The most important thing in the programming language is the name. A language will not succeed without a good name. I have recently invented a very good name and now I am looking for a suitable language.

Always remember, however, that there’s usually a simpler and better way to do something than the first way that pops into your head.

I've never been a good estimator of how long things are going to take.

The designer of a new kind of system must participate fully in the implementation.

In fact what I would like to see is thousands of computer scientists let loose to do whatever they want. That's what really advances the field.

The important thing, once you have enough to eat and a nice house, is what you can do for others, what you can contribute to the enterprise as a whole.

The whole thing that makes a mathematician’s life worthwhile is that he gets the grudging admiration of three or four colleagues.