Walter Bright

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Walter Bright
WalterBright.jpg
Bright at ACCU 2009
Bornc. 1957 (age 63–64)
EducationCaltech (BS, 1979)
Known forD (programming language)
Empire
Websitewalterbright.com

Walter G. Bright is an American computer programmer who created the D programming language,[1][2] the Zortech C++ compiler, and the Empire computer game.

Bright was the main developer of the Zortech C++ compiler (later becoming Symantec C++, now Digital Mars C++), which was the first C++ compiler to translate source code directly to object code without using C as an intermediate.[3] Before designing the C++ compiler, he developed the Datalight C compiler, also sold as Zorland C and later Zortech C.[4]

Biography[edit]

Bright is the son of the United States Air Force pilot Charles D. Bright.[5][6] He taught himself computer programming from the type-in programs in BASIC Computer Games.[7]

Bright graduated from Caltech in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science in aerospace engineering.[8] While at university he wrote the Empire wargame for the PDP-10 mainframe; it was completed in 1977.[9] Walter Bright is married to Trish Bright.[10]

Walter Bright is the creator of the D programming language. He has implemented compilers for several other languages, and is considered an expert in many areas related to compiler technology.[11] Walter regularly writes scientific and magazine articles about compilers and programming[12] and was a blogger for Dr. Dobb's Journal.[13]

Around 2014, Bright wrote Warp, a fast C/C++ preprocessor written in D, for Facebook.[14][15][1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Cade Metz (7 July 2014). "The Next Big Programming Language You've Never Heard Of". Wired.
  2. ^ "Ruminations on D: An Interview with Walter Bright". 30 August 2016.
  3. ^ Loder, Wolfgang (26 November 2016). Introduction. Erlang and Elixir for Imperative Programmers. Apress. p. xvii. ISBN 9781484223949.
  4. ^ Johnston, Stuart (Jun 10, 1991). "Zortech Simplifies 32-Bit DOS with C++ Compilers". InfoWorld. Vol. 13 no. 23. Menlo Park, CA: InfoWorld Publishing. p. 22. ISSN 0199-6649. "said Walter Bright, Zortech's directory of technology
  5. ^ Bright, Walter (2021). "on: The Complexity of a WW II P-47 Thunderbolt's Powerplant".
  6. ^ "The Jetmakers".
  7. ^ Bright, Walter (2021-09-18). "Basic Computer Games (1978)". Hacker News. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  8. ^ Bright, Walter (2020). "on: An aerospace engineer explains fireworks".
  9. ^ Bright, Walter (2000). "A Brief History of Empire". Walter Bright's Empire website.
  10. ^ Bengel, Erick (2016-06-30). "Museum of Whimsy Shares Its Treasures". The Daily Astorian. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2021-09-26. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  11. ^ "Lang.NEXT 2012 Expert Panel: Native Languages" Lang.Next
  12. ^ "The D Programming Language Conference 2017". D Language Foundation. 2017. Archived from the original on 2020-08-15. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  13. ^ Binstock, Andrew (2014-12-16). "Farewell, Dr. Dobb's". Dr. Dobb's Journal. Archived from the original on 2021-09-26. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  14. ^ Larabel, Michael (2014-03-31). "Warp: Facebook Open-Sources A Super Fast C/C++ Pre-Processor". Phoronix. Archived from the original on 2020-11-24. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
  15. ^ Alexandrescu, Andrei (2014-03-28). "Under the Hood: warp, a fast C and C++ preprocessor". Facebook. Archived from the original on 2021-03-05. Retrieved 2021-09-26.

External links[edit]