Breaking Into The World Of Kernel Hacking?

crow_t_robot asks: "In the past couple of months I have become increasingly interested in kernel programming and have finally decided to take the leap and 'get my hands dirty.' I have searched around the web and read a few docs and FAQs on getting started with the kernel but I was wondering what kind of personal experiences those in the Slashdot crowd have had that are so bold as to start goofing with the kernel code. For those that have become competent kernel programmers, how did you 'break in' and what advice would you give beginners?"

Comments

Re:In honor of all the linux newsgroups...

[Dman33]

Could someone please tell me what does RTFM stand for?!?!

RTFM!!!

Thanks for the set-up! :)

Re:different kinds of "nerds"

[JordoCrouse]

i bet that guy can hack a kernel but can't figure out how to change his oil or replace an alternator or something like that

That is true, but in the spirit of open source, we just borrow somebody else's car.

Find a need....

[aiken_d]

Rather than just hacking in general, you should identify a particular area where kernal development has lagged. That way, you can make incremental improvements in long-neglected code rather than trying to one-up the preeminent kernel hackers.

For instance, I've noticed that there is a sad lack of resources devoted to incorporating practical jokes into the kernel. Everything is so "write to disk, read from disk, move bytes around, manage processes" boring.

I've got some ideas you might want to consider for your first project. Implement these babies, and I'm sure you'll garner a great deal of attention.

- Fake "blue screen" crashes: When "root" is logged on locally, intermittently go to a blue screen with memory dump info for a few seconds, then switch back to console mode as if nothing happened.

- "Ha! Just Kidding!" memory manager: when an app requests a memory allocation, periodically claim that it has failed for no reason at all. That'll keep 'em laughing forever!

- Unionized thread scheduling: implement the concepts of lunch breas, smoke breaks, and overtime into thread scheduling. Union threads should refuse to work with non-union threads. Periodic strikes for better working conditions, and so on.

Do a good job with this stuff, and I'd be shocked if it wasn't included in the main tree!

Cheers
-b

Before you dive in, read this!!!!

[2Bits]

Oh so, you want to hack kernel? Well, let me tell ya, before you get in this, you need to do the following prelim works:

• Divorce if you are married, unless your other half also wants to hack kernel. Even that, make sure you two don't hack the same module.
  
• Say goodbye to your bf/gf, unless your significant other also wants to hack kernel. Even that, make sure you two don't hack the same module.
  
• Get rid of redundant furnitures. You'll have a lot more computers, so you need space.
  
• Get a good air conditioner. Oh yeah, all those computers you have, it's going to be hot.
  
• Get a good and large freezer. Read next items to see why.
  
• Stack up a lot of beer, coke, moutain dew.
  
• Get a good coffee maker, with a big pot, preferably with vacuum insulation.
  
• Stack up a lot of coffee
  
• Stack up a lot of frozen pizzas and frozen food.
  
• Get rid of your lamps. You don't need that. You'll glow anyway.
  
• Get rid of all your light color clothes. Get some black clothes. Any kernel hacker worth two cans of beer will wear black clothes.
  
• Get rid of your razors. Any kernel hacker worth two cans of beer will have beard. Linus is an exception, his skin is too thick, so it doesn't even grow.
  
• Save money on soap and detergent. Any kernel hacker worth two cans of beer is smelly.
  

Ok, now you can go back to read all these good advices that other /.ers gave.