Tech world mourns open-source champion Ian Murdock

SAN FRANCISCO — Ian Murdock, a tech entrepreneur and executive best known for founding Debian Linux, one of the most successful versions of the open-source software, died Monday.

He was 42.

Murdock worked for Sun Microsystems, Salesforce.com and most recently for software outfit Docker. A champion of open-source software, Murdock was the "Ian" in "Debian," which he founded in 1993.

"This is a tragic loss for his family, for the Docker community, and the broader open source world; we all mourn his passing," Ben Golub, CEO of Docker, wrote in a blog post. "He was truly brilliant and an inspiration to many of us; his death is a loss to all whom he has known and touched."

Docker did not provide a cause of death.

Debian also posted a memorial to Murdock.

"Ian started the Debian project in August of 1993, releasing the first versions of Debian later that same year. Debian would go on to become the world's Universal Operating System, running on everything from embedded devices to the space station," the post from Ana Guerrero Lopez, Donald Norwood and Paul Tagliamonte reads. "Ian's sharp focus was on creating a Distribution and community culture that did the right thing, be it ethically, or technically. Releases went out when they were ready, and the project's staunch stance on Software Freedom are the gold standards in the Free and Open Source world."