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CNN Sits Down With Linus Torvalds

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the penguin-wrangler dept.

just_another_sean writes "Calling him 'reclusive' and the 'leader of the Open Source Revolution' CNN has an interview with Linus Torvalds. From the article: "I actually only work with a few handfuls so I tend to directly interact with maybe 10 - 20 people and they in turn interact with other people. So depending on how you count, if you count just the core people, 20 -50 people. If you count everybody who's involved; five thousand people -- and you can really put the number anywhere in between... Almost, pretty much all, real work is done over e-mail so it doesn't matter where people are."

12 of 264 comments (clear)

  1. Leader? by kanzels · · Score: 5, Insightful

    He is just working on Linux kernel, there are thousands of other open source projects. I wouldn't call him OSS leader :)

    --
    Pixel image editor - http://www.kanzelsberger.com
    1. Re:Leader? by IgnoramusMaximus · · Score: 3, Insightful
      Looks like you dared to challenge the Linus Torvalds personality cult.

      Actually, I do not think there is such a thing, at least not to a degree that most brainless "celebrities" get. For a "personality cult" one needs continuous media hyping in places watched by the sort of sheeple who are prone to falling for "personalities" in the first place.

      Linux and FOSS crowd is far more likely to become zealous about ideas (such as the whole concept of FOSS or the GPL) rather then people. Sure, some do admire Linus personally, but we are not beyond getting into regular flame wars with him when he is demonstrably wrong. Just check out the whole BitKeeper saga on the LKLM.

    2. Re:Leader? by DragonWriter · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Linus and RMS are both kinds of "leaders" in the open source movement, at the same time, the movement isn't a top-down organization, but, well, a diverse movement, so its not all that much something that is "led" by "leaders". A better word -- as someone else suggested in the thread for Linus -- for both might be "icons", as there role in the movement, from my perspective, is largely one of inspiration rather than direction.

    3. Re:Leader? by rubycodez · · Score: 4, Insightful

      no way, gcc is what binds almost all of OSS together

  2. Kinda odd by drewzhrodague · · Score: 4, Insightful

    That's kinda odd that it would take them so long to interview Linus. How long after Microsoft made it's day did they interview Bill? or Steve? It is definately due, and kudos to Linus!

    --
    Zhrodague.net - I do projects and stuff too.
  3. Why `reclusive?' by bogaboga · · Score: 3, Insightful
    I wonder why CNN of all media comapnies had to use the term `reclusive'. Reclusive from a dictionary on my desk is defined as:

    Seeking or preferring seclusion or isolation.

    Does this describe Linus?

  4. The Beating Drums by Quirk · · Score: 5, Insightful
    The tribes that talk through the likes of CNN count anyone as reclusive who won't go down on an ego dildo (microphone) and help CNN sell advertising space.

    The maddening crowd seems to be too intellectually limited to understand that their need for heroes, saints and sinners is about as interesting as reading a popularization of a first year anthropology text book.

    Not to mention the hours lost mugging for CNN that could have been spent productively.

    just my loose change

    --
    "Academicians are more likely to share each other's toothbrush than each other's nomenclature."
    Cohen
  5. Has /. ever done an interview with Linus? by JeanBaptiste · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Seems like he would be a perfect candidate

  6. Re:If being reclusive means by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Just as the word 'zealot' has negative connotations. As if the people on /. weren't Anti-Microsoft zealots...

  7. Re:I Can Hear It Now... by Richard+Steiner · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What Stallman calls GNU/Linux is what *some* Linux distributions distribute.

    On the embedded side, there are more and more distro which are using replacements for the GNU tookchain and glibc like busybox and uClibc, thus avoiding many of the GNU tools you typically see in a Linux distro.

    Stallman's generalization is mostly true, but not always true...

    --
    Mainframe/UNIX Bit Twiddler and long time Windows/Linux Hobbyist.
    The Theorem Theorem: If If, Then Then.
  8. reclusive by mdmarkus · · Score: 5, Insightful

    reclusive (adj): Not having a publicist lobbying to get onto CNN.

  9. It's good to see that he didn't bite by Milton+Waddams · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It seemed that CNN were trying to ask very pointed questions, trying to make Linus out to be some warrior against Microsoft. I like this part:


    KLS: Another reason, because it's an alternative to Microsoft?

    LT: Well that is, I think, played up more than it necessarily needs to be. Because there is a very vocal side to this which is the whole anti Microsoft thing. I think it makes a better story than is necessarily true in real life.


    For a techie guy who doesn't have reams of PR guys behind him and telling him what he should say, he handled the press pretty well.

    I thought CNN were supposed to be respectable, like the US version of the BBC or something? It seemed like they were just looking for some big scoop with regards to people being Anti-Microsoft rather than trying to have an interesting interview with a major contributor to an alternative OS.