The Rise and Fall of Astrodienst

In episode 408 astrologer Michael Erlewine joins the podcast to talk about the history of founding the first company that produced astrology software for the personal computer, called Matrix Software. Michael founded Matrix and began producing astrology software in 1977, and it helped to usher in the era of computerized astrology. During the course of the episode we talk about Michael's life and the early days of creating astrology software programs, and we also touch on his work in heliocentric and locational astrology. Michael has written a history of Matrix Software, which you can read here: History of Matrix Software You can find out more about Michael on his website: SpiritGroves.net This episode is available in audio and video versions below. Timestamps 00:00:00 Intro 00:00:40 History of Matrix Software 00:04:04 Michael's background and natal chart 00:09:40 Hitchhiking with Bob Dylan 00:12:49 Berkeley years in 1960s 00:15:34 When Michael became an astrologer 00:17:08 Band with Iggy Pop 00:19:18 Calculating charts by hand for bookstore 00:27:10 First programmable calculator 00:39:54 Heliocentric astrology 00:48:22 Local space relocational astrology 00:56:50 Disadvantages of astrologers not knowing astronomy 01:00:32 Heliocentric vs. geocentric chart 01:02:49 Michael's interest in Buddhism 01:11:11 Commodore PET - Michael's first computer 01:22:55 The first astrological software and reports 01:26:43 Early fears about computerized charts 01:29:40 When Matrix became successful 01:36:19 The Heart Center in Michigan 01:37:44 Friendship with Robert Schmidt 01:48:10 Early astrology conferences 01:53:56 Music and film business 01:58:15 Astrological archives 02:05:51 Where is astrology going? 02:07:30 Michael's legacy 02:10:00 Michael's Facebook and website 02:12:54 Patrons and sponsors Watch the Video Version of This Episode You can watch the video version of my interview with Michael Erlewine on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_WXC-cpZjA - Transcript A full transcript of this episode is available: Episode 408 transcript Listen to the Audio Version of This Episode Listen to the audio version of this episode or download it as an MP3: