Linus on kernel management style (2004)

http://lwn.net/Articles/105375/

by davvid • 14 years ago

60 7 14 years ago

lwn.net

jon6• 14 years ago

> There's just a few simple rules here: > (1) don't call people d*ckheads (at least not in public)

lulz..

http://marc.info/?l=linux-kernel&m=133141623921011&w...

DarkShikari• 14 years ago

Note carefully: though being his usual brand of unfathomably blunt, Linus is talking about the code, not the person who wrote it. He's obviously bothered by the approach the code takes, but he probably doesn't think the person who wrote it is a 'dickhead' -- anyone can write truly awful code, even Linus.

In this case, it looks (from a quick glance) like some Patch X seemed like a good idea, but ended up requiring Patch Y, which was really ugly, and suggested that Patch X maybe wasn't the best idea to begin with.

Of course, this takes getting used to -- part of Linus's style is to be very blunt, call his opinions straightforwardly, and happily insult anyone's code, even his own, when it isn't living up to standards. To work with Linus, you need to have zero ego about your own code -- the goal is to get the best code into the kernel (no matter who wrote it), not to get your code into the kernel.

It's not always perfect, but I generally think it's a good approach, and it seems to largely work.

Tuna-Fish• 14 years ago

Covered just a few paragraphs later:

    To solve this problem, you really only have two options:
     - get really good at apologies
     - spread the "love" out so evenly that nobody really ends up feeling
       like they get unfairly targeted.  Make it inventive enough, and they
       might even be amused.

doe88• 14 years ago

I think that Linus is at a point where he plays with it, because he knows that peoples know his game/character and that he will easily publicly say harsh words to someone. Thus by 'democratizing' it, nobody got ostracized in the developer community by having being called a 'moron' by Linus, because we all know (Linus included) this can happen to anyone.

gmartres• 14 years ago

Here's the latest version: https://www.kernel.org/doc/Documentation/ManagementStyle

richardk• 14 years ago

"The option of being unfailingly polite really doesn't exist. Nobody will trust somebody who is so clearly hiding his true character."

What if you don't know your "true character" How are you supposed to behave then?

cbs• 14 years ago

Then you have an existential problem kernel development won't help you solve.

Linus on kernel management style (2004)

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