Vernon D. Buerg, dead at 62

["Robert Holmgren" holmgren@xxxxxxxx]

I don't know whether anybody else noticed or remarked this -- it
is old news -- but I was immensely saddened to read of Vernon's
death. LIST was the most important DOS utility of the XyWrite
era, hands down. It is intuitive to use and incredibly fast
(because, like Xywrite, it was written in assembler); it will
benignly display any file, lickety-split, no matter how
sensitive or binary. An oldtime IBM mainframe programmer,
Vernon belonged to the generation that believed in mutual help
and making a contribution, so LIST's price was a matter of
conscience -- it was the original (1982) shareware (with no nags
and no expiry), and some of Vernon's more brilliant successors,
like LightningUK (ImgBurn) and Irfan Skiljan (IrfanView),
acknowledge that heritage. LIST was the first thing I added to
any computer, and I still use it daily -- Carl and I have always
considered it to be the one truly indispensable companion to
XyWrite.

There's a modest appreciation at
http://www.dwwatkins.com/in-memory-of-vern-buerg.htm

Life without LIST would be tedious. It's stupid to say "Thank
you Vern" -- the guy is dead, after all -- but he made my work
so much easier, and I am grateful, and sorry I can't tell him
personally once again.

-----------------------------
Robert Holmgren
holmgren@xxxxxxxx
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