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Brodie Lockard is an American computer programmer who wrote the first computerized version of Mahjong solitaire on the PLATO system. [1]

Early life and education

His parents were Kirby and Dorothy Lockard (née Judge). [2] Brodie grew up in Tucson, Arizona and attended Stanford University, initially majoring in English. [1] He took courses in mathematics and computer science as he realised they might improve his luck in the job market. [1] He befriended Jeffrey Chung, a pre-med student, who told him about the PLATO system, which he had seen in Hawaii. [1] However, the system was not available in Stanford. [1]

His father was a professor at the University of Arizona, which had access to the PLATO system and Professor Lockard wanted to use the system in his classes. [1] Brodie worked for him, creating a tutorial. [1] When he returned to Stanford, he made enquiries about renting a terminal, but discovered they were prohibitively expensive. [1]

Accident

In December 1979 he suffered an accident while dismounting from a trampoline. [1] [3] He awoke in hospital, on a breathing apparatus, with his limbs paralyzed. [1] He learned how to type with a mouth-stick and after his father reached out to CDC, Cindy Poulson of CDC visited Brodie, bringing her personal PLATO terminal for him to use. [1]

Mahjohg Solitaire

During his rehabilitation, Brodie was introduced to a tile-based board game, which was Mahjong solitaire, and implemented it on PLATO. [1]

Brodie moved to Hawaii in 2000. [2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Dear, Brian (19 November 2017). "How a little-known computer network system changed the history of the internet". Salon. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Dorothy Lockard 1928-2016". San Francisco Chronicle.
  3. ^ Stone, Allison (24 January 1980). "Brodie Lockard at Valley Med - Gymnast remains paralyzed after December accident". The Stanford Daily. Retrieved 14 August 2019.