Verner Vinge has passed.

Computer scientist, futurist and writer Vernor Vinge died on March 20, at the age of 79. He had been suffering from Parkinson's disease.

His works include the Hugo Award winning novels A Fire Upon the Deep (1992), A Deepness in the Sky (1999), and Rainbows End (2006).

His 1982 Novella "True Names" presented one of the earliest descriptions of a cyberspace future.

One of my favorite science fiction short stories was "Long Shot" (1972) - a rather poignant story about an intelligent interstellar ship that has "Forgotten" it's purpose.