Vladimir Pokhilko
Vladimir Pokhilko (Russian: Владимир Похилко) (7 April 1954 in Moscow – 21 September 1998 in Palo Alto) was a Russian entrepreneur and academic who specialized in human–computer interaction.
A friend of the Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov, he was the first clinical psychologist to conduct experiments using the game.[1] He played an important role in the subsequent development and marketing of the game, and a 1999 article in the Forbes magazine credited him for "co-inventing the seminal videogame Tetris".[2]
In 1989, he and Pajitnov founded the 3D software technology company AnimaTek in Moscow.[3] While attempting to create software for INTEC (a company that they started) that would be made for "people's souls", they developed the idea for El-Fish.[citation needed]
After suffering financial difficulties at his software company, AnimaTek, he murdered his wife Elena Fedotova (38) and their son Peter (12), then committed suicide.[4] Shortly before his death, Pokhilko penned a note. The police initially did not release the content of the note, saying that it was not a suicide note, and they didn't know who authored it.[5] The content of the note was released in 1999; it read:[6]
- "I've been eaten alive. Vladimir. Just remember that I am exist. The davil."
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ When startups become blowups by Jon Swartz. Forbes, 10 June 1999.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Pushed past the brink by Matt Beer and Jacob. San Francisco Chronicle, 24 September 1998.
- ↑ Report names father as killer P.A. Police show revealing note. San Jose Mercury News (CA) – 22 January 1999 – 1B Local.
External links
- Vladimir Pokhilko seminar abstract and bio on the Stanford University Human-Computer Interaction website.
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