Ross Greenberg

Summary

Ross Matthew Greenberg (September 16, 1956 – February 16, 2017) was an American software developer, noted for creating one of the first antivirus software products. He also worked in journalism, and was a founding member of the Internet Press Guild.

Ross Greenberg
Ross Greenberg (August 2016)
Ross Greenberg at Chelsey Park Health and Rehab. (August 2016)
Born
Ross Matthew Greenberg

(1956-09-16)September 16, 1956
DiedFebruary 16, 2017(2017-02-16) (aged 60)
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)programmer; journalist
Known forantivirus pioneer
Notable workFlushot Plus

Career edit

Flushot Plus edit

In 1987, as Software Concepts Design, Greenberg released one of the first two heuristic antivirus software utilities, Flushot Plus.[1][2][3] He released it as shareware for $10.[4]

O'Reilly book author Roger A. Grimes described Flushot Plus as "the first holistic program to fight MMC [malicious mobile code]".[5]

Journalism edit

In the 1980s, Greenberg was a frequent contributor to PC Magazine, and was the primary sysop of its CompuServe forum, PC MagNet.[6]

In 1996, he became a founder member of the Internet Press Guild.[7][8]

Personal life edit

Greenberg was born in New York City, and raised in Syosset. His parents were Muriel and Walter Greenberg. He had two sisters: Toni (Richard) Koweek and Carla G. Kaplan.[9]

Greenberg attended the State University of New York at Stony Brook, graduating in 1978.[10]

Greenberg's wife, Dawn, was from Marietta, Georgia.[9]

Greenberg was survived by his wife, son Wade Maxwell Greenberg of Marietta, step-daughter Chanice Hughes-Greenberg of NYC, and elder sister Toni of Hudson.[9]

Health issues and death edit

Greenberg suffered from multiple sclerosis, first diagnosed in the mid-1980s. His elder sister described the form of his illness as "aggressive".[9]

In late 2009, after his condition became too challenging for his family to care for him, Greenberg moved to a nursing home near Atlanta, Georgia.[11] He later moved to a nursing home in Forsyth, Georgia. In August 2015, he was moved to Chelsey Park Health and Rehabilitation Center, Dahlonega, Georgia,[9] where he died after contracting pneumonia,[citation needed] in February 2017.[12]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Yevics, Patricia A. "Flu Shot for Computer Viruses". Americanbar.org.
  2. ^ Strom, David (April 1, 2010). "How friends help friends on the Internet: The Ross Greenberg Story". Wordpress.com.
  3. ^ "Anti-virus is 30 years old". Spgedwards.com. April 2012.
  4. ^ Inc, Ziff Davis (June 28, 1988). "PC Mag". Ziff Davis, Inc. Retrieved August 9, 2017 – via Google Books. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  5. ^ Grimes, Roger A. (June 1, 2001). Malicious Mobile Code: Virus Protection for Windows. O'Reilly Media, Inc. p. 522. ISBN 9781565926820.
  6. ^ Inc, Ziff Davis (October 31, 1988). "PC Mag". Ziff Davis, Inc. Retrieved August 9, 2017 – via Google Books. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  7. ^ "Ross M. Greenberg :: IPG". Netpress.org. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  8. ^ "Google Groups". Groups.google.com. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  9. ^ a b c d e Koweek, Toni G. (2017), Obituary—Ross Matthew Greenberg
  10. ^ "Ross Greenberg - Google+". Plus.google.com. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  11. ^ "A Statement of Gratitude :: IPG". Netpress.org. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  12. ^ "Obituary for Ross Greenberg - Dahlonega, GA". Dahlonegafuneralhome.com. Retrieved August 9, 2017.