Homebrew Computer Club

The club had an influential role in the development of the microcomputer revolution and the rise of that aspect of the Silicon Valley information technology industrial complex.Others, at the suggestion of Roger Melen, convened at The Oasis,[8] a bar and grill they considered a pub located on El Camino Real in nearby Menlo Park, recalled years later by a member as "Homebrew's other staging area".[9][self-published source] As Steven Levy wrote about the Oasis gatherings: Piling into wooden booths with tables deeply etched with the initials of generations of Stanford students, Garland and Melen and Marsh and Felsenstein and Dompier and French and whoever else felt like showing up would get emboldened by the meeting's energy and pitchers of beer.[12] From the ranks of this club came the founders of many microcomputer companies, including Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs (Apple Computer), Harry Garland and Roger Melen (Cromemco), Thomas "Todd" Fischer (IMSAI Division, Fischer-Freitas Company), George Morrow (Morrow Designs), Paul Terrell (Byte Shop), Adam Osborne (Osborne Computer), and Bob Marsh (Processor Technology).One such influential event was the publication of Bill Gates's "Open Letter to Hobbyists", which lambasted the early hackers of the time for violating the copyrights of commercial software programs.[21] The second volume began on January 31, 1976, and included sections for A LETTER FROM MITS, CASSETTE UPDATE, TINY BASIC, MEETING FACILITIES, SOFTWARE, PROBLEMS, MEETING-1, and ALTAIR 680.
Gordon French , co-founder of the Homebrew Computer Club, photographed at the Living Computer Museum in 2013. He hosted the first meeting of the club in his garage, in March 1975.
Invitation to first Homebrew Computer Club meeting, sent by Fred Moore to Steve Dompier
Gordon French, Lee Felsenstein , and Harry Garland would frequent the Oasis following the formal meetings of the club. [ 2 ]
The former site of the Oasis, c. 2024, which became home to Pear VC in 2019
Club members John Draper ("Captain Crunch"), Lee Felsenstein, and Roger Melen
Club newsletter, September 1976
Gordon FrenchLiving Computer MuseumMenlo Park, Californiamicrocomputer revolutionSilicon ValleyhackersSteve JobsSteve WozniakApple Computerpersonal computingLee FelsensteinHarry GarlandPear VCelectroniccircuitsdevices.Fred MooreMenlo ParkSan Mateo County, CaliforniaMicro Instrumentation and Telemetry SystemsAltair 8800People's Computer CompanyApple ICaliforniaStanford Linear Accelerator CenterStanford Medical SchoolRoger MelenSteven LevyPirates of Silicon ValleyFreescaleCupertino, CaliforniaJohn Draperelectronic engineeringcomputer programmingschematicsmicrocomputerCromemcoGeorge MorrowPaul TerrellByte ShopAdam OsborneOsborne ComputerProcessor TechnologyJerry LawsonFairchild Channel FLi-Chen WangCromemco DazzlerLiza LoopDan Werthimersearch for extraterrestrial intelligencepersonal computerBill GatesOpen Letter to HobbyistsMountain View, CaliforniaTriumph of the NerdsBerkeley Macintosh User GroupBoston Computer SocietyChaos Computer ClubComputer History MuseumDr. Dobb's JournalHobby Computer ClubKilobaud MicrocomputingWest Coast Computer FaireJohn MarkoffWhat the Dormouse SaidFreiberger, PaulSwaine, MichaelO'Mara, Margaret PughWayback MachinePC WorldDigiBarn Computer Museum