Thomas Daniel Jennings (born 1955) is a Los Angeles-based artist, known for his work on
FidoNet and for his work at
Phoenix Software on
MS-DOS
MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few ope ...
integration and interoperability.
Work
He is the creator of
FidoNet,
[ the first message and file networking system for BBSes. Originally, the FidoNet protocols were implemented in a program named Fido, authored by Jennings, but they were ultimately implemented by other authors in other software to create a network using a multiplicity of platforms.]Wired magazine
''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Fr ...
's first internet presence, wrote the portable BIOS that led to Phoenix Technologies
Phoenix Technologies Ltd is an American company that designs, develops and supports core system software for personal computers and other computing devices. The company's products commonly referred to as BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) or firm ...
BIOS,[ ran an early regional internet service provider, The Little Garden (later incorporated as TLGnet, Inc),][ Borsook, Paulina.]
The Anarchist
, ''Wired.com''. (Issue 4.04. April 1996) and maintains an informal archive of Cold War science and technology.
While he lived in San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
, from 1988 until 1991 Jennings was the publisher and co-editor, with Deke Nihilson, of ''Homocore
Queercore (or homocore) is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifical ...
'', one of the earliest Queercore
Queercore (or homocore) is a cultural/social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of the punk subculture and a music genre that comes from punk rock. It is distinguished by its discontent with society in general, and specifical ...
zines
A zine ( ; short for ''magazine'' or ''fanzine'') is a small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images, usually reproduced via a copy machine. Zines are the product of either a single person or of a very smal ...
. The name came from the pages of '' J.D.s'' zine, and featured musicians and writers such as The Apostles, Steve Abbott, Donna Dresch
Donna Dresch is an American punk rock musician, perhaps best known as founder, guitarist and bass guitarist of Team Dresch.
Dresch has been actively involved in the queercore scene since the 1980s, as the creator of the fanzine ''Chainsaw'' an ...
, Larry Livermore
Lawrence Hayes (born October 28, 1947), better known by his stage name Larry Livermore, is an American singer, musician, record producer, and author, best known as the co-founder of Lookout Records.
Biography
In 1977, Hayes began to attend pun ...
, Daniel Nicoletta
Daniel Nicoletta (born December 23, 1954) is an Italian-American photographer, photojournalist and gay rights activist.
Biography
Daniel Nicoletta was born in New York City and raised in Utica, New York. In his late teens he left New York to at ...
and G.B. Jones.The Yo-Yo Gang
G. B. Jones (born 1965) is a Canadian artist, filmmaker, musician, and publisher of zines born in Bowmanville, Canada. She is known for producing J.D.s with her acclaimed''Tom Girls'' drawings before going on to create more musically, cinemati ...
'', and had his own Queercore band Comrade in Arms.) Internationally, ''Homocore'' zine, throughout its eight (including the rarely seen issue #5-1/2) issues, along with ''J.D.s'', was influential in the rise of Queercore as the zines found their way into the hands of queer punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
kids across North America, South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
and Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
.
Personal life
Jennings currently resides in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, with his partner Josh Stehlik, and a varying number of animals, domesticated and otherwise.
References
External links
SR - IX
Website of Tom Jennings
Rambler Lore
Website of American Motors/AMC/Rambler automobile technical lore (practices) and documentation
(older Website of Tom Jennings)
from BBS: The Documentary
*
Arts Computation Engineering
UCI Graduate Program
, by Paulina Borsook. ''Wired.com''. (Issue 4.04. April 1996)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jennings, Tom
1955 births
Living people
Queercore
FidoNet
University of California, Irvine people
LGBT people from California
LGBT people from Massachusetts
People from Boston
People from Los Angeles
Internet pioneers