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Bill Gates

by Skolastika from Jakarta


Why did I decide to choose Bill Gates as my hero in my daily life? I choose him because he has already succeeded in his task to become a valuable person in the world. Bill Gates is the most famous person in the world especially in technology. His skill in computers, no one doubts it. The most amazing software that he created is Windows. Each year the technology of computers has improves. The improvement of technology in computers is being controlled by Gates as if he had conquered the computers in the world.

Gates was born on Oct. 28, 1955. He grew up in Seattle. He has two sisters. Their father, William H. Gates II, is a Seattle lawyer. Their late mother, Mary Gates, was a teacher in University of Washington regent, and chairwoman of United Way International. His interest in software was discovered when he attended the private Lakeside School. He began programming computers when he was thirteen years old. In 1973, Gates became a university student at Harvard University. He lived down the hall from Steve Ballmer, now Microsoft's chief executive officer. While at Harvard, Gates developed a version of the programming language BASIC for the first microcomputer. In his junior year, Gates left Harvard to focus his energies on Microsoft, a company he had begun with his childhood friend Paul Allen in 1975. They believed that the computer would be a valuable tool on every office desktop and in every home. They began developing software for personal computers. "Under Gates' leadership, Microsoft's mission has been to continually improve software technology, and to make it easier, more cost-effective and more enjoyable for people to work on computers." "Gates was married on Jan. 1, 1994, to Melinda French Gates. They have three children. Gates is an avid reader, and enjoys playing golf and bridge."

In 1995 Gates wrote "The Road Ahead." That book held the number one spot on the New York Times’, best-seller list for seven weeks. In 1999, Gates released his second book, "Business @ the Speed of Thought." That was a book that shows how the technology of computer can solve business problems in new ways. The book was published in twenty-five languages and sold in more than sixty countries. That book was listed on the best-seller list of the New York Times’, USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, and Amazon-com. The proceeds of both books had been donated by Gates to social organization that support the use of technology in education skills development.

Social welfare is also important to Gates. He and his wife, Melinda have endowed a foundation to support philanthropic initiatives in global health and learning. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has committed to organizations working in global health; to improve learning opportunities, including the Gates Library Initiative to bring computers, Internet Access and training to public libraries in low-income communities in the United States and Canada; to community projects in the Pacific Northwest; and to special projects and annual giving campaigns. "In addition to his love of computers and software, Gates founded Corbis, which is developing one of the world's largest resources of visual information - a comprehensive digital archive of art and photography from public and private collections around the globe. He is also a member of the board of directors of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., which invests in companies engaged in diverse business activities."

Page created on 4/17/2006 12:00:00 AM

Last edited 4/17/2006 12:00:00 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

Related Links

Bill Gates - Speaker Series - 2000 (Congressional Internet Caucas)
Bill Gates - Official web site