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posted by chromas on Monday September 17 2018, @12:21PM   Printer-friendly
from the intervention!-intervention! dept.

Linux 4.19-rc4 Released As Linus Temporarily Steps Away From Kernel Maintainership

Linux 4.19-rc4 is out today as the very latest weekly development test kernel for Linux 4.19. It's another fairly routine kernel update at this stage, but more shocking is that Linus Torvalds will be taking a temporary leave from kernel maintainership and Greg Kroah-Hartman will take over the rest of the Linux 4.19 cycle.

Following the recent decision to change the location of the Linux Kernel Summit after Torvalds accidentally booked his flights to the wrong dates/location, plus other discussions happening recently, Linus Torvalds is taking a temporary leave. "I am going to take time off and get some assistance on how to understand people's emotions and respond appropriately," he wrote as part of today's 4.19-rc4 announcement.

So it begins.

Also at ZDNet.

The Linux kernel has adopted a new code of conduct. The link to the code of conduct is here.

It seems Linus Torvalds is also taking a break from being the top kernel maintainer.

The short story is Linus screwing up his scheduling to the Linux maintainers conference which was entirely rescheduled around his mistake. Then he was approached by people who are concerned about his blunt (or some consider rude) comments on the kernel dev mailing list.

I, personally, will miss Linus and I hope he gets things figured out.

The Register:

Linux kernel firebrand Linus Torvalds has apologized for his explosive rants, and vowed to take a break from the open-source project and seek help.

In a mailing list message on Sunday, Torvalds admitted his "flippant attacks in emails" to fellow Linux programmers and project contributors "have been both unprofessional and uncalled for. Especially at times when I made it personal ... I know now this was not OK and I am truly sorry."

"I need to change some of my behavior," he added, "and I want to apologize to the people that my personal behavior hurt and possibly drove away from kernel development entirely."

Torvalds, who created the Linux operating system kernel in 1991 and has overseen its development ever since, also promised to take a breather from the project – like the sabbatical he took to create Git – and do some self-reflection to, well, be nicer to everyone.

Elon Musk was in the news recently for blowups, as well. Should technology professionals make stress management and interpersonal skills part of their professional regimen, for their own long-term personal and professional health?


Original Submission #1Original Submission #2Original Submission #3

 
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  • (Score: 5, Interesting) by Pino P on Monday September 17 2018, @03:38PM (16 children)

    by Pino P (4721) on Monday September 17 2018, @03:38PM (#736010) Journal

    Not really sure what the point is of running linux in 2018 other than "I love corporate support".

    "Corporate support" is a big plus if you want to ensure that the operating system in GUI configuration is compatible with a wide range of hardware, such as compact laptops. Sometimes it takes corporate negotiating power to gain access to datasheets and other documentation required to support a particular chipset, peripheral, etc.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @09:14PM (15 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @09:14PM (#736193)

    I care about Free Software. Most of these corporations are categorically opposed to Free Software, even if they pretend otherwise. This is shown when they refuse to release source code and continue developing abusive proprietary software.

    • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday September 18 2018, @12:12AM (14 children)

      by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday September 18 2018, @12:12AM (#736302) Journal

      I care about Free Software.

      A free software I can't use due to a missing device driver is no software for me - as such it can't be 'Free Software's even when it's free.

      --
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
      • (Score: 2) by Pav on Tuesday September 18 2018, @04:47AM (8 children)

        by Pav (114) on Tuesday September 18 2018, @04:47AM (#736380)

        Ummm... Linux became popular for reasons, and the top reason was that it was free software... SPECIFICALLY GPL. Linux was inferior in a multitude of ways (including less hardware support) and yet its growth was exponential. I remember the usenet talk from veterans of the Unix Wars pro Linux and against BSD... that BSD allowed commercial entities to pilfer, embrace, extend and close code.

        In my opinion, despite early ineffectual crying for Linux guys to stop, the commercial world adapted and (mostly) won. Linux nerds have fragile egos and are politically and financially naive - that's a big attack surface to "arrange" for them to accidentally lose the power their community had accidentally won. Sure, systemd is a recent part of that (ie. there's now a monopoly-controlled massive-and-evolving API at the root of the OS), but IMHO it started much earlier.

        I place it in 1998. The whole Halloween Document scare turned the movement a little limbic, and away from the grand goal of opening I.T toooooo... well... beating the sh*t out of Big Bad Microsoft... Microsoft seemed so dangerous and powerful back then. Part of beating Microsoft was making bigger and better Microsofts, and of course BSD is better for that because you keep the ability to close source... oh look, Apple!!! Oh, and FYI, if you keep stuff on the net you can get around GPL2!!! Go Google, go Amazon... remember when they were the good guys?

        • (Score: 3, Insightful) by c0lo on Tuesday September 18 2018, @05:37AM (7 children)

          by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday September 18 2018, @05:37AM (#736396) Journal

          Linux was inferior in a multitude of ways (including less hardware support) and yet its growth was exponential. I remember the usenet talk from veterans of the Unix Wars pro Linux and against BSD... that BSD allowed commercial entities to pilfer, embrace, extend and close code.

          I don't deny GPL was a factor (I won't contest even a "the main factor" claim if you wish to table it), but the fact that it had more supported hardware than BSD helped as well.
          Because being able to use it is a necessary condition for user base growth.

