SGML: Memory of Yuri Rubinsky (1952-1996)

jb%aristotle.sjf@novell.com
Wed, 24 Jan 1996 22:34:22 -0800 

[(quoting) Glenn Adams:]

> I don't know how many of you knew Yuri, but his work on and
> evangelizing of SGML has always been an inspiration to the industry
> and to those who knew him. The success of HTML owes a significant
> debt to the vision he brought to the realm of SGML and its enabling
> technology.

In addition to being a remarkable human being, Yuri was unique in his
ability to bridge the SGML and WWW communities. In the space of a
single unbroken 12-day stretch last month I was privileged to watch
this man, who of course had his own business to run at the same time,
perform key leadership roles in the GCA SGML '95 conference, the SGML
Open technical track, the invitational DSSSL Online meeting, and then
the International WWW conference, which closed with his moving and
typically inspired surprise presentation to Doug Englebart, an
occasion that I'm sure no one who was there will soon forget. I am
sad to lose Yuri as a friend, but I'm even sadder to see this industry
lose the only person in the world who really saw and understood the
whole picture as deeply as he did.

Jon Bosak