Networks: Computer Science & Engineering

The state's (and the world's) most famous entrepreneur is a college dropout. But his company hasn't hired many dropouts lately. In 1997 (latest figures available), Microsoft hired more entry-level employees from the University of Washington than from any other university. (The same is true for Intel, which isn't even headquartered in the state.) Dan Ling, Microsoft director of research: "Without the University of Washington--the graduates they've sent us, the research collaborations we've had--we wouldn't be where we are today."

Since 1982, when programs were first ranked, the UW department of computer science & engineering (CSE) has been among the top ten in the nation. Over the years, CSE has provided extraordinary opportunities for Washington students; has enriched the local economy with the talents and ideas of its alumni and faculty; has put the Northwest on the Internet map; and has been a magnet drawing innovative people and companies from all over the country. All this is the payoff of quality.

Annette Pope

Auburn native Annette Pope (CSE '97) is now a software engineer at ATL Ultrasound, the leading developer of ultrasound machines for medical diagnosis. "I've talked to friends who went to high-priced schools like MIT. My education was just as good, and I got to stay here in the Northwest near my family. My senior project--Professor Borriello's suggestion--was a computerized rotating chair for diagnosing inner-ear problems. That's really why I'm here at ATL. All of us got a lot of good job offers, but that project made me realize I want to work on something that really helps people."

Jeremy Jaech

Richland native Jeremy Jaech (CSE master's degree '80) co-founded Aldus Corporation in 1984, creating PageMaker and the age of desk-top publishing. He then went on to start another Northwest success story, Visio, which produces drawing and diagramming software for business users. "The head of a technology company has to understand the technology the company is based on, and the UW CSE program gave me the grounding I need. It set me on the road to Aldus and Visio."

CSE faculty brought the Internet to the Northwest in the early 1980s, making the UW the hub from which Internet connections were extended to schools, businesses, and governments in a six-state region. In 1998 CSE faculty worked with UW computing staff to win a Northwest site for Internet 2, critical to both education and technology growth in the region. "No business would undertake this," says Tren Griffin of Teledesic Corporation. "And the UW is the only non-profit organization in the Northwest with the expertise to create and maintain it."

Kids at computer CSE chair Ed Lazowska--winner of the UW's 1998 Outstanding Public Service Award--has played a key role in bringing information technology to the state's schools. For both the state-wide K-20 Network and the Seattle district's NetWORKS project, he has provided expertise, cheerleading, and access to UW computing resources and personnel. "The volunteer work that Dr. Lazowska has donated on behalf of the 47,500 students of the Seattle Public Schools is invaluable," says Superintendent John Stanford.

Geoworks, a software company headquartered in California, opened its Seattle Design center in 1992 mainly to be close to CSE. "Our goal was to make ourselves as attractive as possible to job candidates from the UW," says John Wedgwood, then Geoworks director of engineering. The company employed CSE undergraduates--"incredibly talented"--to help create one of its most successful products, the operating system for the new Nokia 9000 cell phone with integrated e-mail, fax, and Web browser.

Dan Weld

CSE professors Dan Weld and Oren Etzioni do fundamental research in artificial intelligence. A spin-off of that research was the company Netbot, which develops"knowledge robots" to help people search the Internet. Netbot's major product, the shopping service Jango, was so good that it led Excite to buy out the young company for $35 million--but not to move it out of Seattle and away from the creative juices of its founders. "Oren and Dan are two of the leaders in the world in intelligent agents," says Robert Nelsen, a venture capitalist who helped fund Netbot originally. "The UW was one of the primary reasons we opened an office in Seattle."

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