Wisdom suggests that behind every great man there's a great woman, although these days it could just as well be the other way around.

But behind every great technology there's almost always a great geek, the men and women whose vision and invention helped create the world and its technology as we know it.

Often unsung and underappreciated, their own personalities or lifestyles usually keep them from gaining greater public recognition.

You won't find any smooth-talking chief executives or business masterminds who built computing empires on this list (that comes next week).

These people are the geek's geeks. They are the truly magnificent eggheads that worked their magic on the most basic levels, from invention and development to silicon and command lines.

With so many great minds to choose from, it was all but impossible to narrow this list down to 10 but, after considerable argument, we've managed it, nearly.

So at the end you'll find a couple of honourable mentions; it was either that or a fight would have broken out.