L-O
I heard recently that the best inventions throughout history are platforms for innovation. So things like the printing press, computer and internet. On that note, I thought this was an interesting Q/A with the guy who sent the first email on October 29, 1969.
"What we wanted to do was send a message essentially from UCLA to SRI's host. And frankly, all we wanted to do was log in — to type an l-o-g, and the remote time-sharing system knows what you're trying to do.
So we typed the "l," and we asked over the phone, "Did you get the ‘l?' " And the response came back, "Yep, we got the ‘l.' " We typed the "o." "Got the ‘o?' " " ‘Yep, got the ‘o.' " Typed the ‘g.' "You get the ‘g?' " Crash! SRI's host crashed at that point. So the very first message ever on the Internet was the very simple, very prophetic "lo," as in lo and behold.
And, you know, we weren't aware that this was a significant event that would be recorded in history. We did not have a very effective message like "What hath God wrought" or "Come here, Watson, I need you." Or "One giant leap for mankind." We just weren't that smart."
Here is the whole Q&A.
Ironic how understated that first message was in retrospect. Considering the amount of information exchanged around the world each second today. Who could have known what he invented that day would eventually connect the world in ways never imagined. He was paving the way for things like email, Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, online banking. Kind of a big day 40 years ago. But no fanfare, no premier party, no red carpet, no idea. Just another day at the lab.
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