          --
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
          • (Score: 2) by Pav on Tuesday September 18 2018, @09:16AM (6 children)

            by Pav (114) on Tuesday September 18 2018, @09:16AM (#736437)

            Eh? You're talking relatively recent history when Linux included DRM code into the kernel (the interwebs say that happened in 2008). Before then much of the graphics code was shared between the BSDs and Linux,. The lead Linux had happened WAY before despite BSD having a head start. As for hardware support I remember Linux only supporting ONE network card... imagine that! If there is any reason Linux won that could compete with the GPL hypothesis it COULD have been the uncertainty around BSDs legal status, but I don't remember too much of that kind of talk outside of how it could secondarily effect Linux (as some important userspace code was shared, especially in the early days).

            • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday September 18 2018, @11:20AM (3 children)

              by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday September 18 2018, @11:20AM (#736454) Journal

              You're talking relatively recent history when Linux included DRM code into the kernel

              I'm talking about early 2000, when I could call linux a stable platform for development; you needed to carefully pick your video, network and perhaps sound card for the new computer to get your X and desktop working beyond 800x600. Switched from Slackware to RedHat Linux then Fedora about that time.

              Earlier was even more a problem, but then Linux was a totally geek targeted system - compiling the kernel from new source packages was the way to upgrade. 1995 and it wasn't uncommon to get your sources on floppies, or use ftpmail with sunsite.unc.edu or ftp.funet.fi; and you'd need to edit the monitor frequencies in xorg.conf by hand and try again. But yeah, anything to get to play XBill.

              As for hardware support I remember Linux only supporting ONE network card... imagine that!

              Good old ne2000 standard, eh? (actually, there were more cards from different manufacturers, but all that were supported had adopted ne2000 as a spec)

              --
              https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
              • (Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday September 18 2018, @10:46PM (2 children)

                by The Mighty Buzzard (18) Subscriber Badge <themightybuzzard@proton.me> on Tuesday September 18 2018, @10:46PM (#736792) Homepage Journal

                Oh gods... Why did you have to bring up ne2000 cards? I'd almost completely purged the pathways to access those memories from my brain and now I have to start all over.

                --
                My rights don't end where your fear begins.
                • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday September 19 2018, @12:03AM (1 child)

                  by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday September 19 2018, @12:03AM (#736831) Journal

                  Come on, Buzz, time to come to terms with the issue.
                  Those cards were so ubiquitous at the time, they became an integral part of any Linux user psyche.
                  Traumatic as it may be, time to accept the memory of them - they are past, can't torment you any more.
                  Deal with your ne2000-induced PTSD, you're not a pussy.

                  (grin)

                  --
                  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
            • (Score: 2) by Pino P on Wednesday September 19 2018, @05:19PM (1 child)

              by Pino P (4721) on Wednesday September 19 2018, @05:19PM (#737119) Journal

              Eh? You're talking relatively recent history when Linux included DRM code into the kernel (the interwebs say that happened in 2008).

              Are you referring to Direct Rendering Manager or Digital Restrictions Management?

              • (Score: 2) by Pav on Thursday September 20 2018, @12:37AM

                by Pav (114) on Thursday September 20 2018, @12:37AM (#737313)

                heheh.... Direct Rendering Manager... *makes a sign to ward off the evil of the other DRM*

      • (Score: 2) by Pino P on Wednesday September 19 2018, @05:23PM (4 children)

        by Pino P (4721) on Wednesday September 19 2018, @05:23PM (#737124) Journal

        I think the intent is that owners of hardware is incompatible with free software ought to discard it and instead purchase "Respects Your Freedom" certified hardware [fsf.org] that is compatible with free software.

        • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday September 20 2018, @12:12AM (3 children)

          by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 20 2018, @12:12AM (#737305) Journal

          Laptops - what I checked (not exhaustive, granted) are all refurbished thinkpads.
          Like what? 5years+ back technology?
          Use it for development when those damned desktop managers suck jiga-resources nowadays?

          --
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
          • (Score: 2) by Reziac on Thursday September 20 2018, @02:16PM

            by Reziac (2489) on Thursday September 20 2018, @02:16PM (#737498) Homepage

            Checked the first thing I happen to need, wireless-N USB dongle doodad, and... holy fuck $45? Last ones I bought, with various mainstream chips, were under $2 apiece.

            --
            And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
          • (Score: 2) by Pino P on Thursday September 20 2018, @03:17PM (1 child)

            by Pino P (4721) on Thursday September 20 2018, @03:17PM (#737539) Journal

            Like what? 5years+ back technology?

            Windows 7 is even older than that, yet a lot of Windows users plan to stick with Windows 7 during these last 16 months of security updates. And developers are still producing and selling new original games for Famicom/NES 35 years after that console came out. What's the primary concern about using old technology? That the supply of ThinkPad laptops to refurbish will dwindle? And by then, Technoethical and Minifree will probably have started refurbishing newer ThinkPad models.

            those damned desktop managers suck jiga-resources nowadays?

            What "jiga-resources" does Xfce suck? Because that's what I've been using on all my X11/Linux boxes since fourth quarter 2011 when I decided Ubuntu Unity wasn't for me. Even on a 1 GB netbook it still ran acceptably.

            • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 20 2018, @10:52PM

              by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 20 2018, @10:52PM (#737809)

              What in the "using for development" is unclear to you?

              I have one I still use (with a Lubuntu 14.04 upgrade on the way) since 2009 or thereabout. Dualcore intel, 4Gb RAM.
              I can still use it for running kicad, but compiling a reasonable sized C/C++ project is taking forever.
              No way I can run Eclipse on it for a Java project, I don't have enough time left in this life.