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Below is short biography of B.N. Malinovsky, composed by Dr.Ye.Filinov according to the Virtual Computer Museum Council decision (Moskow) and exposed at the museum site.

Boris N. Malinovsky (1921-2019) - known in Ukraine and abroad scientist in the field of digital control machines design and application theory, corre sponding member of the National Academy of Science of Ukraine. He was born on August 24, 1921, in the Lukh village Ivanovskaya oblast of Russia, in the family of teacher.

Professor Sir Maurice V.Wilkes (Great Britain), Professor Boris Malinovsky (Ukraine), Professor Frank Land (Great Britain)
From left to right:
Honorable doctor of NAS of Ukraine, Professor Sir Maurice Wilkes (Great Britain),  -
the creator of the first ever computer with the program which is stored in memory 1,
corresponding member of the National Academy of Science of Ukraine, Professor, Ph.D in computer science, Honoured worker of Ukrainian science and technics, Boris Malinovsky (Ukraine) -
general designer of the first national semiconductor control computer of the broad application 2,
Professor Frank Land (Great Britain). - participant the first computer used for commercial business applications3 creation.
International Symposium on the contribution of Europeans to the evolution and the achievements of computer technology "COMPUTERS IN EUROPE. PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE". Kyiv, October 5-9, 1998


1 1949 - EDSAC - Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator
2 1961 - "Dnepr" - control computer of the broad application
3 1951 - LEO I - Lyons Electronic Office I

To Mark 99th Anniversary of Boris N.Malinovsky. 2020 ›››
"Inventor of the future. How Boris Malinovsky has been developing Ukrainian cybernetics since the 50s of the last century". Published on May 26, 2020 on the website of the Community of Developers of Ukraine (DOU - Developers.Org.Ua), in Ukrainian ›››
"Boris Nikolaevich Malinovsky is a computer technology veteran". Published on March 5, 2016, ua-hosting Company Blog, History IT, TashaFridrih, in Ukrainian ›››
"Boris Nikolaevich Malinovsky". Published 2014 by Yuriy Revich, in Ukrainian. ›››

In 1939 first year student of the Leningrad Mining Institute B.Malinovsky was drafted to the army. In 1941 just before release, WWII had begun. B.Malinovsky went off active service from the soldier to the senior lieutenant, commander of the ordnance battery, was twice wounded, decorated with orders of "Red Star", "Great Patriotic War" of I and II degree, with the medals "For combat service", "For Moscow defense", "For the victory over Germany".

After the war Boris Malinovsky studied at the Ivanovsk Energy Institute from which graduated in 1950. Working on the diploma project that dealt with calculations for the copy shaper control device, he used data on automated systems rigidity from the S.Lebedev's articles published in the Institute of Electrotechnique AS Ukr.SSR works collection.

On the request about possibility to enter graduate program at that institute he received a positive response and became a graduate student in 1950.

The topic of his thesis work, which related to the research on digital computing machines magnetic elements, was proposed by S.Lebedev (Director of the institute of Electotechnique at that time), who was interested in feasibility of magnetic elements application for the reliability increase in the vacuum tubes computers MESM and BESM.

Malinovsky defended his candidate thesis in 1953.

In 1954 B.Malinovsky by Lebedev's errand investigated effects of the magnetic elements in MESM. In 1955-1958 he completed project on digital computing machine for the radar station data processing (for the Scientific and Research Institute 5, Moscow) and the project on onboard digital computing machine for the front bomber with controlled projectile (for the post office box 24, Kiev). In 1957, on the basis of the computing techniques laboratory at the Institute of Mathematics, the Computational Center was established that was transformed in 1962 into Institute of Cybernetics (today V.Glushkov Institute of Cybernetics, NAS of Ukraine). It was headed by V.Glushkov. B.Malinovsky served as a deputy Director for research division and as a head of the department of Specialized Machines at the Computational Center AS of Ukr.SSR in the period of 1957-1962. After creation of the Institute of Cybernetics, B.Malinovsky becomes head of the Department of Control Machines, and from the 1971 also a head of the division of Cybernetic technique. In 1957-1967 department led by B.Malinovsky worked on the creation of the semiconductor control machine of broad applications "Dnepr", on organization of its serial production at the Kiev plant "Radiopribor" and then at the Kiev plant of the computing control machines (today kiev production association "Electronmash"), on projecting and implementation of the control systems based on machine "Dnepr" for the technological processes and scientific experiments.

The idea of creation of a universal control machine instead of specialized machines was formulated by V.Glushkov in ) 1957-1958.) It had a fundamental significance for the future cybernetics development and application in the control over technical systems, including industrial technological processes.

Basic principles of the universal control machine construction - high reliability, semiconductor elemental base that guaranteed necessary reliability, optimal capacity for the functioning in the real time scale, limited to 26 bit machine words code, double address command system sufficient for the precise calculations of the majority of the technological processes algorithms - were proposed by principal designer B.Malinovsky and Ye.Yuschenko who directed elaboration of the software for the machine of broad application "Dnepr". It should be mentioned that these principles are obvious today, but then they met skeptical attitude from the specialists on automated control (technical cybernetics) and from the planning authority leadership. That's why machine "Dnepr" developers had to overcome not only the technical difficulties but also the opposition during its implementation. Emergence of the first "Dnepr" based automated systems of technological processes and complicated industrial experiments control played a major role. B.Malinovsky, his colleague V.Skurikhin and graduate students supervised those works. Automated systems of technological processes control were implemented at the Nikolayev shipbuilding plant, Slovyansk soda plant, in the wind tunnel automated product testing system at the S.Korolyov design bureau (town of Podlipki), in the rocket engines testing system at the "Yuzhmash" (Dnepropetrovsk) and others.

