COMPUTER SCIENTIST

Phil Katz

1962 - 2000

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Phillip Walter Katz (November 3, 1962 – April 14, 2000) was a computer programmer best known as the co-creator of the ZIP file format for data compression, and the author of PKZIP, a program for creating zip files that ran under DOS. A copyright lawsuit between System Enhancement Associates (SEA) and Katz's company, PKWARE, was widely publicized in the BBS community in the late 1980s. Katz's software business was very successful, but he struggled with social isolation and chronic alcoholism in the last years of his life. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in 19 different languages on Wikipedia. Phil Katz is the 216th most popular computer scientist (up from 217th in 2024), the 14,786th most popular biography from United States (up from 15,239th in 2019) and the 112th most popular American Computer Scientist.

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Among COMPUTER SCIENTISTS

Among computer scientists, Phil Katz ranks 216 out of 245. Before him are Bram Moolenaar, Craig Federighi, Theo de Raadt, Hans Reiser, Martin Odersky, and Alexandra Elbakyan. After him are Bram Cohen, Terry A. Davis, Eric Allman, Nancy Lynch, Douglas Crockford, and Steve Wilhite.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1962, Phil Katz ranks 804. Before him are Gary Stevens, Hendrik Reiher, Steve Redgrave, Luis Fernando Herrera, Detlev Buck, and Adelfa Calvo. After him are Florica Lavric, Roland Günther, Jan Björklund, Dan Bittman, Håkan Juholt, and Nahoko Uehashi. Among people deceased in 2000, Phil Katz ranks 374. Before him are Gail Fisher, Shobhna Samarth, Marguerite Churchill, David Dukes, Wilf Mannion, and Alan Cranston. After him are Cătălin Hîldan, Shay Brennan, Nazia Hassan, Jerome Richardson, Bekzat Sattarkhanov, and Mel Carnahan.

Others Born in 1962

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Others Deceased in 2000

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In United States

Among people born in United States, Phil Katz ranks 14,790 out of 20,380. Before him are Don Branson (1920), David Corenswet (1993), Eric Wynalda (1969), Hana Mae Lee (1988), Monica Raymund (1986), and Kelly Loeffler (1970). After him are Josie Bissett (1970), Busy Philipps (1979), Bobby Troup (1918), Bree Turner (1977), Justin Kirk (1969), and Chris Willis (1969).

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Among COMPUTER SCIENTISTS In United States

Among computer scientists born in United States, Phil Katz ranks 112. Before him are Robert Tappan Morris (1965), Brian Acton (1972), Ralph Merkle (1952), Jon Hall (1950), Craig Federighi (1969), and Hans Reiser (1963). After him are Bram Cohen (1975), Terry A. Davis (1969), Eric Allman (1955), Nancy Lynch (1948), Douglas Crockford (1955), and Steve Wilhite (1948).

American born Computer Scientists

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