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Richard Stallman

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Article Genealogy
Parent: MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory Hop 3
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Richard Stallman
NameRichard Stallman
CaptionStallman at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2019
Birth nameRichard Matthew Stallman
Birth date16 March 1953
Birth placeNew York City, U.S.
EducationHarvard University (BA), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (dropped out)
OccupationSoftware developer, activist
Known forGNU Project, Free Software Foundation, Emacs, GNU Compiler Collection, GNU General Public License
Websitestallman.org

Richard Stallman. Often known by his initials, RMS, he is an American software freedom activist and programmer. He is the founder of the GNU Project, a collaborative effort to develop a completely free operating system, and the Free Software Foundation, a nonprofit organization advocating for the rights of computer users. His work has fundamentally shaped the free software movement and the development of widely used software like the GNU Compiler Collection and the GNU Emacs text editor.

Early life and education

Born in Manhattan, he showed an early aptitude for mathematics and science. He attended Harvard University, graduating in 1974 with a Bachelor of Arts in physics. During his time as a student, he also began working as a programmer at the MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, immersing himself in the collaborative hacker culture of the 1970s. This environment, where sharing and modifying software was the norm, profoundly influenced his later philosophy. He subsequently enrolled in a PhD program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology but left to focus fully on his programming and activist work.

Free software activism

His activism was sparked by a growing conflict over proprietary software at the MIT AI Lab in the early 1980s. The installation of a password system and the use of restrictive software licenses by companies like Symbolics led him to resign from the lab in 1984. He launched the GNU Project that same year with the radical goal of creating a complete, Unix-compatible operating system composed entirely of free software. To legally define and protect this concept, he authored the GNU General Public License, a pioneering copyleft license that ensures software freedoms are preserved in all derivative works. He also established the Free Software Foundation in 1985 to provide organizational and financial support for the movement.

GNU Project and free software movement

The central achievement of the GNU Project was the creation of a vast collection of essential software components, including the GNU Compiler Collection, the GNU Debugger, and GNU Emacs. However, the project lacked a core kernel until Linus Torvalds released the Linux kernel in 1991. When combined, these elements formed the GNU/Linux operating system, a cornerstone of the modern free software and open-source software ecosystem. He tirelessly campaigns for the term "free software" over "open source," emphasizing ethical freedoms over mere practical benefits. His essays, such as "The GNU Manifesto" and "Why Software Should Not Have Owners," are foundational texts for the movement.

Views and controversies

He is known for his unwavering and often controversial stances on software ethics and related social issues. He strongly opposes software patents, digital rights management, and proprietary software, which he compares to digital tyranny. His personal behavior and comments on topics outside of software, including remarks on subjects like the Epstein scandal, have drawn significant criticism and led to his temporary resignation from the MIT CSAIL and the Free Software Foundation board in 2019. Despite this, he remains a polarizing but iconic figure, continuing to advocate for his principles through speeches, writings, and his website.

Awards and recognition

His contributions have been recognized with numerous prestigious awards. These include a MacArthur Fellowship in 1990, the Grace Murray Hopper Award from the Association for Computing Machinery, and the Takeda Award for social and economic betterment. He has also received honorary doctorates from institutions such as the University of Glasgow and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. In 1998, he was inducted as a fellow of the Computer History Museum for his foundational role in the free software movement.

Personal life

He has led a notably minimalist and peripatetic lifestyle, for many years not maintaining a permanent home and often staying at the offices of supporters or in university housing. He is a strict vegetarian and an advocate for various social causes. An accomplished musician, he has performed internationally as part of the Free Software Song and other satirical performances. His personal website details his extensive travel schedule for lectures and his strongly held views on a wide array of topics, from software to politics.

Category:American computer programmers Category:Free software activists Category:1953 births Category:Living people