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Christopher Dunn (computer programmer)
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<h2 id="compuserve-contributions">CompuServe contributions</h2> <p>Around 1980, Dunn discovered <a href="/facts/CompuServe/Pjpdcf2a">CompuServe</a>, an early <a href="/facts/Online_service/MSe2Ta87">online service</a> popular with owners of <a href="/facts/8-bit/2CkhLNoH">8-bit</a> <a href="/facts/Microcomputer/ETW22UTv">microcomputers</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:1" href="#fn:1"><sup>1</sup></a> He served as the <a href="/facts/Sysop/r9GAlm3y">sysop</a> of CBIG, a <a href="/facts/Special_interest_group/FGwon2J1">special interest group</a> for users of CompuServe's <a href="/facts/CB_Simulator/5PQcskw2">CB Simulator</a> chat service, where he went by the <a href="/facts/Pseudonym/A5EjmWxQ">handle</a> "Chrisdos".<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> Dunn was the author of MU, an unofficial menu and <a href="/facts/E-mail/6pD9GLtI">mail</a> notification program that ran on CompuServe's <a href="/facts/Digital_Equipment_Corporation/ztxs6keA">DEC</a> <a href="/facts/Programmed_Data_Processor/Rgwfdqjy">PDP</a> servers. (By 1984, it was no longer possible for customers to install and run server-side programs; MU was the sole exception.)<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> In 1985, Dunn authored <a href="/facts/CBterm%2fC64/nYP1Gz9D">CBterm/C64</a>, a <a href="/facts/Terminal_emulator/yNfevBJd">terminal emulator</a> for the <a href="/facts/Commodore_64/3TPcKDbb">Commodore 64</a> noted for its ability to directly display CompuServe's <a href="/facts/Run-length_encoding/3k6x9afM">RLE</a> graphics.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="online-dating">Online dating</h2> <p>In 1982, Dunn met Pamela Jensen through the CB Simulator. At the time, the 26-year-old Dunn lived in <a href="/facts/Queens/PbwLQxFH">Queens</a>, where he dialled into CompuServe using a <a href="/facts/Heathkit/UzElPd6X">Heathkit</a> CRT terminal and a <a href="/facts/Teletype_Model_33/n7zoAqxt">Teletype Model 33</a>. Jensen, whose handle "<a href="/facts/Zebra_3/61UVTQhS">Zebra 3</a>" was borrowed from <i><a href="/facts/Starsky_%2526_Hutch/20AIczpn">Starsky & Hutch</a></i>, was 30 years old and working in Chicago as an animal keeper at the <a href="/facts/Lincoln_Park_Zoo/13jJoWnc">Lincoln Park Zoo</a>. The two soon hit it off and began exchanging private messages. They met in person for the first time on April 23, 1982, when Dunn flew to Chicago to attend a house party hosted by Jensen. Both were immediately smitten, and on their next visit, Dunn proposed.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> </p><p>At the time, online dating was in its infancy, and the pair's online courtship caused a nationwide media sensation. The couple appeared on <i><a href="/facts/Good_Morning_America/PGspN5sj">Good Morning America</a></i>, <i><a href="/facts/The_Phil_Donahue_Show/ujY66qTe">The Phil Donahue Show</a></i>, and <i><a href="/facts/20%2f20_(U.S._TV_series)/agkFf9HL">20/20</a></i>, and were the subject of articles in several newspapers and magazines, including <i><a href="/facts/The_New_York_Times/T9marWVX">The New York Times</a></i>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> "Cupid and Computers Conquer All", a biographical article in the <i><a href="/facts/Chicago_Tribune/Bbms9uy5">Chicago Tribune</a></i>, was released on the <a href="/facts/Associated_Press/b4T5P1bT">AP wire</a> and widely reprinted in the American and international press.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a> </p><p>The couple married in April 1983, a year after their first real-life meeting, in a small civil ceremony attended by three friends and five television news crews.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11"><sup>11</sup></a> Dunn left his job with a security firm in New York City and moved in with Pam in Chicago, where he became the technical operations manager of the <a href="/facts/Peggy_Notebaert_Nature_Museum/wPekUbJC">Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12"><sup>12</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13"><sup>13</sup></a> Though commentators—including Dunn's father—were initially sure that the marriage wouldn't last, the couple celebrated their 25th anniversary in 2008.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14"><sup>14</sup></a> </p><p>Though Dunn and Jensen's online courtship was the first to receive widespread media coverage in the United States, the couple did not exchange vows electronically. Shortly before his own real-life wedding, however, Dunn attended what may have been the world's first <a href="/facts/Online_wedding/SvyLNPVX">online wedding</a>, held on CompuServe's CB channel 14 for George "Mike" Stickles and Debbie "Silver" Fuhrman.