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ED YOURDON Obituary

YOURDON--Ed, died suddenly on January 20, 2016 as a result of complications from a blood infection. He was a luminary in the computer software field and widely known as the lead developer of the structured analysis/design methods of the 1970s. In June 1997, he was inducted to the Computer Hall of Fame. He is survived by his loving family.

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Published by New York Times on Jan. 22, 2016.

Memories and Condolences
for ED YOURDON

47 Entries

Leska Emerald Adams

January 16, 2024

Hey there Ed, I am sure you are quite surprised, watching from heaven, to see your enduring legacy in the TB2K forum you left me. It is thriving and imparting life saving help to many sincere souls. God has been good to this forum. I hope you are greeting each member in heaven with appreciation. Nothing like knowing the truth! Thank you for the good you did in your earth life.

Richard M Woodward

July 11, 2018

I just learned of Ed's death today (7/11/2018) when I was browsing for the address of his website. It prompted many memories of things learned from him in the seventies. His teaching brought me into the modern world of programming. I am particularly fond of Ed's replacement of 'milestone' with the term 'inch-pebble," which I made use of often when asking programmers in my group for time estimates. He was a very intelligent man.

Rosanna Durruthy

February 10, 2016

Just learned of this great loss. Ed Yourdon's legacy made a significant difference in the lives of many. His body of work influenced my career, and his pioneering work influenced how I think. I was fortunate to work at Yourdon, Inc with a talented, curious and innovative team, touched by Ed's genius and entrepreneurial spirit.
To Toni and the family, my deepest sympathy. Keeping you all in my prayers.
May Ed rest in peace.

Marty McGowan

February 5, 2016

Late to the sad news; I was able to thank him for a terrific photo on the 1 & 2 line platform, an exemplar of my daily grind. And for his influence on my career.

Jean Zettler

February 3, 2016

I worked for Yourdon Inc when I first moved to Northern VA. Had the pleasure of meeting Ed a few times. Years later, connected with him on the internet and to my astonishment, learned we'd both lived in Northport and graduated from NHS, although at different times. We had many of the same teachers and reminisced about NHS. Luckily, I got to know him as a friend and was impressed with his photography. I was shocked to learn of his death. RIP, Ed - you are missed. Sincere sympathies to Toni and all other family members. "Only the good die young."

Jason Martin

February 3, 2016

Very sad to hear of Ed's passing. He was truly a friend and mentor to many of us who were touched by the Yourdon organization. Careers were started and the course of software development was changed profoundly by Ed and his associates. I will never forget my days at Yourdon, Inc. and the amazing colleagues there. My deepest condolences to Toni and the family.

January 26, 2016

Very sad news, his thoughts shaped the way I think about my profession, he will be missed. My condolences to his family.

Frank Palmeri

January 26, 2016

Condolences to the Yourdon family on Ed's passing. His books helped so many of us IT pros in our careers. He will be missed very much but his proud legacy remains.

Leska Emerald Adams

January 26, 2016

A shock to learn that Ed Yourdon has passed on. My life changed dramatically in the Fall of 1998 when I stumbled on Ed's forum for his Y2K book. The intelligent prodigious generous practical knowledge shared by 1000s of ppl in many walks of life on that forum was a unique experience in history. It took off fast n furious so Ed recruited Admins. I was one. 100s of emails and discussions behind the scenes in addition to 1000s of threads. Heady amazing times, and Ed's brilliance was abundant. Many years of 16 hour days. Ed's impact on planet earth is enormous. I'm sure Ed is not resting in heaven but is very busy there pursuing his interests and sharing generously.

Dawn Wolthuis

January 25, 2016

So sorry to hear of the death of Ed Yourdon. Blessings to his friends and family. One of his books was the first I read cover to cover in my profession, learning structured programming and DFD's, with others right here on my shelves too. Rest in peace.

Ingrid Hunt

January 25, 2016

I was deeply moved and stunned to hear of Mr Yourdon's passing. He was an inspiration to me as a student and a professional. May he rest in peace. Blessings to his friends and family he leaves behind.

Kouros Mohit

January 25, 2016

I used his books in my software engineering classes and he liked it. We lost another jewel of a man. RIP Ed.

Brenda Fisk

January 25, 2016

I was deeply saddened to hear of your sudden death. Your contribution to the computer industry was monumental.

Mark Paulk

January 25, 2016

It's sad to hear that Ed has passed away. He was such an integral part of our history -- an enormous influence on software engineering.

Craig S. Mullins (Mullins Consulting, Inc.)

Craig Mullins

January 25, 2016

Ed impacted so many people in the business of IT and data processing. He will be missed. My condolences to his friends and family.

Books

Karen Lopez

January 25, 2016

As I looked at Ed's bibliography, I realized that I owned almost all his books. Not just read them, but owned them. Some of them in multiple editions.

Ed was a great influence on my career in methodologies. And later, on my love of art and photography. I loved that he shared his works on social media.

It was always a joy to get a chance to chat with him at events, then later on Twitter.

I'm off to find a book and spend some time with him again.

Wolfgang Keller

January 25, 2016

My heartfelt condolences go to the family. Ed has been a source of professional inspiration for me. His "Death March" Book really helped me while I was in such a situation. Later on I admired Ed's artwork and was happy to see him explore Street Art in Berlin.
Hence I will send a little street scene from Berlin - he could have loved that

Michael Silves

January 25, 2016

I was surprised and saddened by the news of Ed's death. He was one of the pioneers who helped define and legitimize an organized approach to software development. In addition to his own books Ed's company published books by other authors in the field and nurtured the development of several software engineering disciplines.

