This association would lead him to the one innovation he has received the most acclaim for: the invention of the Finger protocol  () in the early 1970s. In the late 1960s, Earnest continued to diversify the types of technologies he involved himself with.
The connection would direct him towards his most celebrated innovation—the invention of the Finger protocol  ()—which occurred in the early 1970s. In the late 1960s, Earnest also broadened the types of technologies he worked on.