Joseph A. Weisbecker = Joe Weisbecker (author of "Home Computers Can Make You Rich", 1980)?
Dear colleagues While currently analysing microcomputer business advice literature of the 1980s, I am trying to establish the identity and background of the author of a classic in the field: "Home Computers Can Make You Rich", published in 1980 (<https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000weis/>). The book is written by one Joe Weisbecker, and I wonder whether the author is identical to Joseph Weisbecker, the famous microprocessor designer many of you are surely familiar with. However, none of this official bibliographies and none of the obituaries list this book (that seemed to have been highly successful and was translated into several languages, including German in 1984). Also, the book itself has no author bio or any other further information about the author. Can anyone possibly confirm that the book was really written by Joseph Weisbecker? Many thanks in advance Gleb -- Ass.-Prof. Dr. Gleb J. Albert SNSF Starting Grant Assistant Professor for General and Eastern European Contemporary History Department of History, University of Lucerne Universität Luzern Historisches Seminar Frohburgstrasse 3 Postfach 4466 CH-6002 Luzern Switzerland Room 3.A29 Tel. +41-41-2295527
I suggest asking his daughter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker On Mon, Jul 14, 2025 at 11:28 AM Albert Gleb J. via Members < members@lists.sigcis.org> wrote:
Dear colleagues
While currently analysing microcomputer business advice literature of the 1980s, I am trying to establish the identity and background of the author of a classic in the field: "Home Computers Can Make You Rich", published in 1980 (< https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000...
). The book is written by one Joe Weisbecker, and I wonder whether the author is identical to Joseph Weisbecker, the famous microprocessor designer many of you are surely familiar with. However, none of this official bibliographies and none of the obituaries list this book (that seemed to have been highly successful and was translated into several languages, including German in 1984). Also, the book itself has no author bio or any other further information about the author. Can anyone possibly confirm that the book was really written by Joseph Weisbecker?
Many thanks in advance Gleb
-- Ass.-Prof. Dr. Gleb J. Albert SNSF Starting Grant Assistant Professor for General and Eastern European Contemporary History Department of History, University of Lucerne
Universität Luzern Historisches Seminar Frohburgstrasse 3 Postfach 4466 CH-6002 Luzern Switzerland
Room 3.A29 Tel. +41-41-2295527
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://sigcis.org__;!!DLa72PTfQgg!I5kkjsuzKOnwpl... , the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis... and you can change your subscription options at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sig...
-- *Evan Koblentz* - Senior Writer, Office of Communications and Marketing - Adjunct Instructor, Ying Wu College of Computing - Advisor, NJIT Lego Club evank@njit.edu <evan.a.koblentz@njit.edu> (973) 596-3065 <9735963065> https://web.njit.edu/~evank/
Dear all The mystery seems to be solved, thanks to the hints from Evan Koblentz and Laine Nooney. The book is dedicated to a "Jean", which was the name of Joseph Weisbecker's wife according to this feature article on their daughter Joyce: <https://www.fastcompany.com/90147592/rediscovering-historys-lost-first-female-video-game-designer>. Also, in the book itself, the author calls himself a "computer designer" on page 108. So, the evidence is pretty clear - and it is really fascinating that Weisbecker, who is otherwise known as a serious engineer and scientist, deemed it necessary to write this (in fact, quite entertaining) hands-on "make some money in your sparetime with your home computer" guidebook... Thanks for all your help! Gleb Am 14.07.2025 um 17:37 schrieb Koblentz, Evan:
I suggest asking his daughter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker>
On Mon, Jul 14, 2025 at 11:28 AM Albert Gleb J. via Members <members@lists.sigcis.org <mailto:members@lists.sigcis.org>> wrote:
Dear colleagues
While currently analysing microcomputer business advice literature of the 1980s, I am trying to establish the identity and background of the author of a classic in the field: "Home Computers Can Make You Rich", published in 1980 (<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000... <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000weis/__;!!DLa72PTfQgg!I5kkjsuzKOnwploRyTn-aWfnV2ZxqY2p-ATvIzgmsLLA7yDcJiIeW7Cc0HeMFg7szNrdJFsiGEw6L8WzXuU$> >). The book is written by one Joe Weisbecker, and I wonder whether the author is identical to Joseph Weisbecker, the famous microprocessor designer many of you are surely familiar with. However, none of this official bibliographies and none of the obituaries list this book (that seemed to have been highly successful and was translated into several languages, including German in 1984). Also, the book itself has no author bio or any other further information about the author. Can anyone possibly confirm that the book was really written by Joseph Weisbecker?
Many thanks in advance Gleb
-- Ass.-Prof. Dr. Gleb J. Albert SNSF Starting Grant Assistant Professor for General and Eastern European Contemporary History Department of History, University of Lucerne Universität Luzern Historisches Seminar Frohburgstrasse 3 Postfach 4466 CH-6002 Luzern Switzerland Room 3.A29 Tel. +41-41-2295527
Glad to help! On Tue, Jul 15, 2025 at 9:39 AM Albert Gleb J. via Members < members@lists.sigcis.org> wrote:
Dear all
The mystery seems to be solved, thanks to the hints from Evan Koblentz and Laine Nooney. The book is dedicated to a "Jean", which was the name of Joseph Weisbecker's wife according to this feature article on their daughter Joyce: < https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.fastcompany.com/90147592/rediscoveri...
