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In the early 1980s, Gates recognized the importance of personal computers. He developed a version of the BASIC language for the Altair computer and was in the right place at the right time when IBM came knocking at his door. The Microsoft Disk Operating System (MS-DOS) became the de facto standard for the desktop, and the desktop changed the world. Only in his early 20s, Gates was on his way to wealth beyond imagination, and to gaining the power to shape the future of personal computing. Microsoft's revenue for the 1999 fiscal year was $19.75 billion, and Gates' personal wealth is unequaled by anyone else's, anywhere in the world. Gates' company employs more than 39,000 people and has provided a basis for development by countless other companies that either flourish or fail in a market that Microsoft dominates.

Gates' success didn't happen by accident. Other early entries in the PC industry came and went or, like IBM, failed to capitalize on the emerging opportunities inherent in the burgeoning love affair between people and their computers. Microsoft, meanwhile, thrived and continues to do so because of Gates' leadership. Microsoft didn't invent the GUI, but Gates was savvy enough to recognize its importance. He bet his company on Windows and, as a result, gained a solid foothold in the industry.

Like all successful people, Gates has his share of critics. Besides allegations of predatory business practices, recently substantiated to the satisfaction of the U.S. court system, complaints about Gates and his company revolve around a perceived lack of in-house innovation, concerted efforts to stymie advances by third parties, and OS instability. Criticizing Microsoft and Gates has become an industry in its own right.

Microsoft has been late to market in a number of areas. In a 1997 interview with CIO, Gates said he regretted that he couldn't go back to the '80s and focus more effort on networking and e-mail. But Gates has demonstrated time and again that, even when late, Microsoft is nimble enough to bring substantial resources to bear on a market segment that has caught his attention. The desktop-database, office-suite and browser wars of the '90s are testament to the fact that Microsoft can enter a market late and take control nonetheless. Whether Internet Explorer gained its leadership role in the browser market because of monopolistic practices or simply because it was a better browser is a debate for the ages.

In 1994, Gates married Melinda French and formed the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to support world health, education and access to digital information through public libraries. Last year, the foundation raised $14 billion in contributions and awarded $2 billion in grants. Today, Gates has relinquished his position as CEO of Microsoft to focus on the foundation, but he remains chairman and chief software architect of the company--and, no doubt, his presence will make itself known well into the decades ahead.