Pi Perspectives: Jeremy Ruston (Federatial)

Jeremy Ruston is the inventor of TiddlyWiki and founder of software consultancy, Federatial Ltd, and gained his introduction to computing during those heady days when having a computer at home put your soldering skills to the test. Whilst still a teenager, Jeremy went on to become a published author, writing popular titles on the BBC Micro. In this interview he compares the opportunities for young people starting out in computing now with those available during his own formative years, and considers the role of Raspberry Pi in lowering barriers to experimentation.

Can you give us an insight into how you were introduced to electronics and computing.

I remember when I was 4 or 5 being very excited by the computers on Gerry Anderson's UFO series, and constructing elaborate Lego copies of their designs. My interest became more practical when my Mum gave me a broken radio when I was about 9, which I disassembled and attempted to reanimate with great joy. I then started to collect more ancient radios, and reading electronics magazines, and buying electronics kits from companies like HeathKit. I was pretty baffled by analogue electronics, but then got very excited by the 7400 series of logic chips. I had a set of schematic stickers for the back of the chips, and a breadboard, and found it very easy to wire up logic gates to build simple circuits.

Then, in 1978, I ordered a Science of Cambridge MK-14, which I remember taking an excruciatingly long time to arrive. When it did finally arrive my soldering skills were evidently insufficient, and I ended up having to send it back to SoC to be repaired. The MK-14 was unbelievably primitive, with a simple 8-bit processor and 256 bytes of RAM. I rapidly learned machine code programming and started voraciously reading everything I could about computers. I soldiered on with my soldering iron, too: when I moved to London in 1978 I used to go to Henry's Radio on the Edgware Road, and fish around for things like keyboards and lights that I could graft onto my MK-14.

I moved on to the ZX-80, then the BBC Micro, the Amiga, the Atari ST via a bunch of lesser known machines such as the Exidy Sorceror, the Osborne One and Chuck Peddle's Sirius 1.

Following on from the previous question, how do you think the opportunities for young people differ now from when you were growing up?

The literal answer is that I think that the opportunities now for young people with my interests in 1978 are already infinitely better. In 1978 I had to go to endless trouble to acquire a thin stream of information to feed my curiosity. I'd buy the handful of computer magazines that were available, and get hold of datasheets from chip manufacturers. I'd haunt the big London bookshops like Foyles, struggling to afford the expensive academic textbooks. I think I'd have exploded with pleasure at today's infinite technical library at my fingertips.

The key opportunity for me was the community around those early computer magazines. I sent in articles and programs for publication, some of which were eventually published. That led to me being offered the chance to contribute to a book, and then to write a book on my hown. That in turn led to more books, and writing software and games, and eventually fun stuff like making the BBC children's TV idents on the BBC Micro in 1983/4.

But those opportunities were miniscule compared to those provided by the Web that now acts as the substrate for a global community of interest. Now every teenager has a potential worldwide audience for their work, and we've got much better templates for a wide variety of careers in technology.

The problem isn't exactly opportunities; the mechanisms we need for personal success do seem to exist, and the barriers are low for those with sufficient drive and imagination.

The issue is that despite the now total immersion of technology in our daily lives, we've failed to put the associated opportunities in the correct position within our education system, and perhaps in the value system of our society. Without being flippant, I'd like our grandchildren to grow up in a world of people making things, not a world filled with bankers, lawyers and accountants. I'm an optimist, and believe that slowly and painfully our society will evolve out of our present industrial revolution mindset, and come to embrace the opportunities of the new economies enabled by technology.

Do you think everyone should have computer science skills and, broadly speaking, how important are they on a personal level?

It depends where we draw the boundaries of computer science. I think it is probably more important for everyone to have a basic level of understanding of cryptography, so that they can protect themselves better, and spot snake oil when they see it.

I don't think programming is for everyone, and I wouldn't advocate teaching it to people who have no interest in it. For the majority of the population a better goal is to teach them to be an informed consumer of technology. For those with the aptitude and interest, society should do everything it can to help people learn to be a producer of technology.

How important are skills in areas such as microelectronics and computer science to the economy?

Utterly vital. They now underpin virtually every other business sector, from finance, entertainment and manufacturing to transport and travel.

Do you think the UK has seen an overall decline in the aforementioned skills over the last 20 or so years?

No. My own experience is that I meet more people who have these skills now than I ever did 20 years ago.

I do believe that we could do an awful lot more, though. Fixing the teaching of IT in schools would surely allow more young people to explore a career in technology.

Can you tell us about your experiences of being a mentor to young people with an interest in computing.

I got involved in Young Rewired State a couple of years ago, and while at Osmosoft we hosted teams for the summer hack weeks. The most striking thing is how these young people are pursuing their interests despite the best efforts of their schools, where Computer Science is generally a matter of a poor curriculum badly taught.

What opportunity do you think the Raspberry Pi presents us with?

The majority of young people in Young Rewired State have highly supportive parents who have helped them obtain nice laptops and provided the resources that they need to learn outside of school. But across the nation many families cannot afford to spend thousands of pounds on hardware.

So, for me the Raspberry Pi represents a substantial lowering of the financial barriers to experimentation with computing. The emphasis on hardware also gently nudges people to explore the fascinating zone where custom hardware and custom software meet.

What can the technical community do to help ensure that the Raspberry Pi is a success in education?

Spreading the word is a good start, but beyond that I'd love to see a well financed annual prize competition for young people. It would be in the interests of today's technology giants to help endow an institution with funding so that some decent prizes could be on offer to young people. Something like the Duke of Edinburgh scheme, perhaps.

What role does open source have to play in supporting the Raspberry Pi and the goals of the Foundation?

The primary role of open source is to ensure that the barriers to using and experimenting with the Pi remain as low as possible. Cheap hardware would be no use if one had to spend £350 on Microsoft licenses to make it do anything.

Will you be buying a Raspberry Pi, and if so what do you plan to do with it?

I'm intrigued to get some of the software that I've written running on it, making it into a sort of smart USB stick for storing bits and pieces of stuff. I believe that personal web services will become increasingly important in these times of distrust of the motivations and actions of our incumbent web service providers.

Thank you for your time, Jeremy!