Bernadette Jiwa

January 24, 2016

Most of us get to impact a small circle of family and friends in our lifetime. Ed was not most people. He generously shared his gifts and art with the world so that others could benefit. He will be missed.

Dave Thomas

January 24, 2016

My Sympathies to the family and friends of Ed Yourdon. He was a strong advocate for professional developers, when many others thought it was "just coding". He understood the importance, value and difficulty of good software. I always enjoyed our conversations when our paths would cross at conferences. May he rest in peace...

Dave

Tom Bragg

January 24, 2016

My heartfelt condolences to the family... I have known Ed for over 30 years, his work in software engineering stands on its own merit and his effect on the lives of those he encountered, including mine, was profound. Publisher, methodologist, fellow expert witness, talented photographer, and friend - we will miss you, Ed.

Ray Edwards

January 24, 2016

Ed was a true source of inspiration and direction, he will be missed but his contribution will live on.

My picture on my book.

David Hay

January 24, 2016

His book, Structured Design had two effects: one, it completely re-directed my career. And it made me want to write a book that did that for other people. I will be forever grateful.

Finnur Hrafn Jónsson

January 24, 2016

My Condolences to his loved ones.
Yourdon was one of my all time favorite writers on software engineering. He influenced my career.

Philip Garofalo

January 24, 2016

My condolences to the family of Ed Yourdon. I studied Mr. Yourdon's programming and software development techniques in college in the 1970s. I followed his writings in support of programmers through the 80s, 90s and Oughts. He will be missed.

Bill Rushmore

January 24, 2016

Thanks in part to Ed and his writings, I have had a successful career in programming. His was the first book I read about software engineering and got me off to a great start.

Naomi Bloom

January 24, 2016

May his memory be for a blessing. Ed was a huge influence on how I thought about the design and development of software, lessons that have served me over many decades.

January 24, 2016

I am deeply sorry for your loss. May you find peace and comfort from God and from loving memories. (Psalm 29:11)

Peter Linehan

January 24, 2016

Ed was a visionary, and we all owe so much. RIP

Blake

January 24, 2016

His books helped me to be a better programmer, designer and project manager and was one of my early heroes in computer science, thank you so very much.

Amir Nathoo

January 24, 2016

I learned and practiced Ed's principles of software analysis and design when I was in college 25 years ago. To this day, I continue applying these principles as a Software Architect. My Condolences to his wife and their family.

Bruce Graham

January 23, 2016

I worked with Ed at Comshare Inc., in 1968, where he gave me one of my first programming assignments. I learned a ton from him, and I've always been grateful for that experience.

John Wait

January 23, 2016

Hope you can rest Ed. We first met on a Fire Island ferry decades ago. First we thought our only common interest was that beach. We learned we had connections tied to publishing and technology. Peace, John

Rick Ballard

January 23, 2016

Ed & his writings were a huge influence on me 20+ years ago, as I was starting my IT Career. May he RIP.

Tony Wasserman

January 23, 2016

Ed's early work on popularizing software analysis and design methods was very influential. His talks were well-organized, entertaining, and frequently filled with images of great art. He reached many thousands of software designers through his early books and courses. More recently, I enjoyed his Flickr page filled with photos of the Upper West Side and his family's travels. Condolences to his wife Toni and their family.

Bill Durler

January 23, 2016

Thank you for your work on structured analysis/design.

Don Schenck

January 23, 2016

Never met him, but his books had a HUGE influence on my very successful career. Thank you, Ed.

Elfriede Dustin

January 23, 2016

I loved your NYC pictures and videos and of course all that you contributed to the computer software field, Ed. You will be missed. RIP.

David Morris

January 23, 2016

Sad to hear of Ed's passing. Fond memories from when I studied SSADM, and have enjoyed following his photographic exploits on Twitter and Instagram. Thoughts are with his family.

J.D. Hildebrand

January 23, 2016

I met Ed well after he had achieved his reputation in the software industry. I was editing a magazine for PC programmers and doing my best to translate Ed's legacy into language that would allow a new generation to benefit from his insights. He was generous with his time and advice, and he even wrote for us. He was a man of great spirit, and the world is diminished upon his death.

Nick Zdunic

January 23, 2016

Learnt of Ed Yourdon when first learning programming some 30 years ago. The Yourdon Loop was the introduction. Sad to see him go.

January 23, 2016

Rest in Peace

Perze Ababa

January 23, 2016

I'm here in this country because of your stance about Y2K. I'm sorry I never got the chance to thank you in person despite our connection via social media. Thank you.

Lou Mazzucchelli

January 23, 2016

Ed and the company he built made a strong positive influence in my life. My deepest sympathies to his family.

Lois Zells

January 23, 2016

To this day, I still tell people how lucky I was to work for Ed Yourdon. He was a shining example of a boss who was a friend. I was teaching at a client near NASA on 9/11 and Ed was the first one (other than my sons) to reach out to me to be sure I was ok---this over 15 years after I left working for him. Now, that's a mensch. RIP friend and mentor. I will miss your great pictures.

Rebecca Winant

January 22, 2016

A shocking loss. My sympathy, Toni. You and Ed made a difference in my life. Ed's legacy is huge, and Yourdon, Inc stands as a unique incubator of talent and seminal work in SW. So sorry for your loss.

Janice & Martin Barandes

January 22, 2016

Ed was in every way an exceptional man.The world has suffered a great loss.
The Barandes family offers their sincere condolences to our very dear friends.

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