# Paul Eggert

> American computer scientist

**Wikidata**: [Q66732288](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q66732288)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Eggert)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/paul-eggert

## Summary
Paul Eggert is an American computer scientist and software engineer best known for maintaining the **tz database**, the authoritative source for time zone information used globally. He is a senior lecturer at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and a key contributor to the GNU Project, with significant work in free software development.

## Biography
- **Born**: December 4, 1954, in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
- **Nationality**: American
- **Education**:
  - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Computer Science, University of California, Los Angeles (1980)
  - Educated at Rice University and UCLA
- **Known for**: Maintaining the **tz database** and contributions to GNU software (Autoconf, Diffutils, RCS, gzip)
- **Employer(s)**:
  - Current: University of California, Los Angeles (Senior Lecturer)
  - Past: Unisys (1986–1989), Silogic Inc. (1983–1986), University of California, Santa Barbara (1980–1983), Twin Sun Inc. (since 1989)
- **Field(s)**: Computer science, software engineering, free software development

## Contributions
Paul Eggert is the primary maintainer of the **tz database** (also known as the Zoneinfo database), which standardizes time zone data for operating systems and applications worldwide. His work ensures accurate timekeeping across global software, including Unix-like systems, programming languages (e.g., Python, Java), and cloud services.

He has been a long-time contributor to the **GNU Project**, maintaining critical tools such as:
- **GNU Autoconf** (a build system generator)
- **Diffutils** (file comparison utilities)
- **GNU RCS** (Revision Control System, since 1989)
- **gzip** (compression tool)

Eggert’s academic and industry work spans software engineering, time-zone standardization, and free software advocacy. He received the **FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software** in 2021 for his contributions to open-source infrastructure.

## FAQs
### Q: What is Paul Eggert best known for?
A: Paul Eggert is best known for maintaining the **tz database**, the global standard for time zone information used in operating systems and software worldwide.

### Q: Where does Paul Eggert work?
A: He is a senior lecturer at the **University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)** and has contributed to the **GNU Project** for decades.

### Q: What awards has Paul Eggert received?
A: He won the **FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software** in 2021 for his work on free software tools and the tz database.

### Q: What GNU projects has Paul Eggert maintained?
A: He has maintained **GNU Autoconf, Diffutils, RCS, and gzip**, among other tools.

### Q: When was Paul Eggert born?
A: He was born on **December 4, 1954**, in Lincoln, Nebraska.

## Why They Matter
Paul Eggert’s work on the **tz database** is foundational to modern computing, ensuring consistent timekeeping across devices, servers, and applications. Without his maintenance, global software systems would face critical time-zone errors, affecting everything from financial transactions to scheduling.

His contributions to **GNU tools** (Autoconf, Diffutils, etc.) have shaped software development workflows, enabling automation and reliability in open-source projects. As a free software advocate, he has influenced generations of developers to prioritize transparency and collaboration.

## Notable For
- Primary maintainer of the **tz database** (global time zone standard)
- Recipient of the **FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software (2021)**
- Long-time maintainer of **GNU Autoconf, Diffutils, RCS, and gzip**
- Senior lecturer at **UCLA’s Computer Science department**
- Key contributor to the **GNU Project** since the 1980s

## Body
### Early Life and Education
- Born **December 4, 1954**, in Lincoln, Nebraska.
- Earned a **PhD in Computer Science** from the **University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)** in 1980.
- Also studied at **Rice University**.

### Career and Affiliations
- **1980–1983**: University of California, Santa Barbara.
- **1983–1986**: Silogic Inc.
- **1986–1989**: Unisys (multinational IT services company).
- **Since 1989**: Twin Sun Inc. (co-founder).
- **Current**: Senior lecturer at **UCLA**, teaching computer science.

### Major Technical Contributions
- **tz database (Zoneinfo)**: Maintains the authoritative time zone data used by Unix, Linux, macOS, and many programming languages.
- **GNU Project**:
  - **Autoconf**: Build system generator for portable software.
  - **Diffutils**: File comparison tools (`diff`, `cmp`).
  - **RCS (Revision Control System)**: Version control tool (maintainer since 1989).
  - **gzip**: Compression utility.
- **Free Software Advocacy**: Active in the **GNU Project** and **Free Software Foundation (FSF)**.

### Awards and Recognition
- **2021 FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software** for contributions to free software infrastructure.

### Personal Details
- **Residence**: Los Angeles, California.
- **Nationality**: American.
- **Languages**: English (native).

## Schema Markup
```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Person",
  "name": "Paul Richard Eggert",
  "alternateName": ["Paul R. Eggert"],
  "jobTitle": "Senior Lecturer, Computer Scientist",
  "worksFor": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "University of California, Los Angeles"
  },
  "nationality": {
    "@type": "Country",
    "name": "United States"
  },
  "birthDate": "1954-12-04",
  "birthPlace": "Lincoln, Nebraska, USA",
  "alumniOf": [
    {
      "@type": "EducationalOrganization",
      "name": "University of California, Los Angeles"
    },
    {
      "@type": "EducationalOrganization",
      "name": "Rice University"
    }
  ],
  "knowsAbout": ["Computer Science", "Software Engineering", "Time Zone Standardization", "Free Software"],
  "award": "FSF Award for the Advancement of Free Software (2021)",
  "sameAs": [
    "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7152890",
    "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Eggert"
  ],
  "description": "American computer scientist and maintainer of the tz database, known for contributions to GNU software and free software advocacy."
}

## References

1. [Source](https://prabook.com/web/paul_richard.eggert/537802)
2. [Source](https://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/autoconf.git/tree/AUTHORS)
3. [Why Gulf Standard Time is far from standard: the fascinating story behind the time zone's invention. 2020](https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/why-gulf-standard-time-is-far-from-standard-the-fascinating-story-behind-the-time-zone-s-invention-1.1052589)
4. [Source](https://www.gnu.org/people/people.html)
5. [Free Software Awards winners announced: SecuRepairs, Protesilaos Stavrou, Paul Eggert. Free Software Foundation. 2022](https://www.fsf.org/news/free-software-awards-winners-announced-securepairs-protesilaos-stavrou-paul-eggert)
6. [Source](https://savannah.gnu.org/users/eggert)
7. [Source](https://samueli.ucla.edu/people/paul-eggert/)