[SIGCIS-Members] Donald L. Bitzer, RIP (1934-2024)

[Brian Berg]

In case you didn't see this.

Brian Berg



*From:* Brian Dear <brian at platohistory.org>
*Sent:* Wednesday, December 11, 2024 6:58 PM
*To:* Dan Donahoe <dan at 1000kilometers.com>
*Subject:* Donald L. Bitzer, RIP (1934-2024)



View this email in your browser
<https://mailchi.mp/ea26bdcfbd65/donald-l-bitzer-rip-1934-2024?e=2174299134>



Friends,

It's been seven long years since THE FRIENDLY ORANGE GLOW book came out,
and seven long years since an email's been sent to this mailing list.

I just learned an hour ago that yesterday, Don Bitzer, creator of the PLATO
system, and friend to us all, passed away at age 90 in North Carolina.

I'm at a loss for words at the moment and can't think of much to say that I
didn't say in my book, which, in hindsight, may kinda sorta be the closest
attempt at a biography of Don, but I will say that I never ever met a more
generous, supportive, enthusiastic person in the world. He and his wife
Maryann, who passed away in 2022, were incredibly generous with their time
and patience as I asked a million questions over the years, starting with
my first book interview with Don, all the way back in May 1985. We spoke
regularly after then for more than 30 years, in all sorts of settings
around the country.  Bottom line, I would never have been able to start,
let alone complete, the book without Don's input and patient support.

He was an inspiration to us all, and to the world, which he made a better
place.

Thanks for everything, Don. Rest in peace.

- Brian

[ While I have your attention -- if anyone is interested in copies of the
hardcover edition of the book, I still have a bunch of new mint copies
straight from the publisher. They're very rare. I tried to sell them all on
Amazon Marketplace but--believe it or not, that wretched hive of villainy
suspended my account because they didn't believe I was the author of the
book, or that I was selling legitimate books. They had copies of my
passport, drivers license, you name it --it's nigh impossible to sign up to
Amazon Marketplace--and they claimed that I was selling "counterfeit
Pantheon products." I told the publisher Pantheon about this and they just
roared laughing and shrugged--you can't fight Amazon and they were clearly
used to hearing these stories of dealing with that company. I've learned
since that if you try to undercut the pricing of other sellers, they will
lie to Amazon and make up all kinds of claims, and Amazon will simply
suspend without investigation, communication, or any form of due process.
Amazon has never responded to my pleas for restoring my account.  So
anyway, I physically have the books, in case anyone wants a personally
signed copy of the hardcover original. Email me at brian at platohistory.org
for details, pricing, etc. I probably can only ship to locations in the US
because international shipping is insanely expensive and difficult for
books, I've found. Cheers, Brian ]



*Copyright © 2024 PLATO History Project, All rights reserved.*
This mailing list was launched back around 2010, and gained a lot of notice
around the time of the PLATO History Conference in June 2010. Hundreds of
people, including you, signed up then or in the years since.

*Our mailing address is:*

PLATO History Project

PO Box 6387

Santa Fe, NM 87502


Add us to your address book
<https://friendlyorangeglow.us1.list-manage.com/vcard?u=def798e7e0f681ce3b9864324&id=9f01c4abcb>



Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences
<https://friendlyorangeglow.us1.list-manage.com/profile?u=def798e7e0f681ce3b9864324&id=9f01c4abcb&e=2174299134&c=3dee83a7f9>
or unsubscribe from this list
<https://friendlyorangeglow.us1.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=def798e7e0f681ce3b9864324&id=9f01c4abcb&t=b&e=2174299134&c=3dee83a7f9>.


[image: Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp]
<https://login.mailchimp.com/signup/email-referral/?aid=def798e7e0f681ce3b9864324>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/attachments/20241211/c44949e7/attachment.htm>