William von Meister

William von Meister
Von Meister in 1989
Born(1942-02-21)February 21, 1942
New York City, U.S.
DiedMay 18, 1995(1995-05-18) (aged 53)
Great Falls, Virginia, U.S.
IssueFrederick von Meister
FatherF.W. von Meister
MotherEleanora Colloredo-Mannsfeld

William F. von Meister (February 21, 1942 – May 18, 1995) was an American entrepreneur who founded and participated in a number of startup ventures in the Washington, D.C., area. These included The Source, an early online service and CompuServe competitor, and Control Video Corporation, a predecessor to AOL.[1]

Early years

William Ferdinand von Meister was born of noble German descent[2] on February 21, 1942, in New York City, to F. W. von Meister and Eleanora Colloredo-Mannsfeld.[3] His father, F. W. von Meister, was the godson of Kaiser Wilhelm II, and his mother was a countess.[4]

Von Meister attended high school at Middlesex Academy in Massachusetts, and a finishing school in Switzerland. He then attended Georgetown University. Though he never completed his undergraduate education, he persuaded nearby American University to enroll him in its master's program for business.[4][5]

Career

After leaving Georgetown in 1973, von Meister started a wholesale liquor company, but found it "boring" and decided to move into consulting.[6] After creating a database for Litton Bionetics, he was hired by Western Union to create a computerized billing system.[6]

In 1978, von Meister founded The Source,[7] the first popular online services company. The Source was eventually sold to Reader's Digest and later acquired by rivals CompuServe.[8][7]

In 1982, von Meister was working on a project called the Home Music Store, which was to be beamed by way of the Westar IV communications satellite to cable television companies all over the United States, who would then provide it to their subscribers. For a monthly service charge of less than $10 (including rental of the necessary decoder box) plus a per-album fee (normally a little more than half the list price of the record), subscribers would be able to receive, decode, and record a digitally encoded and transmitted copy of the album.[9] However, there is no evidence that the project ever came to fruition.

In 1983, Control Video Corporation, the predecessor of America Online, was founded by von Meister. The company originally ran the GameLine dial-up service for the Atari 2600,[7] which Meister claimed to be able to handle up to 100,000 users.[10]

Personal life and death

Meister has at least one brother, Peter.[4] Von Meister died of cancer in Great Falls, Virginia, at the age of 53,[8] leaving behind his son, Frederick William von Meister.

Titles

As a descendent of Prussian nobility, William had the honour of carrying von in his last name.[2]

References

  1. ^ admin (2023-02-28). "A Biography of William Von Meister: The Man Behind The Source and AOL". Online Safety Trainer. Retrieved 2024-05-23.
  2. ^ a b dGenealogisches Handbuch des Adels (in German).
  3. ^ Klein 2004, p. 9.
  4. ^ a b c Swisher 1998.
  5. ^ "The source of it all: William F. von Meister". Goliath. 1 March 2007. Archived from the original on 20 February 2010. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Hooked on Startups, He Invented Infocast". Radio World. 2019-07-17. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  7. ^ a b c Needle 1983, p. 8.
  8. ^ a b Smith, Esther (25 May 1995). "Obituary: Bill von Meister". Washington Technology.
  9. ^ Riggs, Michael (October 5, 1982). "Pioneers: William F. von Meister — the Home Music Store". The Boston Phoenix. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
  10. ^ Needle 1983, p. 9.

Bibliography

Further reading

  • Genealogy of William von Meister at the Luyken Family Association

Read other articles:

Hydrogen peroxide contact solutions

Lenses soaking in a hydrogen peroxide-based solution. The case is part of a one-step system and includes a catalytic disc to neutralise the peroxide over time. Hydrogen peroxide contact solutions are storage solutions for contact lenses that rely on hydrogen peroxide to clean the contacts and break up proteins and deposits during the disinfection process. Mechanism of action The majority of hydrogen peroxide solutions are 3% hydrogen peroxide.[1] This enables the solution to break dow...

 

Allu Arjun

Allu ArjunAllu Arjun (2011)LahirAllu Arjun8 April 1983 (umur 40)Madras, Tamil Nadu, India(sekarang Chennai)Tempat tinggalFilm Nagar, Hyderabad, Telangana, IndiaKebangsaanIndiaNama lainArjunBunnyMallu ArjunAAStylish StarPekerjaanAktor, Produser, Model, penyanyi, penariTahun aktif2003–sekarangTinggi5 kaki 7 inci (170 cm)[1]Suami/istriAllu Sneha ReddyAnakAllu AyaanOrang tuaAllu AravindNirmala AlluSitus webwww.alluarjunonline.com Allu Arjun (kelahiran 8 Ap...

