweebs, and hippies would come to rule the desktop? A time when a PC in every home was just a vision and 640KB of memory ought to be enough for anybody. That's the original Microsoft "family" re-photographed 30 years later (minus Bob Wallace who died in 2002) in preparation for Bill Gates to slip into tomorrow's smoking jacket of retirement. It's better than a gold watch we guess. Who's who after the break.
Back row (left to right): Steve Wood, Bob Wallace, Jim Lane
Center row: Bob O'Rear, Bob Greenberg, Marc McDonald, Gordon Letwin
Front row: Bill Gates, Andrea Lewis, Marla Wood, Paul Allen
posted Jun 26th 2008 6:11AM
Why do people pick on the nerds and geeks. They are the ones ending up rich, inventing your everyday useful thingy.
Yeah, just how nerdy guys can become the life of the party at the graduation party, and big man on campus in college.... Nerds aren't any more likely to accomplish anything than anybody else. Even more, aren't you picking on them by assuming they're all going to become electrical engineers or inventors?
The fact is that most nerds grow up to be simply that. Not uber successful nerds, or nerds pulling in a million a year. Just weird ugly cats.
Proof that nerds will be our overlords one day...
proof that bill gates can't grow facial hair
proof that bill gates looked like a lesbian in 1978
goddamn hippies.
They should have Photoshopped Bob Wallace in...
My bad... "MS Painted" him in....
yeah...a bunch of tech-hippies
I think bill gates came out on top in many ways. He looks the best today out of all of them. He looked scary back then. I guess a little money does help some.
What a bevvy of beauties! Pure sex.
Maxim's Top of the Bottom 100 Sexiest
So, what do you think has improved most? Windows or Fashion?
Windows. And that's telling.
Neither
Would have been more entertaining if they could have found the same clothes (not that they'd fit) or something really close. And sat in the exact same positions (with an empty space as needed).
i don't think any of them in the 1978 had any idea of the success in the years to come. it's always amazing to look at then and now photographs.
The guy in the middle row on the left looks like hes thinking about killing someone
I would have imagined more of them would have lasik eye surgery done...
Or even wear contacts. Once a geek, always a geek perhaps? I wish I still had to wear glasses. lol
Am I missing something here?
On the front row of the 1978 one, it says,
"Bill Gates, Andrew Lewis, Marla Wood, Paul Allen"
Yet I see two women at the middle of the front...Andrew is a man's name right? O_o
On a side note..this is pretty awesome that they all still work for the big M
Yeah probably should be Andrea.
No they don't.
Apparently some of them already left, thats just a reunion photo
Click the photo link
The other woman was caught in a snow storm and couldn't make the original photo.
i wonder what their then and now salaries now (taking into account inflation, of course).
@ chris H
Look again it is Andrea you tool.
TOOL!!!!!!!! T-O-O-L = chris h
Not this again. I could have sworn last time this comparison was dragged out of the cellar that the picture was in black and white. Did someone add colour?
how old do you think Microsoft is?
@bob turbo
You sir are TOOLx2, you need to get together with chris and compare your stupids, i think his is longer... he can't read and you are color blind...
oh well< you must be a microsoft user...
Woo hoo tOoLx2
isn't it andrea lewis, not andrew lewis lol
Lovely set of beards there too. I might grow one in tribute.
wow this is gonna attract some posts...FLAME ON !!
@clak, btw, i think similarly, that people take all these words so seriously. for me, i have a constant (idiotic) grin with every word i type on this forum/blog.
if everyone replied to a post with "Yes, Ohhh I must have that", "Or do they do that I blue", "Or when's that coming", would anybody really read this ? - lame.
but I like the venon and passion that everyone shows on this site, we are all still alive.
If anyone has the guts to sit through this famous Billy Connolly joke, and substitute the words "Apple Fanboy" for "Rangers" and "Windows Fanboys" for "Celtic", you will understand why Apple and Windows fans will NEVER settle their differences.
how bout staying on topic and stop mentioning clak please
woot-that was amazing truly amazing. you keep up the good work i like your attitude. 1+ for you.
now are you sure that this is the right story 'cause clak didn't post a comment here
wow!!!
hippies and nerds...
anyways...
MSFT FTW!!!
with the link:
http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=-JjVg0Sbsh4&feature=related
Will Google do the same in 30 years?
So, what exactly happened in 1983 to make most of them leave Microsoft?
I think the company moved in 1983 from Albuquerque NM to Seattle WA.
Probably because Ballmer joined Microsoft on June 11, 1980
Not Seattle... Bellevue. It's across Lake Washington.
MS is now in Redmond, which is east of Bellevue, up 520.
I'm sure they're banging their heads for leaving...knowing they could have own a NFL team.
Let's see the Apple Computer 1978 photo, and really kick off a 'who's geekier' flame war!
wonder how they would have done on the tv show Beauty & The Geeks?
In the old photo, the guy on the left behind Gates looks like a serial killer.
Or a porn star
...and then he aged 90 years.
