DNA sequencing is a technique that is routinely performed in many molecular biology laboratories. This paper will describe some of the advances in DNA sequencing spanning the past ten years. With current manual sequencing techniques, it is possible for an average researcher to sequence 10100,000 bases per year. With the development of automated fluorescence and radiometric sequencing methods, it will be possible to generate considerably more data per person. In this paper we also will describe the fundamental principles of automated sequencing by fluorescence.