Gerald J. Popek
Encyclopedia
Gerald John "Jerry" Popek (September 22, 1946 – July 20, 2008) was an American
computer scientist
, known for his research on operating systems and virtualization.
With Robert P. Goldberg he proposed the Popek and Goldberg virtualization requirements
,
a set of conditions necessary for a computer architecture to support system virtualization
.
Gerald Popek graduated from Rutherford High School in Rutherford, New Jersey
in 1964, where he was the class valedictorian. He graduated from New York University
in 1968 with a B.S. in Nuclear Engineering.
In 1970 he completed an M.S. in Applied Mathematics from Harvard University
. In 1973 he completed a Ph.D, also in Applied Mathematics, at Harvard and moved to UCLA. At UCLA he worked on virtualisation, network security, reliable operating systems and Databases. He became Director of the Center for Experimental Computer Science.
Around 1980 he worked on the LOCUS
distributed operating system
,
an early implementation of the single-system image
idea.
Between April 1981 and June 1983 Popek served on the DARPA "steering committee" for BSD UNIX
formed by Duane Adams of DARPA to guide the design work leading to 4.2BSD. Other members of the committee were Bob Fabry
, Bill Joy
and Sam Leffler from UCB
, Alan Nemeth and Rob Gurwitz from BBN
, Dennis Ritchie
from Bell Labs
, Keith Lantz from Stanford, Rick Rashid from Carnegie-Mellon, Bert Halstead from MIT and Dan Lynch from ISI
.
In order to pursue the commercial opportunities of LOCUS he formed the Locus Computing Corporation
in 1982, taking on the roles
of Chief technical officer
and Chairman.
In 1995 Locus was acquired by Platinum Technology
Inc. in a share swap.
Dr Popek took on the role of CTO of Platinum.
In 1999 he left Platinum to become CTO of CarsDirect.com, "the first Internet car company"
In 2000 he left CarsDirect.com to join NetZero
also as CTO
In 2001 NetZero merged with its competitor Juno
to form United Online
Inc.
and Dr Popek became Executive Vice President and CTO of the new company.
In June 2009 he was posthumously awarded the 2009 USENIX
Lifetime Achievement Award.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
computer scientist
Computer scientist
A computer scientist is a scientist who has acquired knowledge of computer science, the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and their application in computer systems....
, known for his research on operating systems and virtualization.
With Robert P. Goldberg he proposed the Popek and Goldberg virtualization requirements
Popek and Goldberg virtualization requirements
The Popek and Goldberg virtualization requirements are a set of conditions sufficient for a computer architecture to support system virtualization efficiently. They were introduced by Gerald J. Popek and Robert P. Goldberg in their 1974 article "Formal Requirements for Virtualizable Third...
,
a set of conditions necessary for a computer architecture to support system virtualization
Full virtualization
In computer science, full virtualization is a virtualization technique used to provide a certain kind of virtual machine environment, namely, one that is a complete simulation of the underlying hardware...
.
Biography
Gerald Popek graduated from Rutherford High School in Rutherford, New Jersey
Rutherford, New Jersey
Rutherford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 18,061. It is an inner-ring suburb of New York City, located west of Midtown Manhattan....
in 1964, where he was the class valedictorian. He graduated from New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
in 1968 with a B.S. in Nuclear Engineering.
In 1970 he completed an M.S. in Applied Mathematics from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. In 1973 he completed a Ph.D, also in Applied Mathematics, at Harvard and moved to UCLA. At UCLA he worked on virtualisation, network security, reliable operating systems and Databases. He became Director of the Center for Experimental Computer Science.
Around 1980 he worked on the LOCUS
LOCUS (operating system)
LOCUS was a distributed operating system developed at UCLA during the 1980s. It was notable for providing an early implementation of the single-system image idea, where a cluster of machines appeared to be one larger machine....
distributed operating system
,
an early implementation of the single-system image
Single-system image
In distributed computing, a single system image cluster is a cluster of machines that appears to be one single system. The concept is often considered synonymous with that of a distributed operating system, but a single image may be presented for more limited purposes, just job scheduling for...
idea.
