John Socha
Encyclopedia
John Socha-Leialoha is a software developer
best known for creating Norton Commander
, the first orthodox file manager. The original Norton Commander was written for DOS
. Over the years, Socha's design for file management has been extended and cloned many times.
John grew up in the woods of Wisconsin
, earned a BS degree in Electrical Engineering from University of Wisconsin–Madison
, and his PhD in Applied Physics from Cornell University
. He now lives in Bellevue, Washington
with his wife and son.
, John Socha wrote a column for the now defunct magazine Softalk
, where he published such programs as ScrnSave, KbdBuffer (extending the keyboard buffer), and WhereIs (finding files on a hard disk).
ScrnSave was the first screensaver
ever created. John Socha also coined the term screen saver. The built-in screensaver (night sky with stars) was one of the most distinctive features of Norton Commander, along with the famous two-panel blue screen.
When Peter Norton Computing
was acquired by Symantec
in 1990, John Socha left to found his own company, Socha Computing Inc. The new company developed the Microsoft Plus!
add-on pack for Windows 95
, and also developed screensavers for Windows 98
. In July 1997 Socha Computing was acquired by Asymetrix
.
Since October 2003, John has devoted himself to his long-standing hobby of model railroading. He is co-founder of New Rail Models.
In December 2004, John Socha co-authored Optimize Your Pocket PC Development with the .NET Compact Framework for MSDN Magazine.
John Socha continued work on his VDOS program after joining Peter Norton Computing as their first director of research and development
. In 1986 the software product was released under the name of Norton Commander.
Socha also led the development team of Norton Utilities
for the Macintosh computer platform.
John has written a number of technical books published under the Peter Norton
name, including the best-selling Peter Norton's Assembly Language Book (ISBN 0-13-661901-0).
John is a private pilot and owns Daisy, a plane featured in books by Richard Bach
.
Software developer
A software developer is a person concerned with facets of the software development process. Their work includes researching, designing, developing, and testing software. A software developer may take part in design, computer programming, or software project management...
best known for creating Norton Commander
Norton Commander
Norton Commander was a prototypical orthodox file manager , written by John Socha and released by Peter Norton Computing . NC is a file manager which provides a text user interface on top of DOS. It was officially produced by Symantec between 1986 and 1998...
, the first orthodox file manager. The original Norton Commander was written for DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
. Over the years, Socha's design for file management has been extended and cloned many times.
John grew up in the woods of Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, earned a BS degree in Electrical Engineering from University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
, and his PhD in Applied Physics from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
. He now lives in Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, across Lake Washington from Seattle. Long known as a suburb or satellite city of Seattle, it is now categorized as an edge city or a boomburb. The population was 122,363 at the 2010 census.Downtown Bellevue is...
with his wife and son.
Independent work
In the early days of the IBM PCIBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981...
, John Socha wrote a column for the now defunct magazine Softalk
Softalk
Softalk was a magazine of the early 1980s that focused on the Apple II computer. Published from 1979 through 1984, it featured articles about hardware and software associated with the Apple II platform and the people and companies who made them...
, where he published such programs as ScrnSave, KbdBuffer (extending the keyboard buffer), and WhereIs (finding files on a hard disk).
ScrnSave was the first screensaver
Screensaver
A screensaver is a type of computer program initially designed to prevent phosphor burn-in on CRT and plasma computer monitors by blanking the screen or filling it with moving images or patterns when the computer is not in use...
ever created. John Socha also coined the term screen saver. The built-in screensaver (night sky with stars) was one of the most distinctive features of Norton Commander, along with the famous two-panel blue screen.
When Peter Norton Computing
Peter Norton Computing
Peter Norton Computing, Inc., was a software company founded by Peter Norton. The first and most notable software package it produced is the Norton Utilities. Another very popular software was Norton Commander, especially the DOS version. In 1990, the company was acquired by Symantec. The...
was acquired by Symantec
Symantec
Symantec Corporation is the largest maker of security software for computers. The company is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and is a Fortune 500 company and a member of the S&P 500 stock market index.-History:...
in 1990, John Socha left to found his own company, Socha Computing Inc. The new company developed the Microsoft Plus!
Microsoft Plus!
Microsoft Plus! was a commercial operating system enhancement product by Microsoft. The last edition is the Plus! SuperPack, which includes an assortment of screensavers, themes, and games, as well as multimedia applications...
add-on pack for Windows 95
Windows 95
Windows 95 is a consumer-oriented graphical user interface-based operating system. It was released on August 24, 1995 by Microsoft, and was a significant progression from the company's previous Windows products...
, and also developed screensavers for Windows 98
Windows 98
Windows 98 is a graphical operating system by Microsoft. It is the second major release in the Windows 9x line of operating systems. It was released to manufacturing on 15 May 1998 and to retail on 25 June 1998. Windows 98 is the successor to Windows 95. Like its predecessor, it is a hybrid...
. In July 1997 Socha Computing was acquired by Asymetrix
Asymetrix
Asymetrix was a US computer software company. The company was founded by Microsoft founder Paul Allen in 1984, and produced a number of software products covering web, presentation, and e-learning markets. In 2004 it became part of SumTotal Systems.Asymetrix headquarters were in Bellevue,...
.
Since October 2003, John has devoted himself to his long-standing hobby of model railroading. He is co-founder of New Rail Models.
In December 2004, John Socha co-authored Optimize Your Pocket PC Development with the .NET Compact Framework for MSDN Magazine.
Norton Commander
John Socha described his work on NC:I started work on what became known as the Norton Commander in the fall of 1984 while I was still a graduate student in Applied Physics at Cornell University. The first versions were entirely in assembly language, but that was too time-consuming, so I soon switched to a blend of C and assembly language at a time when most "real programmers" wouldn't touch C.
At the time I called it Visual DOS, with the abbreviation of VDOS instead of the usual two-letter abbreviations used at the time. The program itself was inspired by several things coming together. I had a contract to write some books for Microsoft Press and actually spent some time in Bellevue, WA working on-site. I'd take two months off from graduate school and write a book.
The second book was to be a book of small utility programs like I used to write for Softalk Magazine (such as whereis, scrnsave, etc.), but I never finished writing the book because one small utility took on a life of its own.
John Socha continued work on his VDOS program after joining Peter Norton Computing as their first director of research and development
Research and development
The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...
. In 1986 the software product was released under the name of Norton Commander.
Socha also led the development team of Norton Utilities
Norton Utilities
Norton Utilities is a utility software suite designed to help analyze, configure, optimize and maintain the computer. The current version 15 of Norton Utilities Premier Edition for Windows XP/Vista/7 was released December 27, 2010....
for the Macintosh computer platform.
John has written a number of technical books published under the Peter Norton
Peter Norton
Peter Norton is an American programmer, software publisher, author, and philanthropist. He is best known for the computer programs and books that bear his name. Norton sold his PC-Software business to Symantec Corporation in 1990....
name, including the best-selling Peter Norton's Assembly Language Book (ISBN 0-13-661901-0).
Other work
John has many other projects including controllers for train models and mobile application design.John is a private pilot and owns Daisy, a plane featured in books by Richard Bach
Richard Bach
Richard David Bach is an American writer. He is widely known as the author of the hugely popular 1970s best-sellers Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah, and others. His books espouse his philosophy that our apparent physical limits and mortality are merely...
.