TektronixInc, back in the company's glory days (when they were a 25,000 employee company with fingers in all sorts of technology pies, rather than a 4000 employee company that only makes test equipment) ran an R&D lab with a number of departments, some that came and went.
Systems & Cybernetics Research
- RobertChew
- KevinFetterly
- RichardKinnard
- JohnProvidenza
- WardCunningham
- and others
Computer Research Laboratory
- RickLefaivre
- AllenWirfsBrock
- RogerBates
- ChipSchnarel
- WardCunningham
- KentBeck
- AlaineWarfield
- and lots more...
Software Productivity Technologies
- KitBradley
- AllenAndRebbeca
- KimAndRoxie
- WardCunningham
- BrianWilkerson
- SridharSridhar
- JanSteinman
- BarbaraYates
- MarkBallard (AKA "The Last Tek Smalltalker" :-)
- MikeMiller
- WesHunter
- and many more
The labs were also forever working on color printer technology. That stuff seems to have paid off; though that division was sold to XeroxCorporation.
It is somewhat astounding that the percentage of TekLabs projects that actually turned into products was so high. Here's a few:
- Flat-panel electroluminescent displays
- Color ink-jet printers
- SmallTalk machines
- Communications products
It is also somewhat sad to note that even with the large percentage of successes, TekLabs was unable to survive the R & D cutting period of the late 70's and 80's without major cutbacks.
FiscalPrudence or CorporateShortSightedness? You be the judge...
TekLabs no longer exists. Tek still does do quite a bit of pure research; but it is very focused on their current product line.