Nicholas DeWolf (July 12, 1928 – April 16, 2006) was co-founder of Teradyne, a Boston, Massachusetts-based manufacturer of automatic test equipment. He founded the company in 1960 with Alex d'Arbeloff, a classmate at MIT.

Early life and education

DeWolf was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and graduated with an S.B. in EECS from MIT in 1948.

Career

During his eleven years as CEO of Teradyne, DeWolf is credited with designing more than 300 semiconductor and other test systems, including the J259, the world's first computer-operated integrated circuit tester. After leaving Teradyne in 1971, DeWolf moved to Aspen, Colorado, where in 1979, he teamed with artist Travis Fulton to create Aspen's "dancing fountain". DeWolf also designed a computer system without hard disks or fans; this system (the ON! computer) booted up in seconds, a much faster time than even the computers of today.

Awards

Photography

DeWolf was also a keen and prolific photographer. His son-in-law and archivist, Steve Lundeen, is scanning DeWolf's complete archive and making it available on Flickr.

Death

DeWolf died in Aspen, Colorado at the age of 77.

Quotes