The design of TeX and METAFONT: A retrospective Nelson H.F. Beebe Dept of Mathematics, University of Utah This speech reviewes at the design of TeX and METAFONT, and analyze how they were affected by architectures, operation systems, programming languages, and resource limits of the computing world at the time of their creation by a remarkable programmer and human being, Donald E. Knuth. This speech is dedicated to him, with deep gratitude for the continued inspiration and learning that I've received from his software, his scientific writing, and our occasional personal encounters over the last 25+ years.