The serial production of the control machine of broad application "Dnepr" began in 1961. At the same time USA began serial production of the universal control machine PB 300. The "Dnepr" machine was in production for 10 years (1961-1971) and was used as base for near 500 control systems of diverse application.

In the middle of 1962 V.Glushkov suggested that B.Malinovsky needs to prepare doctoral thesis by the complex of completed and published works. In 1963 B.Malinovsky published monograph "Control machines and production automation". Defense took place in January 1964.

At the chapter "Noting is more precious:" of the book "History of the computer technique in persons" B.Malinovsky tells about "heroic period" (words of V.Glushkov) of the Institute of Cybernetics insipience related to the creation of the control machine of broad application "Dnepr". He cites quote from the thesis defense scientific council meeting verbatim.

"Academician Glushkov: "Here in the reference of Prof. Temnikov is emphasized my role in the machine developing. Therefore, I want firstly to say that while formally we both with Boris Nikolayevich supervised this topic, but in fact nine tens (if not more) of work, especially at the final stage, was done by Boris Nikolayevich. That's why everything that was said here about machine "Dnepr" can be rightfully attributed first f all to him.

...Cybernetics begins where of talks are done and work begins. In this sense B.Malinovsky' activity promotes cybernetic as service for our national economics and service to our people.

...At the beginning we were told that team here is small, with no experience in computer designing, and it is simply incapable to do the job. Turned on attention at the examples of the different organizations where teams of 1,5 - 2 thousand people worked on machine origination, where powerful supporting enterprises existed. However, this work was done by comparatively small team.

...Besides any doubt, such work is profound by its economic influence, important and very deep by its scientific level, and altogether demanded truly colossal efforts and intensity, and deserves highest appreciation in all aspects, in particular - by granting its author and advisor degree of the doctor of technical science."

In 1969 B.Malinovsky was elected corre sponding member of the AS of Ukr.SSR. In 1967-1973 he supervised origination of the first in Ukraine minicomputer M 180 for the laboratory scientific experiment automation system.

In 1969-1979 he served as a head of the Council on scientific research automation at he Presidium of the AS of Ukr.SSR and actively promoted those works. Till the middle of 70s of XX century there were near 100 systems for the experimental scientific research automation created at the AS of Ukr.SSR.

In 1973-1986 B.Malinovsky took part in the development of the first in the USSR family of microcomputers "Electronica C 5", personal computer "Neuron" and also signal processors for the terrestrial and onboard communication systems of new generation.

B.Malnovsky published over 200 research works, including 12 monographs. He trained 10 doctors and 40 candidates of science. Boris Malinovsky is awarded with the orders of "Red Labor Banner", "October Revolution", "Bogdan Khmelnitsky", he is twice laureate of the State Prize of Ukraine (1977, 2003) and prizes of the Presidium of the AS of Ukr.SSR after S.Lebedev (1978) and V.Glushkov (1984). In 1998 B.Malinovsky was granted with rank of "Dignified leader of the science and technology of Ukraine". In 2002 he was awarded with the prize after V.Vernadsky by "Ukraine of XXI century" Fund.

***

For the last years B.Malinovsky is actively working on the history of the computer techniques. He wrote books: "Academician S.Lebedev" (1992), "Academician V.Glushkov" (1993), "History of the compution technique in persons" (1995), "Essays on the history of the computer science and information technology in Ukraine" (1998), "Known and unknown in the history of information technology in Ukraine" (2001), "Nothing is more precious..." (2005), "Store Eternally" (2007, in Ukrainian, Russian and English), "Documentary Trilogy" (2011), "Little stories about great scientists" (2013), "Bashir Rameev. From the Urals to the "Ural"" (2014); scripts for the movies "Academician S.Lebedev. For eternal storage." (Kiev studio for the popular scientific films, 1992), "Cyberneticist V.Glushkov. A sight from the future." (Kiev studio "Golden Gates", 1993).

Boris Malinovsky organized the Inter national charitable fund of the computer science and technique history and development.

The International Symposium on history of the first computers development and contribution of Europeans into the develop ment of computer technologies took place in October 1998 in Kiev: "Computers in Europe: Past, Present and Future".

B.Malinovsky initiated realization of this symposium and headed the international program committee that included leading experts of Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Great Britain, Germany, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan. President of NAS of Ukraine academician B.Ye.Paton has opened a symposium . The symposium has passed very successfully. Presidium NASU under B.Ye.Paton's offer has made a decision to award the participant of symposium Maurice V. Wilkes (Great Britain), the creator of the first ever computer with the program which is stored in memory (1949), rank of Honorable doctor of NAS of Ukraine. A diploma confering an honourable title was awarded to Sir Maurice V. Wilkes by B. Malynovsky during reception in scientist's office in Cambridge.

Until November 2019 , the great scientist is an advisor to the directorate of the Institute of Cybernetics (named after V.M. Glushkov), as well as the chairman of the Council of the House of Scientists, the president of the Fund for the history and development of computer science and technology, and a member of the Board of the Committee for veterans' affairs at the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

Unfortunately, on November 13, 2019, Boris Nikolaevich Malinovsky passed away, but the memory of him will remain for many years in the hearts of relatives and friends, comrades, students and everyone who had the good fortune to work and live with him ...


The list of computers Boris N.Malinovsky has taken part in development:

  1. The vacuum tube computer project for radar station data preprocessing (1957)
  2. The project of the semiconductor on-board computer for the front-line bomber (1958)
  3. The family of microcomputers and debugging systems - "Neuron"

  4. Greetings for 90th Anniversary of Boris N.Malinovsky, 2011. in Ukrainian