Virtually everyone who works with computers is familiar with Tesler’s innovations: The “cut” command removes selected text, “copy” creates a duplicate, and “paste” then inserts the selected data whenever requested.
Tesler discussed thriving in Silicon Valley with the BBC News back in 2012, saying, “There’s almost a rite of passage—after you’ve made some money you don’t just retire, you spend your time funding other companies,” he said. “There’s a very strong element of excitement, of being able to share what you’ve leaned with the next generation.”
Before being recruited by Apple’s iconic co-founder, the late Steve Jobs, in 1980, the American computer scientist had been working for Xerox. Upon learning of his passing, Xerox tweeted, “The inventor of cut/copy & paste, find & replace, and more was former Xerox researcher Larry Tesler. Your workday is easier thanks to his revolutionary ideas. Larry passed away Monday, so please join us in celebrating him.”
In a tweet, California’s Computer History Museum shared online, “Tesler created the idea of cut, copy, & paste and combined computer science training with a counterculture vision that computers should be for everyone.”
All over Twitter, computer users and companies have paid tribute to the late pioneer. Vivaldi, a new browser that prioritizes user-customization, recognized just ubiquitous cut, copy, and paste are by asking for a virtual show of hands from everyone who relies on the commands in their daily lives.
One Twitter user, Andy Obuoforibo, stated, “Larry Tesler did a godlike thing. We worship him in almost every click and tap.”
The exact cause of Tesler’s death has not been disclosed to the public.
