He founded Sublogic after graduating from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 1977, and released the first version of Flight Simulator for the Apple II in 1979.
When he arrived, Artwick first switched his focus to electrical engineering because he believed that the degree would be more acceptable to the public eye.
[3] With this, Artwick proved that it was possible to use the 6800 microprocessor, which powered some of the first available microcomputers, to handle the graphics and calculations of the specifications needed to produce real-time flight simulation.
After establishing Sublogic in 1977, Artwick took his thesis one step further by developing the first flight simulator program for the Apple II, which was based on the 6502 microprocessor.
[citation needed] Shortly after, Microsoft decided to enter the fray to obtain a license for Flight Simulator.
The company found itself growing a substantial amount in just two years’ time and Artwick decided to move part of his operation back to Champaign-Urbana.
The name Sublogic came from logic circuits Artwick built for the PDP-11 in the University of Illinois' Digital Computer Laboratory (DCL).
[citation needed] In 1988, he left Sublogic and found BAO Ltd. (Bruce Artwick Organization), retaining the copyright to Flight Simulator, which he continued to develop.