Honorific for the dead for use in articles published online [closed]

I'm writing an essay that I intend to publish online. The essay is about the Unix operating system, and I'm referencing an article published by a principal author - Dennis M. Ritchie who passed away in 2011.

What words or phrases can I use? For example, if I uses "dear old" I'd write something like this:

In his paper "title", dear old Dennis Ritchie told us that ...

Except that "dear old" seems like something one'd use only within family members.

Solution 1:

The question begs opinions rather than definitive answer. I suggest the use of “dear old” within the context of an account of an operating system would appear patronising and incongruous unless you had first given substantial evidence of a warm and engaging personality who was directly connected to you. Otherwise, it reads as if you are claiming the glory of a personal connection you may not have had. You could use “the late”, “the late beloved” or “the esteemed late” to better effect.