Johann Gutenberg, despite being a man who died bankrupt and relatively unknown, is the man who ushered in the age of information. This German goldsmith was credited for the inventing the first moveable type printing press, which ended the days of copying works by hand. His invention revolutionized the moving and storage of information.

Little is known on the birth of Johann just the fact that he was born into a family of a patrician in Mainz. He later moved to Strasburg in 1428. During these years, Gutenberg took up several crafts including metalwork, gem cutting, and part-time teaching. Having little money to toy around with, Gutenberg took in a number of investors, which provided the capital for a new enterprise that Gutenberg chose to keep secret. This engagement eventually ended in a trial in which the funders demanded they be made partners. They lost but threw up the...