About the Lead Authors

John Ray is the Senior Systems Engineer for The Ohio State University Extension and College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. He is responsible for managing computer services for the OSU CFAES campus and Extension offices throughout the state. John also provides custom network, security, and programming solutions for clients across the country, including the National Regulatory Research Institute and the Brevard Metropolitan Planning Organization in Florida. A Macintosh owner and programmer since 1984, John has written/contributed to numerous titles including Maximum Mac OS X Security, Sams Teach Yourself Macromedia Studio MX 2004 All in One, Sams Teach Yourself Mac OS X, and Tiger All In One.

William Ray is a mathematician turned computer scientist turned biophysicist who has gravitated to the field of bioinformatics for its interesting synergy of logic, hard science, and human-computer-interface issues. A longtime Macintosh and Unix enthusiast, Will has owned Macs since 1985 and has worked with Unix since 1987. Prior to switching his professional focus to the biological sciences, Will spent five years as a Unix programmer developing experimental interfaces to online database systems. Shortly after migrating to biophysics, Will developed a Macintosh and Unix-based computational biology/graphics laboratory and training center for The Ohio State University's College of Biological Sciences. At the facility, which he managed for five years, Will introduced hundreds of students and faculty to Unix, and provided training and assistance in the development of productive computing skills on the paired Macintosh and Unix platforms. Will is currently a Professor of Pediatrics at the Columbus Children's Research Institute Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and the Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University, where he is investigating tools that work at the interface between humans, computers, and information, and working to build a core computational research and training facility for his institute.