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Myth of Linux Hobby Coders Exposed

Posted by Zonk on from the not-just-basement-rangers dept.

Eh-Wire writes "Stuart Cohen, CEO of the Open Source Development Labs, does a short piece on the myth of renegade hackers coding in their parent's basements to create the Linux OS. He suggests this hasn't been the case for many years and goes on to claim that of the top 25 core developers, more than 90% of them are fully employed with some of the largest technology companies in the world. Stuart goes on to explode the myth of renegade programmers by saying, 'Sure, it represents a new way to create software, but the actual process looks a lot like how enterprise software has been made for decades.' A short but interesting read."

12 of 252 comments (clear)

  1. Slashdot Nerds by TheKidWho · · Score: 2, Funny

    have just been pwn3d.

    No longer can anyone use the geek in their basement argument.(I know I know, im generalizing, so sue me)

    1. Re:Slashdot Nerds by Tarcastil · · Score: 2, Funny

      You're posting from your parents' basement, aren't you.

  2. renegade prgrammers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Damn them renegade prgrammers, they have been the bane of my life for many many years!

  3. Re:Romatic vision by CypherXero · · Score: 2, Funny

    Romantic? I think you spend too much time reading slashdot.

  4. eh by derxob · · Score: 2, Funny

    Well there goes my theory that Linus Torvalds is "Zero Cool" from Hackers and he is married to Angelina "Acid Burn" Jolie ::sad face::

    --
    Beat the computer, program your life.
  5. Re:Selected Instances by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny
    Truth is, there are hundreds of major, active kernel developers.

    Really...

    "Stuart Cohen, CEO of the Open Source Development Labs, does a short piece on the myth of renegade hackers coding in their parent's basements to create the Linux OS.

    I really do my best work in the attic.
  6. Linux in professional hands? by mr_majestyk · · Score: 5, Funny

    Make no mistake, Linux is in professional hands

    yeah, like these guys.

  7. Re:Well, maybe not for the Linux kernel, but... by ThousandStars · · Score: 4, Funny
    I code the project that feeds me eight feet from my bed

    That's remarkable! Do you produce some kind of servant or cooking robot?

  8. SCO Created It by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Everybody knows that The SCO Group created Linux

    Oh, wait...

  9. Why Always The Bottom? by __aanmcy3303 · · Score: 2, Funny

    It isn't true that we ALL live in our parents basements...

    ...Some of us live in our parents attics.

  10. Re:The Ubiquitous PHB by tomhudson · · Score: 3, Funny
    by then quantum computing will be the norm, and Microsoft will have to delay Longtooth
    Microsoft WANTS quantum computing. Like Schrodinger's cat, if the machine looks like its crashed, just turn the MONITOR off and on again - 50-50 chance that next time you look, it's actually still running. Of course, if it IS running and you blink, it may NOT be running when you open your eyes.

    How this is different from today is left as an exercise for the reader.

  11. Re:yeah, been a victim of that legend. by Fred+Foobar · · Score: 2, Funny

    Perhaps they meant "hacker" in the correct, original sense. Maybe they know the difference between "hacker" and "cracker".

    --
    It was a really good paper.