. Also, in the book itself, the author calls himself a "computer designer" on page 108. So, the evidence is pretty clear - and it is really fascinating that Weisbecker, who is otherwise known as a serious engineer and scientist, deemed it necessary to write this (in fact, quite entertaining) hands-on "make some money in your sparetime with your home computer" guidebook...
Thanks for all your help! Gleb
I suggest asking his daughter: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker__... < https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker__...
On Mon, Jul 14, 2025 at 11:28 AM Albert Gleb J. via Members < members@lists.sigcis.org <mailto:members@lists.sigcis.org>> wrote:
Dear colleagues
While currently analysing microcomputer business advice literature of the 1980s, I am trying to establish the identity and background of the author of a classic in the field: "Home Computers Can Make You Rich",
Am 14.07.2025 um 17:37 schrieb Koblentz, Evan: published in 1980 (< https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000... < https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000weis/__;!!DLa72PTfQgg!I5kkjsuzKOnwploRyTn-aWfnV2ZxqY2p-ATvIzgmsLLA7yDcJiIeW7Cc0HeMFg7szNrdJFsiGEw6L8WzXuU$>
). The book is written by one Joe Weisbecker, and I wonder whether the author is identical to Joseph Weisbecker, the famous microprocessor designer many of you are surely familiar with. However, none of this official bibliographies and none of the obituaries list this book (that seemed to have been highly successful and was translated into several languages, including German in 1984). Also, the book itself has no author bio or any other further information about the author. Can anyone possibly confirm that the book was really written by Joseph Weisbecker?
Many thanks in advance Gleb
-- Ass.-Prof. Dr. Gleb J. Albert SNSF Starting Grant Assistant Professor for General and Eastern European Contemporary History Department of History, University of Lucerne
Universität Luzern Historisches Seminar Frohburgstrasse 3 Postfach 4466 CH-6002 Luzern Switzerland
Room 3.A29 Tel. +41-41-2295527 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://sigcis.org__;!!DLa72PTfQgg!NMnUlViBQ-vb3f... , the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis... and you can change your subscription options at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sig...
-- *Evan Koblentz* - Senior Writer, Office of Communications and Marketing - Adjunct Instructor, Ying Wu College of Computing - Advisor, NJIT Lego Club evank@njit.edu <evan.a.koblentz@njit.edu> (973) 596-3065 <9735963065> https://web.njit.edu/~evank/
always 👏 look 👏 for 👏 the 👏 wife Laine Nooney <http://www.lainenooney.com/> Associate Professor | MCC <http://steinhardt.nyu.edu/mcc/> @ NYU <http://www.nyu.edu/> | they/them Managing Editor | ROMchip: A Journal of Game Histories <https://romchip.org/index.php/romchip-journal> | Join our Newsletter <http://eepurl.com/crCul1> -Need to make an appt? Click, don't email: https://calendar.app.google/V9ZuMRWEKnnUBdQ56 -Probably typed by voice recognition, so please cherish typos On Tue, Jul 15, 2025, 9:49 AM Koblentz, Evan via Members < members@lists.sigcis.org> wrote:
Glad to help!
On Tue, Jul 15, 2025 at 9:39 AM Albert Gleb J. via Members < members@lists.sigcis.org> wrote:
Dear all
The mystery seems to be solved, thanks to the hints from Evan Koblentz and Laine Nooney. The book is dedicated to a "Jean", which was the name of Joseph Weisbecker's wife according to this feature article on their daughter Joyce: < https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.fastcompany.com/90147592/rediscoveri...
. Also, in the book itself, the author calls himself a "computer designer" on page 108. So, the evidence is pretty clear - and it is really fascinating that Weisbecker, who is otherwise known as a serious engineer and scientist, deemed it necessary to write this (in fact, quite entertaining) hands-on "make some money in your sparetime with your home computer" guidebook...
Thanks for all your help! Gleb
I suggest asking his daughter: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker__... < https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker__...
On Mon, Jul 14, 2025 at 11:28 AM Albert Gleb J. via Members < members@lists.sigcis.org <mailto:members@lists.sigcis.org>> wrote:
Dear colleagues
While currently analysing microcomputer business advice literature of the 1980s, I am trying to establish the identity and background of the author of a classic in the field: "Home Computers Can Make You Rich",
Am 14.07.2025 um 17:37 schrieb Koblentz, Evan: published in 1980 (< https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000... < https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000weis/__;!!DLa72PTfQgg!I5kkjsuzKOnwploRyTn-aWfnV2ZxqY2p-ATvIzgmsLLA7yDcJiIeW7Cc0HeMFg7szNrdJFsiGEw6L8WzXuU$>
). The book is written by one Joe Weisbecker, and I wonder whether the author is identical to Joseph Weisbecker, the famous microprocessor designer many of you are surely familiar with. However, none of this official bibliographies and none of the obituaries list this book (that seemed to have been highly successful and was translated into several languages, including German in 1984). Also, the book itself has no author bio or any other further information about the author. Can anyone possibly confirm that the book was really written by Joseph Weisbecker?
