Robert Of Cosmo (Parma, 1963) is an Italian computer scientist.
Known for his contributions to the free and open source software movement, the creation of DemoLinux and for founding Software Heritage, a universal source code library.
He graduated from the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa and obtained a PhD from the University of Pisa. He then embarked on an academic career, becoming a full professor at the École normale supérieure in Paris and, later, a professor at the University Paris 7 – Denis Diderot.
Since 2010, he has served as director of IRILL, the Free Software Research and Innovation Initiative.
Di Cosmo was among the first members of AFUL, which brings together the French community of Linux and free software users, and is an active supporter of the open source software movement.
In 1998, Di Cosmo gained notoriety with the publication of a critical essay on Microsoft, entitled Trap in cyberspace (Hijacking the world, the dark side of Microsoft), co-written with journalist Dominique Nora.[1][2] This book, now available under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND license, contributed to his fame.
Among his most significant contributions to the world of Linux, stands out the creation of the first “live” Linux distribution (2000-2002), demolinux, which allowed booting Linux directly from a CD-ROM without having to install the entire distribution.
Di Cosmo also founded and chaired the Open Source Thematic Group within the Systematic Paris-Region innovation hub.[3]
He is currently a member of the board of directors of the IMDEA Software Institute.[4]
On June 30, 2016, Inria announced the creation of Software Heritage, a universal source code library, conceived and directed by Roberto Di Cosmo.
- Isomorphisms of TypesBirkhäuser, 1994, ISBN 978-1461275855
- The Planetary Heist-Up. The Hidden Face of MicrosoftCalmann-Lévy, 1998, ISBN 978-2702129234
- Manifesto for Free Artistic Creation in a Free InternetLulu.com, 2011, ISBN 978-1445795676
- Open Source Systems: Towards Robust PracticesSpringer, 2017, ISBN 978-3319577340