Len Kawell
Encyclopedia
Len Kawell is an engineer and entrepreneur who once worked at Digital Equipment Corporation
(DEC), where he was one of the designers of the VAX/VMS
operating system
. He also played a key role in the development of the MicroVAX
computer, VAX Notes, and VMC Mail. Much like DEC co-founders Harlan Anderson
and Ken Olsen
, Kawell graduated from the University of Illinois
with a degree in computer science
.
Kawell was co-founder and president of Glassbook, Inc., and was eventually acquired by Adobe
. The company developed PDF-based e-book reading software. He was also one of the co-founders of Iris Associates
, where he co-designed Lotus Notes
, the first commercial groupware product. He would later go on to become the founder of Pepper Computer, where he served as Chief Executive Officer
. The company was based in Lexington, Massachusetts
, and was the developer of the Pepper Pad
internet appliance/game console.
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
(DEC), where he was one of the designers of the VAX/VMS
OpenVMS
OpenVMS , previously known as VAX-11/VMS, VAX/VMS or VMS, is a computer server operating system that runs on VAX, Alpha and Itanium-based families of computers. Contrary to what its name suggests, OpenVMS is not open source software; however, the source listings are available for purchase...
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
. He also played a key role in the development of the MicroVAX
MicroVAX
The MicroVAX was a family of low-end minicomputers developed and manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation . The first model, the MicroVAX I, was introduced in 1984...
computer, VAX Notes, and VMC Mail. Much like DEC co-founders Harlan Anderson
Harlan Anderson
Harlan Anderson is an engineer and entrepreneur, best known as the co-founder of Digital Equipment Corporation which at one time was the second largest computer company in the world. Other notable entities he has been associated with include Lincoln Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of...
and Ken Olsen
Ken Olsen
Kenneth Harry Olsen was an American engineer who co-founded Digital Equipment Corporation in 1957 with colleague Harlan Anderson.-Background:...
, Kawell graduated from the University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
with a degree in computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
.
Kawell was co-founder and president of Glassbook, Inc., and was eventually acquired by Adobe
Adobe Systems
Adobe Systems Incorporated is an American computer software company founded in 1982 and headquartered in San Jose, California, United States...
. The company developed PDF-based e-book reading software. He was also one of the co-founders of Iris Associates
Iris Associates
Iris Associates was a software development company founded in Littleton, Massachusetts on December 7, 1984 by Ray Ozzie to build the software ultimately known as Lotus Notes. Tim Halvorsen and Len Kawell, who joined Iris shortly afterwards in January 1985, met Ray Ozzie years before when all of...
, where he co-designed Lotus Notes
Lotus Notes
Lotus Notes is the client of a collaborative platform originally created by Lotus Development Corp. in 1989. In 1995 Lotus was acquired by IBM and became known as the Lotus Development division of IBM and is now part of the IBM Software Group...
, the first commercial groupware product. He would later go on to become the founder of Pepper Computer, where he served as Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
. The company was based in Lexington, Massachusetts
Lexington, Massachusetts
Lexington is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,399 at the 2010 census. This town is famous for being the site of the first shot of the American Revolution, in the Battle of Lexington on April 19, 1775.- History :...
, and was the developer of the Pepper Pad
Pepper Pad
The Pepper Pad is a Linux-based mobile computer with Internet capability and doubles as a handheld game console. It also serves as a portable multimedia device...
internet appliance/game console.