Many thanks in advance Gleb
-- Ass.-Prof. Dr. Gleb J. Albert SNSF Starting Grant Assistant Professor for General and Eastern European Contemporary History Department of History, University of Lucerne
Universität Luzern Historisches Seminar Frohburgstrasse 3 <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Frohburgstrasse+3?entry=gmail&source=g> Postfach 4466 CH-6002 Luzern Switzerland
Room 3.A29 Tel. +41-41-2295527 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://sigcis.org__;!!DLa72PTfQgg!NMnUlViBQ-vb3f... , the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis... and you can change your subscription options at https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sig...
--
*Evan Koblentz*
- Senior Writer, Office of Communications and Marketing
- Adjunct Instructor, Ying Wu College of Computing
- Advisor, NJIT Lego Club
evank@njit.edu <evan.a.koblentz@njit.edu>
(973) 596-3065 <9735963065>
https://web.njit.edu/~evank/ _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
Weisbecker’s professional papers while at the David Sarnoff Laboratory (RCA) can be viewed at Hagley: <https://findingaids.hagley.org/repositories/3/archival_objects/247711> Joseph A. Weisbecker papers, 1899-1982, bulk: 1964 - 1982 | Hagley Museum and Library Archives<https://findingaids.hagley.org/repositories/3/archival_objects/247711> findingaids.hagley.org<https://findingaids.hagley.org/repositories/3/archival_objects/247711> [hagley_fav-9d882c8e234fd46b54cb40e6f09af4b1ece121239552529bcf34cc7c85fd5ba9.png]<https://findingaids.hagley.org/repositories/3/archival_objects/247711> If you put in “Weisbecker,” in the search bar, additional documents and images outside of the above collection come to light. Erik -- Erik P. Rau, PhD Director, Library Services Hagley Museum & Library P.O. Box 3630, 298 Buck Road Wilmington, DE 19807 302.658.2400, ext. 344 erau@hagley.org www.hagley.org<https://www.hagley.org> www.hagleyheritage.com<https://www.hagleyheritage.com> Sign up for Hagley Library’s monthly newsletter<https://hagley.us13.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=e3f033f6a8aff23df4ebe8649&id=fcaf9b03d5> to receive the latest research news, collection updates, upcoming events, and more. You can unsubscribe at any time. On Jul 15, 2025, at 09:36, Albert Gleb J. via Members <members@lists.sigcis.org> wrote: CAUTION: This email originated from outside the Hagley Network. Do not click on any links or attachments if you do not trust the sender of this message. ________________________________ Dear all The mystery seems to be solved, thanks to the hints from Evan Koblentz and Laine Nooney. The book is dedicated to a "Jean", which was the name of Joseph Weisbecker's wife according to this feature article on their daughter Joyce: <https://www.fastcompany.com/90147592/rediscovering-historys-lost-first-female-video-game-designer>. Also, in the book itself, the author calls himself a "computer designer" on page 108. So, the evidence is pretty clear - and it is really fascinating that Weisbecker, who is otherwise known as a serious engineer and scientist, deemed it necessary to write this (in fact, quite entertaining) hands-on "make some money in your sparetime with your home computer" guidebook... Thanks for all your help! Gleb Am 14.07.2025 um 17:37 schrieb Koblentz, Evan: I suggest asking his daughter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joyce_Weisbecker> On Mon, Jul 14, 2025 at 11:28 AM Albert Gleb J. via Members <members@lists.sigcis.org <mailto:members@lists.sigcis.org>> wrote: Dear colleagues While currently analysing microcomputer business advice literature of the 1980s, I am trying to establish the identity and background of the author of a classic in the field: "Home Computers Can Make You Rich", published in 1980 (<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000... <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://archive.org/details/homecomputerscan0000weis/__;!!DLa72PTfQgg!I5kkjsuzKOnwploRyTn-aWfnV2ZxqY2p-ATvIzgmsLLA7yDcJiIeW7Cc0HeMFg7szNrdJFsiGEw6L8WzXuU$> >). The book is written by one Joe Weisbecker, and I wonder whether the author is identical to Joseph Weisbecker, the famous microprocessor designer many of you are surely familiar with. However, none of this official bibliographies and none of the obituaries list this book (that seemed to have been highly successful and was translated into several languages, including German in 1984). Also, the book itself has no author bio or any other further information about the author. Can anyone possibly confirm that the book was really written by Joseph Weisbecker? Many thanks in advance Gleb -- Ass.-Prof. Dr. Gleb J. Albert SNSF Starting Grant Assistant Professor for General and Eastern European Contemporary History Department of History, University of Lucerne Universität Luzern Historisches Seminar Frohburgstrasse 3 Postfach 4466 CH-6002 Luzern Switzerland Room 3.A29 Tel. +41-41-2295527 _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org
participants (4)
-
Albert Gleb J. -
Erik Rau -
Koblentz, Evan -
Laine Nooney