Editing Patch (computing) (section)

==In software development==
Patches sometimes become mandatory to fix problems with [[Library (computer science)|libraries]] or with portions of [[source code]] for programs in frequent use or in maintenance. This commonly occurs on very large-scale software projects, but rarely in small-scale development.

In open-source projects, the authors commonly receive patches or many people publish patches that fix particular problems or add certain functionality, like support for local languages outside the project's locale. In an example from the early development of the [[Linux kernel]] (noted for publishing its complete source code), [[Linus Torvalds]], the original author, received hundreds of thousands of patches from many [[programmer]]s to apply against his original version. 

The [[Apache HTTP Server]] originally evolved as a number of patches that [[Brian Behlendorf]] collated to improve [[NCSA HTTPd]], hence a name that implies that it is a collection of patches ([[Apache HTTP Server#Name|"a patchy server"]]). The FAQ on the project's official site states that the name 'Apache' was chosen from respect for the Native American Indian tribe of [[Apache]]. However, the 'a patchy server' explanation was initially given on the project's website.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.apache.org/info.html |title=Apache HTTP Server Project |date=15 June 1997 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970615081902/http://www.apache.org/info.html |archive-date=15 June 1997 }}</ref>