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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, Insightful) by jmorris on Monday September 17 2018, @04:36PM (20 children)

    by jmorris (4844) on Monday September 17 2018, @04:36PM (#736037)

    You don't get it. Linus is out, he won't be back. If things go to shit quickly enough the money people might back him in a counter coup like Jobs came back to Apple but unless the decline is sudden and dramatic he is done with Linux development. Why do you think they dropped the CoC in the same announcement with his leave of absence? They pretty much wrangled him out the door then instantly barred him coming back, everybody is going to figure that out. What would be the point of a new age neutered Linus with political minder sitting by him?

    His only options are to quietly retire on his savings from the .com era or pull a Brendan Eich. Linus has the talent and the trust of the users, we don't know whether he yet understands the forces arrayed against him well enough to defeat them or the desire to try.

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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by takyon on Monday September 17 2018, @04:41PM (3 children)

    by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Monday September 17 2018, @04:41PM (#736043) Journal

    You don't get it. Linus is out, he won't be back.

    Sure, but would you bet money on your prediction?

    --
    [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @06:20PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @06:20PM (#736102)

      I'm sure the mighty buzzy will gladly escrow any bets in this drama unfolding. We only need to set a date for the trigger.

    • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 18 2018, @12:06AM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 18 2018, @12:06AM (#736298)

      He could also be looking to step out too. They followed him on vacation. Not only followed him they changed a venue so they *could* follow him. This could be him saying 'you guys need to start working this out'. The interview he had a few weeks ago of stating he does not understand all of it anymore is more telling. He is feeling burnt out. Then the CoC forced on him. Yeah, I bet he bows out. He already knows it is no longer his baby. The CoC smells of 'make nice with the other boys and girls or lose all of your funding'.

      If he bows out linux will fracture. Into at least 4-9 different 'distros'. There will be a major power play that happens. There are some major players that are all in on this thing Google, Red Hat, IBM, HP, Cisco, Qualcomm, Microsoft, Facebook, Intel, etc etc etc never mind all of the IoT things being made with it. This thing runs our infrastructure now. It *looks* like someone is making a power play. My guess is Google or Intel through the foundation. Would not be too hard to figure out who. Just look at who he has 'attacked' in the past few months and what was rejected. Then follow the chain back to the contributing company.

      • (Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday September 18 2018, @01:05AM

        by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Tuesday September 18 2018, @01:05AM (#736319) Journal

        If he bows out linux will fracture. Into at least 4-9 different 'distros'. There will be a major power play that happens. There are some major players that are all in on this thing Google, Red Hat, IBM, HP, Cisco, Qualcomm, Microsoft, Facebook, Intel, etc etc etc never mind all of the IoT things being made with it. This thing runs our infrastructure now. It *looks* like someone is making a power play. My guess is Google or Intel through the foundation. Would not be too hard to figure out who. Just look at who he has 'attacked' in the past few months and what was rejected. Then follow the chain back to the contributing company.

        Google is probably not the responsible party in your conspiracy theory because they have already been going ahead with their take on Linux: Fuchsia [wikipedia.org]. They are more interested in controlling how smartphone companies use Android, or pushing Fuchsia when the time is right.

        --
        [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
  • (Score: 5, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @04:45PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @04:45PM (#736046)

    The entire episode with a broadcast "confession" resulting from self-criticism showing that he needed to change by getting re-educated (psychiatric issues) is a well-worn trope of people who have been captured by communist forces.

    It sounds extreme, but look and see if it doesn't fit like a glove. (Substitute leftist, woke, or SJW for communist if it makes you feel better.)

    And that part about "spending more time with my family" is boilerplate for someone who was forced out.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 19 2018, @01:49AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 19 2018, @01:49AM (#736881)

      Why do we keep trying to pin the communist tail on the SJW donkey?!

  • (Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @06:08PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @06:08PM (#736096)

    Atop his throne of moss and stone
    there sits a giant, wizening.
    He hems, he haws! He flaps his jaws,
    for he is Nezz, the Graveyard King!

    Nezz shut his eyes to better see. Nasty ol' North Wind had blustered into San Francisco, and though he might pester the locals for weeks, soon enough he'd honker down to Godsgate Grove. Last census saw 460 bats; they'd need shelter.

    Normally Nezz would clear out Corpse Cavern for them, but Amy was due any day now. Nezz could still see the tears of pride and joy in her eyes as she begged him for sanctuary. Wolves that old don't usually have pups, but a prayer answered late is better than a prayer answered never.

    No, that cave was hers for as long as she'd need it. Maybe Nezz could squeeze the bats into the ding-dong bell tower. The gargoyles would protest, but they'd been crotchety about everything since they'd fallen out of favor with the architects. A little company would do those ding-dongs good.

    Nezz furrowed his brow. That wasn't a kind thought. He didn't really think they were--

    Ding-dong!