Between April 1981 and June 1983 Popek served on the DARPA "steering committee" for BSD 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...
formed by Duane Adams of DARPA to guide the design work leading to 4.2BSD. Other members of the committee were Bob Fabry
Bob Fabry
Bob Fabry, while a computer science professor at the University of California, Berkeley, conceived of the idea of obtaining DARPA funding for a radically improved version of AT&T Unix and started the Computer Systems Research Group.- References :...
, Bill Joy
Bill Joy
William Nelson Joy , commonly known as Bill Joy, is an American computer scientist. Joy co-founded Sun Microsystems in 1982 along with Vinod Khosla, Scott McNealy and Andy Bechtolsheim, and served as chief scientist at the company until 2003...
and Sam Leffler from UCB
UCB
UCB may stand for:Universities:* The University of California, Berkeley, United States* The University of Colorado at Boulder, United States* University College of Bahrain, Saar, Bahrain* University College Birmingham, England, UK...
, Alan Nemeth and Rob Gurwitz from BBN
BBN
BBN might refer to:* BBN Technologies, formerly Bolt, Beranek and Newman, a technology company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, best known for its work on packet switching technology and its construction of the Interface Message Processor - the first router...
, Dennis Ritchie
Dennis Ritchie
Dennis MacAlistair Ritchie , was an American computer scientist who "helped shape the digital era." He created the C programming language and, with long-time colleague Ken Thompson, the UNIX operating system...
from Bell Labs
Bell Labs
Bell Laboratories is the research and development subsidiary of the French-owned Alcatel-Lucent and previously of the American Telephone & Telegraph Company , half-owned through its Western Electric manufacturing subsidiary.Bell Laboratories operates its...
, Keith Lantz from Stanford, Rick Rashid from Carnegie-Mellon, Bert Halstead from MIT and Dan Lynch from ISI
Information Sciences Institute
The Information Sciences Institute is a research and development unit of the University of Southern California's Viterbi School of Engineering which focuses on computer and communications technology and information processing...
.
In order to pursue the commercial opportunities of LOCUS he formed the Locus Computing Corporation
Locus Computing Corporation
Locus Computing Corporation was formed in 1982 by Gerald J. Popekto commercialize the technologies developed for the LOCUS distributed operating system at UCLA...
in 1982, taking on the roles
of Chief technical officer
Chief technical officer
A chief technology officer is an executive-level position in a company or other entity whose occupant is focused on scientific and technological issues within an organization....
and Chairman.
In 1995 Locus was acquired by Platinum Technology
Platinum Technology
Platinum Technology Inc. was founded by Andrew Filipowski in 1987 to market and support deployment of database management software products and the applications enabled by database management technology and render related services...
Inc. in a share swap.
Dr Popek took on the role of CTO of Platinum.
In 1999 he left Platinum to become CTO of CarsDirect.com, "the first Internet car company"
In 2000 he left CarsDirect.com to join NetZero
NetZero
NetZero is an Internet service provider based in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California. It is a subsidiary of United Online, owner of Juno Online Services and BlueLight Internet Services. The current chairman, president, and CEO of United Online is Mark Goldston.- History :NetZero launched in...
also as CTO
In 2001 NetZero merged with its competitor Juno
Juno Online Services
Juno is an Internet service provider based in the United States. It is a subsidiary of United Online, which also owns NetZero and Kmart's BlueLight internet service.-History:...
to form United Online
United Online
United Online is a public company formed by the 2001 merger of NetZero and Juno Online Services. The company's range of products and services has evolved significantly since inception, primarily through a series of acquisitions that have included Classmates Online , MyPoints and FTD Group, Inc. ....
Inc.
and Dr Popek became Executive Vice President and CTO of the new company.
In June 2009 he was posthumously awarded the 2009 USENIX
USENIX
-External links:* *...
Lifetime Achievement Award.