Don Lancaster
Don Lancaster | |
|---|---|
| Born | Donald E. Lancaster 1939/1940 |
| Died | June 7, 2023 (aged 83)[1] Mesa, Arizona, US |
| Nationality | American |
| Known for | Author |
| Website | tinaja.com |
Donald E. Lancaster was an American author, inventor, and microcomputer pioneer.[1]
Early life
[edit]Don graduated from North Allegheny High School in Wexford, Pennsylvania.[2] He received a BSEE degree[3] from Lafayette College in 1961, and a MSEE from Arizona State University in 1967.[4] While attending ASU, Lancaster started on a master's degree in anthropology, but he never earned the degree.[3]
Career
[edit]Lancaster was an engineer,[5] at Goodyear Aerospace in Phoenix, Arizona, who also wrote multiple articles for computer and electronics magazines of the 1970s, including Popular Electronics, Radio-Electronics, Dr. Dobb's Journal, 73 Magazine, and Byte. He has written books on electronics, computers, and entrepreneurship, both commercially published and self-published.[1]
One of his early projects was "TV Typewriter" serial terminal.[1] The design was accepted by early microcomputer users as it used an ordinary television set for the display and could be built for around USD$200 in parts, at a time when commercial terminals were selling for over $1,000.
Lancaster was an early advocate and developer of what is now known as print-on-demand technology. Lancaster produced his self-published books by re-purposing the game port of an Apple II to transfer PostScript code directly to a laser printer, rather than using a Macintosh running PageMaker. This enabled continuous book production using an inexpensive Apple II, rather than tying up an expensive Macintosh until the print run was complete.
He formerly held a ham radio license (K3BYG).[6]
On June 7, 2023, at the age of 83, Lancaster died, having lived for 44 years in Thatcher, Arizona.[3]
Publications
[edit]- IC books
- RTL Cookbook (1ed, 1969) (3ed, 2010, ISBN 0-672-20715-X, archive)
- TTL Cookbook (1ed, 1974, ISBN 0-672-21035-5, archive)
- CMOS Cookbook (1ed, 1977) (4ed, 2019, ISBN 0-672-21398-2, archive)
- Active Filter Cookbook (1ed, 1975) (2ed, 1995, ISBN 0-75062986-X, archive)
- Project books
- TV Typewriter Cookbook (1ed, 1976) (3ed, 2010, ISBN 0-67221313-3, archive)
- Cheap Video Cookbook (1ed, 1978, ISBN 0-672-21524-1, archive)
- Son of Cheap Video (1ed, 1980, ISBN 0-672-21723-6, archive)
- Apple books
- Assembly Cookbook for Apple II/IIe (1ed, 1984) (3ed, 2011, ISBN 978-1-882193-16-5)
- Enhancing Your Apple II - Volume 1 (1ed, 1985, ISBN 0-672-21846-1)
- Enhancing Your Apple II and IIe - Volume 2 (1ed, 1985, ISBN 0-672-21822-4)
- Applewriter Cookbook (1ed, 1986, ISBN 0-672-22460-7)
- Programming books
- The Hexadecimal Chronicles (1981) ISBN 0-672-21802-X
- Don Lancaster's Micro Cookbook (Sams, 1982) ISBN 0-672-21828-3
- Other
- The Incredible Secret Money Machine (1978) ISBN 0-672-21562-4
- The Incredible Secret Money Machine II (1978) ISBN 978-1-882193-12-7
- Book-On-Demand Resource Kit
- The Case Against Patents: Selected Reprints from "Midnight Engineering" & "Nuts & Volts" Magazines (Synergetics Press, January 1996). Paperback ISBN 1-882193-71-7
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Obituary for Don Lancaster". The Gila Herald. June 28, 2023. Archived from the original on June 29, 2023.
- ^ Don Lancaster - Detailed Biography
- ^ a b c "Don Lancaster: The Electronics Industry Lost Another Pioneer Last Year". EEJournal. 3 January 2024. Retrieved 6 March 2025.
- ^ Don Lancaster - General Biography
- ^ McDonald, Chris (22 February 2025). "From ACS to Altair: The Rise of the Hobby Computer". Creatures of Thought. Retrieved 6 March 2025.
- ^ https://www.tinaja.com/glib/waywere.pdf
External links
[edit]- Don Lancaster's Guru's Lair (official site)
- Don Lancaster article archive @ archive.org
- List of Don's magazine articles
| International | |
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| National | |
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