Larry McVoy
Encyclopedia
Larry McVoy is the CEO of BitMover, the company that makes BitKeeper
, a version control system that was used from February 2002 to early 2005 to manage the source code
of the Linux kernel
.
He earned BS and MS degrees in Computer Science
in 1985 and 1987, respectively, from the University of Wisconsin–Madison
and has been employed by Sun Microsystems
, Silicon Graphics
and Google
. His work generally included performance enhancements to the various Unix operating systems developed by his employers. While McVoy worked at Sun, he worked on a peer-to-peer SCM
system named TeamWare
that would form the basis of his later BitKeeper product.
project around its 0.9.7 version and developed the LMbench kernel benchmark "to make sure Linux didn't turn into a bloated mess like most commercial Unix
offerings". LMbench is still active as of 2007, with Carl Staelin acting as maintainer.
The BitKeeper source control system was also developed and integrated into the Linux development process, but disagreements between McVoy and some members of the community prompted the development of the Linux git
tool that eventually superseded the use of BitKeeper for the Linux kernel in 2005.
product, SunOS
to compete with Microsoft
's new Windows NT
operating system
. The proposal would have created a copyleft
version of SunOS
at a time before Linux had reached its 1.0 version.
BitKeeper
BitKeeper is a software tool for distributed revision control of computer source code. A distributed system, BitKeeper competes largely against other systems such as Git and Mercurial...
, a version control system that was used from February 2002 to early 2005 to manage the source code
Source code
In computer science, source code is text written using the format and syntax of the programming language that it is being written in. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source...
of the Linux kernel
Linux kernel
The Linux kernel is an operating system kernel used by the Linux family of Unix-like operating systems. It is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software....
.
He earned BS and MS degrees in Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
in 1985 and 1987, respectively, from the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
and has been employed by Sun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems, Inc. was a company that sold :computers, computer components, :computer software, and :information technology services. Sun was founded on February 24, 1982...
, Silicon Graphics
Silicon Graphics
Silicon Graphics, Inc. was a manufacturer of high-performance computing solutions, including computer hardware and software, founded in 1981 by Jim Clark...
and Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
. His work generally included performance enhancements to the various Unix operating systems developed by his employers. While McVoy worked at Sun, he worked on a peer-to-peer SCM
Software configuration management
In software engineering, software configuration management is the task of tracking and controlling changes in the software. Configuration management practices include revision control and the establishment of baselines....
system named TeamWare
TeamWare
Sun WorkShop TeamWare is a distributed source code revision control system made by Sun Microsystems...
that would form the basis of his later BitKeeper product.
Linux
McVoy started working with the LinuxLinux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
project around its 0.9.7 version and developed the LMbench kernel benchmark "to make sure Linux didn't turn into a bloated mess like most commercial Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
offerings". LMbench is still active as of 2007, with Carl Staelin acting as maintainer.
The BitKeeper source control system was also developed and integrated into the Linux development process, but disagreements between McVoy and some members of the community prompted the development of the Linux git
Git (software)
Git is a distributed revision control system with an emphasis on speed. Git was initially designed and developed by Linus Torvalds for Linux kernel development. Every Git working directory is a full-fledged repository with complete history and full revision tracking capabilities, not dependent on...
tool that eventually superseded the use of BitKeeper for the Linux kernel in 2005.
Sourceware Operating System
While working at Sun in the early 1990s, McVoy and a number of other high-profile Unix community members urged the company to open-source their flagship UnixUnix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
product, SunOS
SunOS
SunOS is a version of the Unix operating system developed by Sun Microsystems for their workstation and server computer systems. The SunOS name is usually only used to refer to versions 1.0 to 4.1.4 of SunOS...
to compete with Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
's new Windows NT
Windows NT
Windows NT is a family of operating systems produced by Microsoft, the first version of which was released in July 1993. It was a powerful high-level-language-based, processor-independent, multiprocessing, multiuser operating system with features comparable to Unix. It was intended to complement...
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
. The proposal would have created a copyleft
Copyleft
Copyleft is a play on the word copyright to describe the practice of using copyright law to offer the right to distribute copies and modified versions of a work and requiring that the same rights be preserved in modified versions of the work...
version of SunOS
SunOS
SunOS is a version of the Unix operating system developed by Sun Microsystems for their workstation and server computer systems. The SunOS name is usually only used to refer to versions 1.0 to 4.1.4 of SunOS...
at a time before Linux had reached its 1.0 version.
External links
- BitKeeper and Linux: The end of the road? (April 2005 Newsforge interview about Linux controversy)
- Interview with Larry McVoy
- Open Source by Dan Pickett and Joe Gamboa — Chapter 9
- Thank you, Larry McVoy, Richard StallmanRichard StallmanRichard Matthew Stallman , often shortened to rms,"'Richard Stallman' is just my mundane name; you can call me 'rms'"|last= Stallman|first= Richard|date= N.D.|work=Richard Stallman's homepage...
regarding the end of zero-cost BitKeeper licenses - The Sourceware Operating System Proposal
- LMbench performance-analysis tools