Robert Cailliau facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robert Cailliau
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Cailliau in 2019
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| Born | 26 January 1947 Tongeren, Belgium
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| Alma mater | Ghent University University of Michigan |
Robert Cailliau (born January 26, 1947) is a Belgian engineer. He helped create the World Wide Web alongside Tim Berners-Lee. Robert designed the first logo for the Web. He also organized the first big conference about the Web in 1994. His work helped make the Web available to everyone.
Contents
Robert Cailliau's Early Life and Education
Robert Cailliau was born in Tongeren, Belgium. In 1958, he moved to Antwerp with his family. He studied engineering at Ghent University and graduated in 1969. Later, he earned another degree from the University of Michigan in 1972. This degree was in Computer, Information and Control Engineering.
Working at CERN and the Web's Beginning
In December 1974, Robert Cailliau started working at CERN. CERN is a large scientific research organization in Europe. He first worked on improving the control system for a particle accelerator.
In 1987, he became a group leader in the Data Handling division. Around this time, Tim Berners-Lee suggested a new system. This system would help people at CERN share information easily. It was called a hypertext system.
Between September and December 1990, Tim Berners-Lee created this system. He named it the World Wide Web. Robert Cailliau and Tim Berners-Lee worked together to get funding for this project. Robert became a strong supporter of the Web at CERN. He helped students create web browsers for different computer systems. One of these was MacWWW, a browser for Classic Mac OS.
Making the Web Free for Everyone
In 1993, Robert Cailliau worked with CERN's legal team. Their goal was to make the Web technology free for everyone to use. On April 30, 1993, CERN officially released the Web into the public domain. This meant anyone could use and develop the Web without paying fees. This was a very important step for the Web to grow.
The First World Wide Web Conference
In December 1993, Robert Cailliau called for the first international conference about the World Wide Web. This event took place at CERN in May 1994. About 380 people who were pioneers of the Web attended. This conference was a major moment in the Web's history. It led to the creation of a committee that still organizes annual Web conferences today. Robert was a founding member of this committee.
Web for Schools and Retirement
In 1995, Robert Cailliau started the "Web for Schools" project. He worked with the European Commission on this. The project aimed to use the Web as a tool for education. After helping to move Web development to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), he focused on sharing information with the public. He retired from CERN in January 2007. Today, he often gives speeches about the past and future of the World Wide Web.
Robert Cailliau's Awards and Honors
Robert Cailliau has received many awards for his important work.
- 1995: ACM Software System Award (with Tim Berners-Lee)
- 1999: Christophe Plantin Prize
- 1999: Honorary degree from Southern Cross University
- 2000: Honorary degree from University of Ghent
- 2001: Médaille Genève Reconnaissante (with Tim Berners-Lee)
- 2004: Commander in the Order of Léopold (awarded by King Albert II of Belgium)
- 2006: Honorary citizenship of Tongeren
- 2008: Gold Medal of the Flemish Academy of Sciences and the Arts
- 2009: Honorary degree from University of Liège (with Tim Berners-Lee)
- 2010: Ehrenpreis Best of Swiss Web
- 2012: Internet Hall of Fame by the Internet Society
- 2021: Honorary degree from the University of Michigan
- 2023: Honorary Member of the Alumni Society of Engineers of Ghent university
See also
In Spanish: Robert Cailliau para niños