 

بومة أعشاب شرقية

هذه المقالة يتيمة إذ تصل إليها مقالات أخرى قليلة جدًا. فضلًا، ساعد بإضافة وصلة إليها في مقالات متعلقة بها. (سبتمبر 2017) اضغط هنا للاطلاع على كيفية قراءة التصنيف بومة أعشاب شرقية   حالة الحفظ   أنواع غير مهددة أو خطر انقراض ضعيف جدا [1] المرتبة التصنيفية نوع[2][3]...

Sol majeur

L'accord parfait de sol majeur se compose des notes suivantes : sol, si, ré. La tonalité de sol majeur se développe en partant de la note tonique sol. Elle est appelée G major en anglais et G-Dur dans l'Europe centrale. L'armure coïncide avec celle de la tonalité relative mi mineur. La lecture audio n'est pas prise en charge dans votre navigateur. Vous pouvez télécharger le fichier audio. L’échelle de sol majeur est : sol, la, si, do, ré, mi, fa♯, sol . tonique...

 

Caluso

Questa voce o sezione sull'argomento centri abitati del Piemonte non cita le fonti necessarie o quelle presenti sono insufficienti. Puoi migliorare questa voce aggiungendo citazioni da fonti attendibili secondo le linee guida sull'uso delle fonti. Calusocomune Caluso – VedutaVeduta LocalizzazioneStato Italia Regione Piemonte Città metropolitana Torino AmministrazioneSindacoMaria Rosa Cena (lista civica) dal 26-5-2014 (2º mandato dal 27-5-2019) Territ...

 

Henry S. Reuss

American politician Henry ReussChair of the House Banking CommitteeIn officeJanuary 3, 1975 – January 3, 1981Preceded byWright PatmanSucceeded byFernand St GermainMember of the U.S. House of Representativesfrom Wisconsin's 5th districtIn officeJanuary 3, 1955 – January 3, 1983Preceded byCharles J. KerstenSucceeded byJim Moody Personal detailsBornHenry Schoellkopf Reuss(1912-02-22)February 22, 1912Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.DiedJanuary 12, 2002(2002-01-12) (age...

1922 en santé et médecine

Chronologies Données clés 1919 1920 1921  1922  1923 1924 1925Décennies :1890 1900 1910  1920  1930 1940 1950Siècles :XVIIIe XIXe  XXe  XXIe XXIIeMillénaires :-Ier Ier  IIe  IIIe Chronologies géographiques Afrique Afrique du Sud, Algérie, Angola, Bénin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroun, Cap-Vert, République centrafricaine, Comores, République du Congo, République démocratique du Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Égyp...

 

Навчально-науковий інститут інноваційних освітніх технологій Західноукраїнського національного університету

Навчально-науковий інститут інноваційних освітніх технологій Західноукраїнського національного університету Герб навчально-наукового інституту інноваційних освітніх технологій ЗУНУ Скорочена назва ННІІОТ ЗУНУ Основні дані Засновано 2013 Заклад Західноукраїнський �...

 

豪栄道豪太郎

豪栄道 豪太郎 場所入りする豪栄道基礎情報四股名 澤井 豪太郎→豪栄道 豪太郎本名 澤井 豪太郎愛称 ゴウタロウ、豪ちゃん、GAD[1][2]生年月日 (1986-04-06) 1986年4月6日（38歳）出身 大阪府寝屋川市身長 183cm体重 160kgBMI 47.26所属部屋 境川部屋得意技 右四つ・出し投げ・切り返し・外掛け・首投げ・右下手投げ成績現在の番付 引退最高位 東大関生涯戦歴 696勝493敗...

Liste des princes de Transylvanie

Prince de Transylvanie Armoiries de la Transylvanie François II Rákóczi, dernier prince hongrois avant les Habsbourg. Création 1111 Mandant Diète transylvaine Abrogation 1867 Premier titulaire Mercurius Dernier titulaire François-Joseph Ier (empereur d'Autriche) modifier  La liste des monarques de Transylvanie réunit les voïvodes et les princes qui ont régné sur la Principauté de Transylvanie. Historique Selon la Gesta Hungarorum, le premier duc des Valaques et des Slaves de ...

 

Sri Lankan Telugus

Ethnic group Sri Lankan TelugusSri Lankan itinerant Snake CharmerTotal populationc. 4000Regions with significant populations Sri LankaLanguagesTelugu (native), SinhalaReligionShaivism,Buddhism, Christianity (minority)Related ethnic groupsSinhalese, Telugu people The Sri Lankan Telugus are an ethnic group from Sri Lanka who trace their origins to Telugu-speaking regions centuries ago. They are commonly known in English as Sri Lankan Gypsies, in Sinhala as Ahikuntaka. However, these terms ...

