computer science

Trygve Reenskaug

Trygve Reenskaug is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Trygve Reenskaug rather than just read about it. In short: Trygve Mikkjel Heyerdahl Reenskaug (21 June 1930 – 14 June 2024) was a Norwegian computer scientist and professor emeritus of the University of Oslo. He formulated the model–view–controller (MVC) pattern for graphical user interface (GUI) software design in 1979 while visiting the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC).

Key takeaways

Trygve Reenskaug belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Trygve Reenskaug to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Trygve Reenskaug from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Trygve Mikkjel Heyerdahl Reenskaug (21 June 1930 – 14 June 2024) was a Norwegian computer scientist and professor emeritus of the University of Oslo. He formulated the model–view–controller (MVC) pattern for graphical user interface (GUI) software design in 1979 while visiting the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). His first major software project, "Autokon," produced a successful computer-aided design – computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) program which was first used in 1963, and continued in use by shipyards worldwide for more than 30 years. Reenskaug described his early Smalltalk and object-oriented programming conceptual efforts as follows:

MVC was conceived as a general solution to the problem of users controlling a large and complex data set. The hardest part was to hit upon good names for the different architectural components. Model-View-Editor was the first set. After long discussions, particularly with Adele Goldberg, we ended with the terms Model-View-Controller. Reenskaug was extensively involved in research into object-oriented methods and developed the Object Oriented Role Analysis and Modeling (OOram) and the OOram tool in 1983. He founded the information technology company Taskon in 1986, which developed tools based on OOram. The OOram ideas matured and evolved substantially into the BabyUML project, which culminated in creating the data, context and interaction (DCI) paradigm. Reenskaug wrote the book Working With Objects: The OOram Software Engineering Method with co-authors Per Wold and Odd Arild Lehne. Later he wrote a virtual machine for Unified Modeling Language (UML). As of 2005, he was professor emeritus of informatics at the University of Oslo. Reenskaug died on 14 June 2024, at the age of 93.

References

External links Official website Reenskaug, Trygve; et al. "Selected publications and books since 1970". Universitetet i Oslo. Reenskaug, Trygve; Lehne, Odd Arild (1996). "OOPSLA '96 Tutorial Descriptions: Tutorial 25: Working with Objects: Use and Reuse with Role Model Analysis and Synthesis". Special Interest Group on Programming Languages. Rupp, N. Alex (11 December 2003). "Part One: History of the MVC Pattern". Java.net. Archived from the original on 29 May 2007. (Part of an article entitled: "Beyond MVC: A new look at the Servlet Infrastructure") List of publications by Trygve Reenskaug in CRIStin

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Trygve Reenskaug

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Trygve Reenskaug claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Trygve Reenskaug before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Trygve Reenskaug ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Trygve Reenskaug

In research: Trygve Reenskaug appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Trygve Reenskaug in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Trygve Reenskaug is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1930 births, 2024 deaths, 20th-century Norwegian scientists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Trygve Reenskaug outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Trygve Reenskaug in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Trygve Reenskaug means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Trygve Reenskaug out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Trygve Reenskaug in simple terms?

Why does Trygve Reenskaug matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Trygve Reenskaug?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Trygve Reenskaug.