Bob Bishop

Bob Bishop
Bishop, Bob
Occupation	Software Developer

Career

Early Life and Education

Bob Bishop was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and later attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he majored in physics. Initially uninterested in computers, that changed when he enrolled in a FORTRAN programming course. Armed with Daniel McCracken’s A Guide to FORTRAN Programming, Bishop dove headfirst into the subject. Within days, he was writing programs—first to solve a geometric problem he’d puzzled over since high school, and then a successful prime-number generator.

Bishop’s early programming work required submitting punch cards and waiting hours for results, but his persistence paid off. The physics department later acquired a CDC 3600 mainframe, which accelerated his learning and ignited a lifelong passion for computing.

He went on to pursue graduate studies at UCLA, where a student computing club provided limited time on the school’s mainframe. After earning his Master’s degree, Bishop launched his professional career.

NASA, Xerox, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Bishop first worked at Xerox, then moved to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where he was deeply involved in scientific programming. His notable contributions included work on:

Apollo 17
HEAO (High Energy Astronomical Observatory)
IRAS (Infrared Astronomical Satellite)

At JPL, Bishop led a team of 20 programmers in the Science Ground Data Handling Group. They acquired an IBM 7044, which Bishop described as his first true “personal computer,” since he could use it for his own programming projects. But it was in the burgeoning personal computer market where Bishop would truly make his mark.

Apple and the Personal Computing Boom

In 1975, Bishop began seeing ads for early microcomputers like the Altair 8800, IMSAI, and the Sphere. He was especially excited by the Sphere, but was never able to acquire one. In 1976, he spotted an ad for the Apple I and, eager to purchase it, drove directly to the address— expecting a polished company headquarters. Instead, he was handed Steve Jobs’ home phone number.

Jobs eventually invited Bishop to his family’s garage, where he demoed the Apple I (albeit with technical issues). Bishop was sold. In November 1976, he bought an Apple I from a fellow engineer for around $1,000 and began writing programs, including a Star Trek game published in the May 1977 issue of Interface Age.

The Apple II Era and Softape

When the Apple II launched in June 1977, Bishop couldn't afford one. After pleading his case to Jobs, Wozniak, and Markkula at Apple, they offered him a machine (serial #0013) at a heavily discounted price in exchange for his Apple I. The machine arrived on July 5, 1977, and by the next morning, Bishop had written Rocket Pilot, the first of what he claimed were the first four hi-res Apple II games:

Rocket Pilot
Saucer Invasion
Space Maze
Star Wars

His April 1978 demo program, Apple Vision, featured a pixelated dancer gyrating to “Turkey in the Straw”— a technical marvel at the time that became Apple’s de facto hi-res showcase, included with Apple II disks.

Innovations in Speech Technology

While teaching at Computer Playground in Westminster, California, Bishop began experimenting with the Apple II’s cassette input/output ports. He developed:

Apple-Talker – the first speech synthesis program for the Apple II
Apple Listener – the first speech recognition program for the Apple II

His demo stunned his students into silence. Soon after, these groundbreaking programs were published by Softape, an early software company where Bishop became a key contributor.

Softape and the Golden Age of Apple II Software

Bishop became Softape’s best-known programmer, contributing many of its early and popular titles, including:

Music Kaleidoscope – a visualizer blending music and graphics
Bomber – an action game
The Electronic Index Card File – an early database program (originally made to catalog Bishop’s Donald Duck comics)

Bishop’s innovative use of graphics and sound helped establish Softape as a leading Apple II software publisher in the late 1970s.

Datasoft, Apple, and Beyond

After Softape, Bishop worked with Datasoft, where he developed games like:

Dung Beetles, later renamed Tumble Bugs – a Pac-Man-style maze game
Money Munchers – a whimsical arcade game about budgeting

Apple eventually offered Bishop a job— largely to keep him from going to Atari, he later claimed. He also contributed to Disney Studios and even worked on the game show Tic Tac Dough, which used nine Apple IIs to power its prize board.

Legacy

Bob Bishop’s legacy is that of a technical innovator, gaming pioneer, and one of the Apple II’s earliest evangelists. He pushed the Apple II’s capabilities in graphics, audio, and interaction years ahead of their time. With a foot in both scientific computing and hobbyist gaming, Bishop stood at the crossroads of professional and personal computing in the 1970s.

His contributions, especially in speech technology and Apple II software, continue to be recognized by enthusiasts, historians, and archivists preserving the early era of home computing.

List of major works

External links

Software People Page 89