    Oh. Visitors.

    Nezz came back to reality and sized his guests up. Behind his herald stood three scrawny gremlins. One had hair dyed garish blues and greens. The next had mismatched tattoos scattered every-which-way. The third had a face littered with piercings: ears, nose, lips, tongue, even eyebrows. They were not the kind of critters Nezz was used to. Still, it was his duty to hear them out. Nezz gestured to Harold to begin the formalities.

    "Though young and fresh, here in the flesh,
    before you stands a gremlin ring.
    For minor perks they offer work
    to you, the self-made Graveyard King."

    Nezz nodded his head in time and thought for a moment before replying.

    "That gremlins dare is rather rare
    to dig and lathe and lift and sling,
    but as your lord I shall reward
    the subjects of the Graveyard King."

    "Does that mean--"

    Harold silenced the gremlins. Newcomers never had a knack for court, but they'd learn. After brief chittering amongst themselves the gremlins scampered off. Harold bowed before departing.

    Let's see, where to put them? Gremlins didn't like manual labor, but it was a fact of life in the graveyard. Always a headstone needed righting or a lychgate reinforcing. The mausoleum looked awful barren these days; he'd have them hang some ivy.

    Nezz scribbled a few new entries in the assignment ledger and put it back on its podium. Harold would get them settled; Nezz had to pay a visit to the necromancers. Their incantations and rituals didn't actually summon him, but they performed them so passionately that he felt compelled to play along. Theological debates aside, showmanship was good for the soul.

    ---

    A week had gone by, and Nezz was glad to come home. Sneaking through cities was no easy task for a golem of gold and miry clay. Nezz' eyes were caught by several graves with thin layers of ice atop them. Why hadn't those been salted?

    Nezz lumbered toward his throne but stopped when he saw Harold frantically flipping through the ledger. Harold's ruddy brown hair was disheveled and his clothing untucked. Nezz had never seen him so shabby.

    "What's going on?" Nezz asked.

    Harold's head jerked up and his eyes took a moment to focus. "Oh, Nezz, thank God. The skeletons have gone on strike. They say that mining hurts their bones, and they don't even need the salt, so why should they bother? Meanwhile the zombies are using that as an excuse not to leave their graves, yet they still demand fresh brains. And that's not even the worst of it."

    "Oh?"

    "Yeah. Maybe you'd better see for yourself. Head out to the mausoleum. I've got to mollify the manticore."

    Nezz chewed on his lip as he plodded toward the mausoleum. He arrived to find it dilapidated, with a makeshift barricade of wooden planks blocking the entryway.

    The polite thing to do would be to knock. Nezz' heavy silver knuckles punched a hole right through it. Oops. A chorus of shrieking pierced the air as Nezz cleared out the debris and stepped inside.

    "Help, help! He's invading our safe space!" a gremlin shrieked.

    "Safe space? This is Dracula's private office. You were supposed to decorate it."

    "Hanging gardens is hard!" whined another. "You just don't understand because you're tall and strong. But it's a lot to ask of goblins like us."

    "Goblins? But you're clearly gremlins."

    "How dare you call us gremlins!" the third yapped. "You think just because we're small and have large fuzzy ears that you can stereotype us? That's discrimination!"

    "I meant no offense--" Nezz began.

    "Then apologize!"

    Nezz took a slow breath. "I'm sorry I misspoke. You can be whatever you want to be. In fact, it's good to have aspirations. But it's also good to work together to achieve--"

    "Work? All you do is sit on that throne and boss people around. Meanwhile we're starving and shivering and we don't even have a home. That's not fair, not fair at all! Dracula has a bunch of houses; he doesn't need this one!"

    "But he provides valuable accounting services which allow our business to expand year-over-year."

    "Oh, and just because he provides value means he gets to kick us out on the streets? You don't even realize how hard it is for us hobgoblins; everyone just does what you say because you're big and scary."

    "Now hold on a minute. I've spent decades building up this industry, and our affiliates look to me for my wisdom and experience."

    "No, that's just your Fright Privilege talking. You shouldn't treat people that way."

    The other two gremlins nodded eagerly and they all began shouting, "No Fright Privilege! No Fright Privilege!" not quite in unison. Nezz clenched his teeth and walked away; he needed some time to think.

    Back on his throne, which had the words "Jack Lives Matter" smeared onto it with pumpkin pulp, Nezz closed his eyes and tried to balance himself. Not everyone was suited to every task, that's true, but Nezz saw that as an opportunity. He himself wasn't inclined to leadership, but after learning to hone and direct his thoughts he'd grown into the most successful manager Godsgate Grove had ever known.

    "Hey!"

    Nezz opened his eyes to see the trio of gremlins in front of a whole host of other inhabitants: skeletons, zombies, ghouls and ghosts. Harold was nowhere to be found.

