Control Data Corporation near the University of Washington, cadging open time on the mainframe computer. Wennberg, later the founder of the Triakis Corporation, was an electrical engineering student at the University of Washington. In the course of events Gates and Allen mentioned they were looking for somebody to build them a computer for free. They needed somebody good enough to build a computer from parts and the diagrams found in a computer magazine. Wennberg talked to his friend, Wes Prichard, who suggested to Wennberg that Gates and Allen head over to the UW Physics building, now known as Mary Gates Hall, to talk to Paul Gilbert, another electrical engineering student, who worked in the high-energy tracking laboratory. It was there that Paul Gilbert was approached by the duo to become a partner in Traf-O-Data. That year Gilbert, piece by piece, wire-wrapped, soldered, and assembled from electrical components the working microcomputer. Miles Gilbert, Paul Gilbert's brother, a graphic designer and draftsman, helped the fledgling company by designing the company's logo. Gates and Allen started writing the software. To test the software while the computer was being designed, Paul Allen wrote a computer program on WSU's IBM System/360 that would emulate the 8008 microprocessor. Although the plan had been to manufacture and sell the machines: Later, the State of Washington offered free traffic processing services to cities, ending the need for private contractors, and all three principals moved on to other projects. The real contribution of Traf-O-Data was the experience that Gates and Allen gained, skills they used to write Altair BASIC for the MITS Altair 8800 computer: References 1972 establishments in Washington (state) 1975 disestablishments in Washington (state) Bill Gates Companies based in Seattle Computer companies established in 1972 Computer companies disestablished in 1975 Defunct computer companies of the United States Defunct computer hardware companies Transport companies established in 1972 Transport companies disestablished in 1975 Transportation engineering