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15"><sup>15</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:16" href="#fn:16"><sup>16</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <ul><li><a href="http://www.centaur.org">Centaur of the Universe</a>, Dunn's personal website</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Lipinski, Ann Marie (January 26, 1983). "Cupid and computers conquer all". Chicago Tribune. <a href="/wiki/Chicago_Tribune" target="_blank">/wiki/Chicago_Tribune</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>"News BRK" (PDF). The Transactor. 7 (3). Transactor Publishing: 77–80. 1987. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="http://csbruce.com/cbm/transactor/pdfs/trans_v7_i03.pdf" target="_blank">http://csbruce.com/cbm/transactor/pdfs/trans_v7_i03.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>Glossbrenner, Alfred (October 16, 1984). "Tricks of the On-line Trade". PC Magazine. pp. 177–192. Retrieved December 11, 2015. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=msSKK7cn2K4C&q=%22chrisdos%22&pg=PA179" target="_blank">https://books.google.com/books?id=msSKK7cn2K4C&q=%22chrisdos%22&pg=PA179</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Glossbrenner, Alfred (October 16, 1984). "Tricks of the On-line Trade". PC Magazine. pp. 177–192. Retrieved December 11, 2015. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=msSKK7cn2K4C&q=%22chrisdos%22&pg=PA179" target="_blank">https://books.google.com/books?id=msSKK7cn2K4C&q=%22chrisdos%22&pg=PA179</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>Lovhaug, Loren (1989). "Telecomputing Workshop". Run. 6 (5). IDG Communications: 67–68. ISSN 0741-4285. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://archive.org/details/run-magazine-65" target="_blank">https://archive.org/details/run-magazine-65</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>Lipinski, Ann Marie (January 26, 1983). "Cupid and computers conquer all". Chicago Tribune. <a href="/wiki/Chicago_Tribune" target="_blank">/wiki/Chicago_Tribune</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>Stevens, Heidi (May 18, 2008). "Chicago couple among the first to connect via the Internet". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on May 11, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>Lasden, Martin (August 4, 1985). "Of Bytes and Bulletin Boards". The New York Times. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/04/magazine/of-bytes-and-bulletin-boards.html" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/04/magazine/of-bytes-and-bulletin-boards.html</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>"Chrisdos Zebra3 Paper Clips". centaur.org. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="http://www.centaur.org/chrisdos/paperclips.html" target="_blank">http://www.centaur.org/chrisdos/paperclips.html</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:10"><p>Lasden, Martin (August 4, 1985). "Of Bytes and Bulletin Boards". The New York Times. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/04/magazine/of-bytes-and-bulletin-boards.html" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/04/magazine/of-bytes-and-bulletin-boards.html</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:11"><p>Stevens, Heidi (May 18, 2008). "Chicago couple among the first to connect via the Internet". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on May 11, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:12"><p>Lasden, Martin (August 4, 1985). "Of Bytes and Bulletin Boards". The New York Times. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/04/magazine/of-bytes-and-bulletin-boards.html" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/04/magazine/of-bytes-and-bulletin-boards.html</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:13"><p>Stevens, Heidi (May 18, 2008). "Chicago couple among the first to connect via the Internet". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on May 11, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:14"><p>Stevens, Heidi (May 18, 2008). "Chicago couple among the first to connect via the Internet". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on May 11, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20140511225031/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2008-05-18/features/0805140486_1_25th-computer-met</a> <a href="#fnref:14" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:15"><p>"The CompuServe Wedding Ceremony". InfoWorld. 5 (11): 8. 1983. <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=-i8EAAAAMBAJ&q=chrisdos&pg=PA8" target="_blank">https://books.google.com/books?id=-i8EAAAAMBAJ&q=chrisdos&pg=PA8</a> <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:16"><p>Hart, Lianne (June 20, 1983). "A Computer Wedding". People. Retrieved December 6, 2015. <a href="http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20085317,00.html" target="_blank">http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20085317,00.html</a> <a href="#fnref:16" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>