Aww Crap - Doug Engelbart

You may not know his name but you hold the thing he invented in your hand for several minutes every day. For some people, a lot more. From the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) (email address redacted):

From: Christina Engelbart
Date: Wednesday, July 3, 2013 6:31 AM
Subject: update on my father

Very sorry to inform my father passed away in his sleep peacefully at home last night. His health had been deteriorating of late, and took turn for worse on the weekend. I will circle back around soon, for now just wanted to give you all advance notice and look forward to discussing your thoughts as I am a bit fuzzy at present.

Doug Engelbart? From the Doug Engelbart Institute:

Father of the Mouse
Doug Engelbart invented the computer mouse in 1963 in his research lab at Stanford Research Institute (now SRI International), for which the patent was issued in 1970. Although many impressive innovations for interacting with computers have followed in the last 50 years since its invention, the mouse remains to this day the most efficient hands on pointing device available.

One of "those" inventions -- so little of the history is widely known but its presence is ubiquitous. Rest in Peace good Sir -- you live on in our hearts...