My Development Heroes

If you are passionate about something, whether it be music, film, video games, gardening, technology, or another interest, then you will likely have heroes—people who inspire you, who drive your passion and who influence you. I have many passions, but these articles primarily focus on software development. I thought I would talk about the people who inspire me. I want to say at the outset that these are individuals who have inspired me; however, people are unique and have their own distinct sets of strengths and weaknesses. I am in no way suggesting that these people are perfect, nor am I inspired by everything they do. I just wanted to highlight people who, in some way, have inspired me. This list is also unordered.

Bill Gates

I was conflicted about including Bill Gates. I think that Bill Gates has made both positive and negative contributions to the tech world. I do look up to Bill Gates while still accepting that he has made some damaging decisions in the past. The main reason I have him on my list is that his work at the beginning of the microcomputer revolution sparked my excitement and interest in technology. He wrote and ported Microsoft BASIC to a vast majority of early Microcomputers, such as the C64 and Amstrad. He was also an essential part of inventing the PC platform, with Microsoft DOS, and arguably helped promote the PC platform through further refinements to DOS and then Windows. Bill Gates also oversaw the release of the XBOX brand, Directx, and .net, which have been significant influences on me.

Read more on Wikipedia.

John Carmack

John Carmack is a much less divisive person to put on this list. In the early 90s, John Carmack was a massive contributor to the world of computer graphics, and more specifically, 3d graphics. John Carmack led innovations with Commander Keen that brought smooth scrolling to the PC, including Wolfenstein 3d, a pioneer in 3d graphics. Doom raised the bar again and significantly advanced the first-person shooter genre in popular culture. Then, Quake brought lightning to the computer graphics world, making 3d games look increasingly amazing. These are all fantastic things, but for me, however, it was Doom and Doom map editing that grew my interest in computing. The fact that he and the others at ID decided to open-source the game engine has not only contributed to my learning but also to the software industry as a whole.

If you want to learn more about John Carmack and the development of some of these seminal games, I recommend the book "Masters of Doom" by David Kushner.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Steve Wozniak

Born in the 1950s and present at the dawn of the computing era, Steve Wozniak was a pivotal figure in the early days of the computing industry. If Steve Jobs was the person who sold the personal computer to the world, then it was Steve Wozniak who designed that computer. At the birth of the microcomputer in the US, there was a trinity of pioneering micros: the TRS-80, the Commodore PET, and, of course, Apple’s Apple II, designed by Woz. I believe it's challenging to overstate Steve Wozniak's contributions to our modern technological world. The Apple II didn’t just revolutionise the computer; it went on to inspire millions of people to contribute to the field. Steve Wozniak went on to co-develop the Macintosh, another groundbreaking computer in its own right, which allowed Apple to continue innovating and popularising new technologies like the iPod, smartphone, and tablet. I think that I can safely say that Steve Wozniak is one of the giants whose shoulders I stand on today as a software developer.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Anders Hejlsberg

Unlike the others on the list, you may not be familiar with Anders Hejlsberg, but to me, he is one of the most significant individuals on this list. In my recent blog post, “Returning to Windows,” I mentioned Anders Hejlsberg, which may be the first time you've heard of him. I attended college in the early 2000s to study computer science, and during that time, two of the programming languages we used were Borland Turbo Pascal and Borland Delphi. Delphi is to Pascal what Visual Basic is to BASIC. These were the languages and technologies that I enjoyed and wanted to explore further; these are what kick-started my life as a software developer. Anders Hejlsberg was the lead creator of both. If it were only for that alone, Anders Hejlsberg would be a hero to me. However, later in my career, I started writing in Typescript. I adopted it as a language to write in early on and have been writing almost exclusively in TypeScript since 2021. This year, 2025, I started learning the .net Framework through C#, and as you may have guessed by now, Anders Hejlsberg was the lead architect for both.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Yukihiro Matsumoto

I have a habit of learning a new Language. When I am comfortable with my primary language, I try to learn something new. This provides me with insights into new ways of doing things and new ideas, as well as access to a new language and its associated tooling and ecosystem. The first language that I ever learnt, once I was comfortable with the web stack I was using (PHP, JavaScript, HTML, etc), was Ruby. Ruby showed me a whole new world. It was very object-oriented, which gave me a much better insight into that way of working, and it was the first language for me that wasn’t inspired by the C syntax. I went on an adventure, and for a few years, I pivoted my career to working with the Ruby programming language; I have recently put that knowledge to use again. I believe the practice of learning new languages is essential for building a more well-rounded development career, as it teaches you ways to solve different problems, introduces new tools, and, of course, provides a new skill that you can apply.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Ryan Dahl

Ryan Dahl was the person who made JavaScript popular everywhere and was the creator behind Node.js. He may have regretted it, but it changed modern web development and, by extension, modern software development. Before Node was invented, JavaScript was pretty much confined to the frontend and the browser. After Node, it has all changed, and now you can use Node everywhere. Electron allows you to create desktop applications, while React Native and Ionic enable you to build mobile applications. JavaScript is now a scripting language in other tools, like a game engine. I have mentioned before that I use TypeScript daily and have utilised it in all these contexts. I can’t underestimate the influence Ryan Dahl has had on my career and daily life.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Linus Torvalds

I am not sure if I need to tell you who Linus Torvalds is; he is the man who made Linux, and to this day, he is the lead developer and architect. The impact that Linux has had on the programming and computer worlds is immense. Apart from Desktop and Laptop computing, it would not be an exaggeration to say that Linux powers the world. Yes, other operating systems exist and do work in many fields, but Linux dominates. Linux powers the servers on which I deploy my code every day, the servers that run my services, the dishwasher that washes my dishes, the smart TV on which I watch my entertainment, and half of the devices on which I play my games. Linux changes the world by providing a well-made, secure, Unix-like, and, most importantly, free operating system.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Tim Berners-Lee

Another person whom I am not sure I need to introduce. The modern world's most powerful tool and arguably most important invention was, in a large part, the idea of Tim Berners-Lee. I have mentioned how others inspired me to code; it was the World Wide Web, where I started. I started by building my own web pages to allow me to share my game maps. I started with just plain HTML, and as I gradually added more functionality over time, I learned additional languages, including JavaScript, CSS, PHP, SQL, and eventually. NET. If it wasn’t for Tim Berners-Lee and his idea, I am certain I wouldn’t be where I am today. There was something magical about contributing to this fantastic invention. In 2025, we live in two worlds: one physical and one of information, and Tim Berners-Lee invented the language and technology that underpin that world. Yes, many have added to it over the years, but Tim was the catalyst that brought it into existence.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Honourable Mentions

All these individuals have had an impact on my career development and enhanced my skills in one way or another.

All these are LinkedIn links.

• Dylan Beattie - A Speaker and Developer who opened my eyes to so many interesting topics.

• Kevlin Henney - Another Speaker who has made me think about how to be a better developer

• William Munn - An Amazing developer, mentor and lead who drove me to write better code

• Mark Bold - My first lead after I became a professional developer, who taught me how to be a professional

Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants

The people listed above are the giants I stand on the shoulders of, but they are just the top level of giants. Under these people are other giants that they are standing on, and under them are more giants that they are standing on. This giant among giants goes back in time to the dawn of humanity. These giants also come from all walks of life, genders and races. Just because I have chosen these people to highlight in my personal story doesn’t mean that I disregard the contributions that came before them.