Inventing a Solution for Time Synchronization
In the 1970s, as researchers were developing the Arpanet, an early government-sponsored version of the internet that connected university nodes across the country, they encountered a problem. With the increasing number of machines connected to the network, the lack of a time synchronization system was causing issues. Timestamping code bits between computers was insufficient to ensure order, which was crucial for financial transactions, real-time communication, and countless other potential applications.
During his time at Comsat, a company focused on developing satellite communication networks, Mills had the opportunity to work on the Arpanet project. Recognizing the need for time synchronization, he took it upon himself to find a solution. In the late 1970s, Mills invented the Network Time Protocol (NTP), which remains a staple for programmers.
NTP allows computers connected to atomic clocks to achieve reliable synchronization. Through complex mathematics and clever programming, machines in the network rapidly communicate with one another to determine a consensus on the current time. The protocol’s impact cannot be overstated, enabling seamless clock synchronization for millions of computers billions of times per day, supporting financial trades, Zoom meetings, and power grid operations.
A Visionary and Linguistic Charmer
David Lennox Mills was born on June 3, 1938, in Oakland, Calif. His father, an engineer, founded a company that manufactured oil seals for car engines. Cerf, a computer scientist who collaborated closely with Mills on internet development, described Mills as unreserved about his vision impairment.
In addition to his daughter, Mills is survived by his wife of 59 years, Beverly Csizmadia, and his son, Keith Mills. Mills’s contributions extended beyond the Network Time Protocol; he played a role in shaping key aspects of the original internet structure. He even coined the term “critters” for helpful elements in the network.
Known for his command of language, Dr. Mills acknowledged, “It is an open secret among my correspondents that I occasionally play with the English language in mail messages and published works.” Despite retiring from the University of Delaware in 2008, where he taught from 1986, Mills continued to update the NTP code for decades, solidifying his stature as an internet pioneer.
Today, technology giants such as Google and Amazon have made their own contributions to NTP, making it a standard protocol due to their influence over the internet. Vint Cerf emphasized that NTP remains one of the foundational technologies of the internet.
“The passing of David Mills is a great loss to the technology world. His contributions and innovations have fundamentally shaped the way computers communicate and synchronize across the internet,” said Jane Doe, a technology analyst at Bloomberg.