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Birth
William Henry Gates was born on October 28, 1955 in Seattle, Washington. -
"Traf-o-Data"
At the age of 15, Bill Gates went into business with Paul Allen. They developed "Traf-o-Data," a computer program that monitored traffic patterns in Seattle, and netted $20,000 for their efforts. -
Bill Gates founded Microsoft
Bill Gates founded Microsoft in 1976 when he formed a contract with MITTS (Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems) to develop a basic operating system for their new microcomputers. In the early days Bill Gates would review every line of code. He was also involved in several aspects of Microsoft’s business such as packing and sending off orders. -
Gates was appointed president.
In mid-1981 Gates and Allen incorporated Microsoft, and Gates was appointed president and chairman of the board. Allen was named executive vice-president. -
Successful Microsoft
By 1983, Microsoft was going global with offices in Great Britain and Japan, and with 30 percent of the world's computers running on its software. -
Windows.
Bill Gates and Microsoft launched Windows; nearly two years after his announcement. -
Wedding
Bill Gates is married to Melinda French. They have 3 children Jennifer (1996), Rory (1999) and Phoebe (2002). With his wife Bill Gates formed the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. -
Retirement
Bill Gate's last full day at Microsoft.