 

Oculus Rift S

Virtual reality head-mounted display Oculus Rift SDeveloperFacebook Technologies & LenovoManufacturerLenovoTypeVirtual reality headsetGenerationFirst generationRelease dateMarch 20, 2019AvailabilityMay 21, 2019Lifespan2019-2021Introductory price$399.99 USD, $649 AUDDiscontinuedApril 2021[1]DisplayFast-switch LCD 2560×1440 (1280×1440 per eye) @ 80 HzSound Integrated speakers Input6DOF inside-out tracking through 5 built-in camerasController input2nd generation Oculus Touch motion...

أساسيات اتصال ويندوز

أساسيات اتصال ويندوزمعلومات عامةنوع برنامج إطار عمل نظام التشغيل مايكروسوفت ويندوز المطورون مايكروسوفت موقع الويب msdn.microsoft.com… تعديل - تعديل مصدري - تعديل ويكي بيانات ويندوز كوميونيكاشن فاونداشن في إطار عمل دوت نت ويندوز كوميونيكاشن فاونداشن (بالإنجليزية: Windows Communication Founda...

 

Generasi X

Bagian dari seri tentangGenerasi besar di dunia Barat Generasi Hilang Generasi Terbesar Generasi Bisu Baby boomers Generasi X Milenial Generasi Z Generasi Alpha lbs Generasi X (atau disingkat Gen X) adalah kelompok demografi menyusul baby boomer dan mendahului milenial. Para peneliti dan media populer memakai awal sampai pertengahan 1960an sebagai permulaan tahun kelahiran dan akhir 1970an sampai awal 1980an sebagai akhir tahun kelahiran, dengan generasi tersebut umum diartikan sebagai orang-...

 

Nucleosome

Hình 1: Thành phần một nucleosome: Bát hợp phân tử (octamer) có 8 histone là lõi, gồm 2 H2A + 2H2B + 2H3 + 2H4; còn H1 ở ngoài. Đoạn DNA gồm khoảng 150 bp. Nucleosome (nuclêôxôm) là một đơn vị cơ bản cấu tạo nên nhiễm sắc thể của hầu hết sinh vật nhân thực. Mỗi nucleosome gồm một đoạn DNA quấn xung quanh một lõi có phức hợp tám phân tử histôn gọi là octamer (hình 1).[1][2][3][...

Brian Hayden

Chemistry professor (born 1954) This article may rely excessively on sources too closely associated with the subject, potentially preventing the article from being verifiable and neutral. Please help improve it by replacing them with more appropriate citations to reliable, independent, third-party sources. (December 2020) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Brian HaydenBornJuly 1954 (age 70)[1]Alma materUniversity of BristolScientific careerFieldsPhysical chemis...

 

Avanti!

Disambiguazione – Avanti rimanda qui. Se stai cercando altri significati, vedi Avanti (disambigua). Avanti!LogoStato Italia LinguaItaliano PeriodicitàQuotidiano GenerePolitico FormatoLenzuolo, poi Berlinese FondatoreLeonida Bissolati Fondazione25 dicembre 1896 ChiusuraNovembre 1993 Inserti e allegatiAvanti! della Domenica, settimanale SedeDirezione nazionale PSI, Via Santa Caterina da Siena, 57 Roma EditoreNuova Editrice Avanti! S.r.l. Tiratura54 071 (1982) Direttorevedi sezi...

 

Net force

Vector sum of all forces acting upon a particle or body A free body diagram of a block resting on a rough inclined plane, with its weight (W), normal reaction (N) and friction (F) shown. In mechanics, the net force is the sum of all the forces acting on an object. For example, if two forces are acting upon an object in opposite directions, and one force is greater than the other, the forces can be replaced with a single force that is the difference of the greater and smaller force. That force...

Cut (archaeology)

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages) This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please help improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (October 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discus...

 

Unity (moteur de jeu)

Pour les articles homonymes, voir Unity. Unity Informations Développé par Unity Technologies Première version 8 juin 2005 Dernière version 2023.2.15 (19 mars 2024)[1] Version avancée 2023.2.0b17 (7 novembre 2023)[2] Écrit en C++, C# Supporte les langages C#, Bolt Système d'exploitation Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Android et iOS Langues Anglais Type Outil de création de jeux (en)Moteur de jeu Licence Licence propriétaire Site web unity.comunity.com/fr modifier - modifier le code...