Minus Ric Weiland .. everyone skips him...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ric_Weiland
I call him mr. freaky-child-molesting-mustage-staring-directly-into-your-brain
You guys *do* realize that Bill G. never actually said that 640kb of memory will be enough for everyone, right?? That's just an urban legend that still holds momentum. I think even Snopes proved that one false. . . Either way, wherever it came from, it wasn't from Bill.
I hope he enjoys his retirement, and his philanthropy. The man's done his part, and then some. :)
You guys *do* realize that Bill G. never actually said that 640kb of memory will be enough for everyone, right?? That's just an urban legend that still holds momentum. I think even Snopes proved that one false. . . Either way, wherever it came from, it wasn't from Bill.
I hope he enjoys his retirement, and his philanthropy. The man's done his part, and then some. :)
Since most of these people left Microsoft by the mid-80s, these are not the people who came to rule the desktop. This is not Microsoft, Then And Now but People Who Worked At Microsoft When It Started, Then And Now.
They had better lighting in 1978 lol
Why did they take the new pic so dark lol
It's not better lighting, it's better photographers, Back then you actually had to KNOW something about photography. Nowadays anyone with a little money for a dSLR and a desire can think he is a photographer because they can see the photos on the spot. Back then, missing good photos, cost money, now, who cares, just delete and re-shoot. Unfortunately Great photographers (Those who understand the technical side, not just 'have an eye') are hard to come by. BTW, Going off topic, but this peeves me. ;)
Dang. Engadget, please fix your comment system. Pretty please??
And I'm glad to see Highest Ranked back, by the way.
Interesting that they hired a better photographer in 1978 than today. Some of the people in the new photo are hard to see due to shadows! They should be able to afford it.
But at least, they look happier.
The photographer wasn't so much the problem as the fact it was handled by the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer. :D
That's what I was thinking also. How hard would it be to use a good flash and a real photographer?
I would also like to see how much money they are worth next to them...
Apple and them advanced computing much faster than it would have gone if they weren't around though.
It looks like a photo of a Serial Killers Annonymous meeting!
Strangely, I'm gonna miss Bill - Microsoft just wont be the same without him. Ballmer is just kinda awkward.
I don't think "awkward" even begins to describe what Balmer is.
The best part of the original is that Microsoft didn't even pay for it, one of the guys in the photo(I can't remember who) won a free potrait at the Glamour Shots esque place in their local mall. So everyone at Microsoft decided to head on down for a nice little photo of themselves.
I bet it was like that scene with Deb and Uncle Rico.
@Bob
Well somebody died in 2002 the article says
http://www.erowid.org/culture/characters/wallace_bob/wallace_bob.shtml
So are they all billionaires (not asking what they make now) and do they still own stock from back them (continuously from the start)?
Even with Billions of Dollars you can't buy style.
The guy in the bottom right of the 1978 photo scares me.
I wonder what the NET worth of this group is now? Its amazing how they all dress like normal folk. Makes me feel real POOR.
For a sec. I thought that woman was Ozzy Osbourne.
Mac Crew:
http://folklore.org/ProjectView.py?project=Macintosh&gallery=1
http://folklore.org/ProjectView.py?project=Macintosh&index=6&sortOrder=Sort%20by%20Date&detail=medium&gallery=1
Wow. Was Jobs the inspiration for Mr. Burns' "excellent" pose? (second large picture on the page)
Paul Allen looked like he was part of the Manson Family.
Yikes!
So you're a multi-billion dollar company looking for a group portrait for a somewhat historic "then and now" company picture...and you hire some guy with a single light to line you up against a black backdrop and take one of the most poorly lit photographs ever?
Bravo, Microsoft.
God, the 21st century is boring.
agreed
1978 = the year I was born. Wow.. Just... Wow!
Hey how come in 1978 there is 11 people in the photo and today there's only 10 people in the photo?
Cuz one died...
Also, you are a genius, and can obviously read really well.
One of them died, i think it says that in the paragraph under the photo im not sure.
uhhh.. uhhh... apple.. steve jobs.. iphone!
sorry, there was no apple reference yet.
Wait, so is Bill Gates still wearing the same colored shirt? :) No dis Bill. You sir are my hero!
Hey, this picture would've been more interesting had everyone wore the same color clothes as the original.
Wow - the lady in blue definitely porked up from the time of her 1978 picture. Must be all that cubicle snacking she's done over the years when no one was looking (you know, going and hitting the vending machine like a lab rat hitting the lever for a fix).
The little pork chop became a big pork chop!
Those pictures illustrate why I only sleep with black people.
And guess what folks, your sisters/daughters/gay brothers feel exactly the same way.
You are the trolling for dollars winner of the day!
Wow time flies when your dominating the computer world....
Bill Gates's nose hasn't changed
Anybody could be Bill only if he/she believe in himself/herself completely
Wow, I get an awesome birthday gift. Bill Gates retires the day of my birthday! June 27!
The guy in the bottom right of the 1978 seems to have decreased in age over the years.