For most of this year I have been developing command line programs as well as linux kernel device driver code, and I primarily use a graphical development environment. I use an editor/project management program called Visual SlickEdit. Granted, it's not OSS, but it was provided by my employer, so I'm not complaining too much. It has features that simply would not work with a non-graphical editor, such as an easy file management interface, advanced searching mechanisms, and automatic code cross referencing tools. Being able to trace execution flow through the kernel by just clicking on variables and function names can save tons of time.
On the debugging side of things, ddd is a must. This is GNU's graphical front end to gdb, and I honestly believe my testing would be about 10 times harder without it. Being able to graphically display huge chains of data structures (especially in the kernel) is completely invaluable. I can't imagine how much longer it would take me to find all of the subtle bugs that crop up if I was just using gdb on the command line.
On the other hand, though, I still do a lot of my work with command-line scripts that I've written. Stuff like kernel builds and installations on a remote test box, rebuilding and installing my admin tools, setting up test cases, and opening debugging sessions are all done through simple scripts. When I need to run these, I simply tab to an xterm and run them.
So I don't think this situation is completely black and white. I see both methods co-existing quite nicely.
Coca Cola's secret formula is a trade secret. If you discovered Coke's formula because you broke into their production plant and stole it, or if you violated an NDA that gave you access to it, then yes, you would likely be sued and possibly sent to jail. However, if you legitimately reverse engineered their formula, knowing nothing about it other than that which comes printed on their cans and bottles, then they have no legal defense against your disclosing your discovered formula to the world. This is one of the biggest differences between patent and copywrite protection and trade secret protection.
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Don't you remember - Bill already tried to claim responsibility for the success of open source in a speech back in November
For most of this year I have been developing command line programs as well as linux kernel device driver code, and I primarily use a graphical development environment. I use an editor/project management program called Visual SlickEdit. Granted, it's not OSS, but it was provided by my employer, so I'm not complaining too much. It has features that simply would not work with a non-graphical editor, such as an easy file management interface, advanced searching mechanisms, and automatic code cross referencing tools. Being able to trace execution flow through the kernel by just clicking on variables and function names can save tons of time.
On the debugging side of things, ddd is a must. This is GNU's graphical front end to gdb, and I honestly believe my testing would be about 10 times harder without it. Being able to graphically display huge chains of data structures (especially in the kernel) is completely invaluable. I can't imagine how much longer it would take me to find all of the subtle bugs that crop up if I was just using gdb on the command line.
On the other hand, though, I still do a lot of my work with command-line scripts that I've written. Stuff like kernel builds and installations on a remote test box, rebuilding and installing my admin tools, setting up test cases, and opening debugging sessions are all done through simple scripts. When I need to run these, I simply tab to an xterm and run them.
So I don't think this situation is completely black and white. I see both methods co-existing quite nicely.
Coca Cola's secret formula is a trade secret. If you discovered Coke's formula because you broke into their production plant and stole it, or if you violated an NDA that gave you access to it, then yes, you would likely be sued and possibly sent to jail. However, if you legitimately reverse engineered their formula, knowing nothing about it other than that which comes printed on their cans and bottles, then they have no legal defense against your disclosing your discovered formula to the world. This is one of the biggest differences between patent and copywrite protection and trade secret protection.
A missle defense system - perhaps. But no rail gun in the free world is powerful enough to withstand an attack of the /.