Photo: Ilya Schurov / CC BY-SA 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
Born on April 28, 1973 in Constance, Freiburg Government Region, Germany, Ian Murdock was a computer scientist, engineer and programmer. Death is recorded on December 28, 2015, at the age of 42. Ian Murdock studied at William Henry Harrison High School and Purdue University. Credited works include Debian Manifesto.
My Take
Ian Murdock matters enormously to me. Born in Constance and educated at Purdue, he founded Debian and wrote the Debian Manifesto, laying ideological and technical groundwork that still underpins a huge portion of the computing world today. Every time I touch a Linux based system, his vision is somewhere beneath it. His death in 2015 at just forty-two was a real loss. He was not a flashy public figure, but he quietly changed the world through a belief in free, collaborative software. I think of him as a true revolutionary, the kind history undervalues until you look closely.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Ian Murdock
- Name (Japanese)
- イアン・マードック
- Reading
- いあん・まーどっく
- Born
- April 28, 1973 – December 28, 2015
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Taurus / Ox
- Origin
- Constance, Freiburg Government Region, Germany
- Occupation
- computer scientist / engineer / programmer
2. Background
- High school
- William Henry Harrison High School
- University
- Purdue University
3. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Debian Manifesto | — |
4. Links
- Official sitehttps://ianmurdock.com
- Xhttps://x.com/imurdock
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian%20Murdock
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%A4%E3%82%A2%E3%83%B3%E3%83%BB%E3%83%9E%E3%83%BC%E3%83%89%E3%83%83%E3%82%AF
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q92761
5. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-21
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was Ian Murdock born?
Born April 28, 1973.
When did Ian Murdock die?
Died December 28, 2015, aged 42.
Where was Ian Murdock from?
Ian Murdock was from Constance, Freiburg Government Region, Germany.
What did Ian Murdock do?
Ian Murdock worked as computer scientist, engineer, programmer.
What was Ian Murdock known for?
Notable works include Debian Manifesto.
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