• IEEE.org
  • IEEE CS Standards
  • Career Center
  • About Us
  • Subscribe to Newsletter

0

IEEE-CS_LogoTM-orange
  • MEMBERSHIP
  • CONFERENCES
  • PUBLICATIONS
  • EDUCATION & CAREER
  • VOLUNTEER
  • ABOUT
  • Join Us
IEEE-CS_LogoTM-orange

0

IEEE Computer Society Logo
Sign up for our newsletter
IEEE COMPUTER SOCIETY
About UsBoard of GovernorsNewslettersPress RoomIEEE Support CenterContact Us
COMPUTING RESOURCES
Career CenterCourses & CertificationsWebinarsPodcastsTech NewsMembership
BUSINESS SOLUTIONS
Corporate PartnershipsConference Sponsorships & ExhibitsAdvertisingRecruitingDigital Library Institutional Subscriptions
DIGITAL LIBRARY
MagazinesJournalsConference ProceedingsVideo LibraryLibrarian Resources
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
GovernanceConference OrganizersAuthorsChaptersCommunities
POLICIES
PrivacyAccessibility StatementIEEE Nondiscrimination PolicyIEEE Ethics ReportingXML Sitemap

Copyright 2026 IEEE - All rights reserved. A public charity, IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity.

  • Home
  • /Profiles
  • Home
  • /Profiles

John Warnock

Award Recipient

Featured ImageJohn E. Warnock is co-chairman of the Board of Directors of Adobe Systems, Inc., a company he co-founded in 1982 with Charles Geschke. Dr. Warnock was President of Adobe for his first two years and Chairman and CEO for his remaining 16 years at Adobe.

John has pioneered the development of graphics, web and electronic document technologies that have revolutionized the field of publishing and visual communication. Dr. Warnock holds seven patents.

John's career has been chronicled by the numerous awards for technical and managerial achievement. A partial list of awards includes: Entrepreneur of the Year from Ernst & Young, Merrill Lynch, and Inc. Magazine; University of Utah Distinguished Alumnus Award; Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Software Systems Award. John has also received the Edwin H. Land Award from the Optical Society of America, the Bodleian Medal from Oxford University, and the Lovelace Medal from the British Computer Society. John is a distinguished member of the National Academy of Engineering, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He has received Honorary Degrees from the University of Utah and the American Film Institute.

Before co-founding Adobe Systems, John was the Principal Scientist at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). Prior to joining Xerox, John held key positions at Evans & Sutherland Computer Corporation, Computer Sciences Corporation, IBM, and the University of Utah.

John holds B.S and M.S degrees in Mathematics and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, all from the University of Utah.


Awards

2008 Computer Entrepreneur Award
“For inventing PostScript and PDF and helping to launch the desktop publishing revolution and change the way people engage with information and entertainment.”
Co-recipient with Charles M. Geschke
Learn more about the Computer Entrepreneur Award

LATEST NEWS
Creating the Next Generation of Connected Autonomous Systems: an Interview with Weisong Shi on Edge Computing, Autonomous Driving, and the Future of Mobility
Creating the Next Generation of Connected Autonomous Systems: an Interview with Weisong Shi on Edge Computing, Autonomous Driving, and the Future of Mobility
Call for Nominations: IEEE Computer Society Opens Submissions for the “AI’s 10 to Watch” Award
Call for Nominations: IEEE Computer Society Opens Submissions for the “AI’s 10 to Watch” Award
Episode 1 | Interview with Michelle Tomes
Episode 1 | Interview with Michelle Tomes
Celebrating Excellence: 2025 IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing Awards
Celebrating Excellence: 2025 IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing Awards
Tech Horizons: Building AI Skills and Confidence in Panama’s Youth
Tech Horizons: Building AI Skills and Confidence in Panama’s Youth
Read Next

Creating the Next Generation of Connected Autonomous Systems: an Interview with Weisong Shi on Edge Computing, Autonomous Driving, and the Future of Mobility

Call for Nominations: IEEE Computer Society Opens Submissions for the “AI’s 10 to Watch” Award

Episode 1 | Interview with Michelle Tomes

Celebrating Excellence: 2025 IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing Awards

Tech Horizons: Building AI Skills and Confidence in Panama’s Youth

TechMovel: Expanding Digital Access in Brazil

InfiLab Podcast: Fueling Your Tech Career with Sowmya Chintakindi

How Hardware-Level Security Enhances Operational Visibility and Resilience

Get the latest news and technology trends for computing professionals with ComputingEdge
Sign up for our newsletter