    "We're tired of your oppression!" the gremlin shouted. "We demand that you follow this list of rules that we've created, to ensure everyone is treated fairly and equally. Number one: you must not refer to a creature by type. Just because you want to belittle someone by calling them a gremlin doesn't mean they're not actually a majestic orc. Number two--"

    Nezz rose wearily to his feet and wandered off while the gremlins yammered away. They didn't even notice his departure. He didn't really believe he'd been oppressive, but if that was what the workers wanted, maybe they'd be better off without him. Nezz could use a little more simplicity in his life; maybe he'd clean up the unsightly garbage on the outskirts of town.

    ---

    Grey-haired Harold led a patron back to the entrance. "We'll have one of our guys swing by tomorrow night to pick it up. You don't have to worry about a thing."

    The man thanked him and got back in his rental car. Once he was out of sight, Nezz relaxed. His We-Haul brand scrapyard had become wildly successful, but it was hard work, made all the more so by the fact that he had to stand statue-still and let Harold speak for him when humans were about.

    Nezz had enough work to keep himself busy through the coming full moon, though it was increasingly difficult to come up with excuses for the business' closure. But that would change when Harold retired. Then Nezz would have to find another protégé, and everything old would be new again. Except Nezz -- he'd still be old.

    Yipping broke Nezz out of his reverie and he looked down to see Amy's pup with a scrap of leather in his mouth.

    "Hey, Nezz. Mom says to give you this. You should come visit. Godsgate Grove is really nice now that it's overrun with animals."

    Nezz patted him on the head and picked up the parcel. "Thanks, Gubby. Maybe I'll do that when business slows down. But right now I'm swamped."

    "Okay, well, I gotta go hunt squirrels. I'll catch ya later."

    Nezz bade Gubby farewell then looked at the piece of scrap. Scratched haltingly into the leather were the following words:

    In banished junk there stands a hunk
    who'll help you out for not a thing.
    He's strong, he's wise, with prescient eyes,
    he's Nezz, the mighty Junkyard King!

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Monday September 17 2018, @10:57PM (2 children)

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday September 17 2018, @10:57PM (#736264) Journal

      When I saw parent post, I almost assumed that our pedo-mysogenistic author had struck again. When I saw the "spam" mod, I was pretty sure of it. But, to be fair, I read the first paragraph - then the next - then the next.

      I don't expect everyone to read what seems a wall of text, but the above story is a parody. Those who don't sound out the words as they read should be able to read it in 3 to 6 minutes.

      Administrators please remove the spam mod.

  • (Score: 2) by turgid on Monday September 17 2018, @08:13PM (1 child)

    by turgid (4318) Subscriber Badge on Monday September 17 2018, @08:13PM (#736157) Journal
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @10:38PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @10:38PM (#736257)

      OpenBSD

  • (Score: 2) by tangomargarine on Monday September 17 2018, @09:33PM (6 children)

    by tangomargarine (667) on Monday September 17 2018, @09:33PM (#736208)

    or pull a Brendan Eich

    Get hired by Mozilla then run out of town with pitchforks for donating money to a politically-incorrect charity a decade earlier? What do you mean?

    --
    "Is that really true?" "I just spent the last hour telling you to think for yourself! Didn't you hear anything I said?"
    • (Score: 3, Informative) by jmorris on Monday September 17 2018, @10:18PM (5 children)

      by jmorris (4844) on Monday September 17 2018, @10:18PM (#736246)

      No, after being driven out of the Linux Foundation with pitchforks for refusing to implement a CoC and a binary kernel module interface, go build something new. With blackjack and hookers. (o.b. Bender) Like Eich did with Brave after being tossed from Moz Corp, he went off and built a browser around the one feature Firefox can't even think about openly, built in ad blocking. Being the kept pet of Google and Yahoo! has a price ya know. Well Linux is now the kept pet of Intel, HP, Google, etc. What would a project free of those corporate influences look like? Might be interesting.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @11:24PM (4 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 17 2018, @11:24PM (#736274)

        What would a project free of those corporate influences look like? Might be interesting.

        Something that doesn't work with your peripherals or graphics card.

        • (Score: 3, Informative) by The Mighty Buzzard on Tuesday September 18 2018, @02:45AM (2 children)

          by The Mighty Buzzard (18) Subscriber Badge <themightybuzzard@proton.me> on Tuesday September 18 2018, @02:45AM (#736351) Homepage Journal

          So, a BSD then?

          --
          My rights don't end where your fear begins.
          • (Score: 2, Offtopic) by c0lo on Tuesday September 18 2018, @09:38AM (1 child)

            by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday September 18 2018, @09:38AM (#736443) Journal

            Good, I was quite pulled into too many directions which Linux distro to migrate my ancientish Ubuntu 14.04.
            OpenBSD it it, then

            (grin)

            --
            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 18 2018, @02:07PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 18 2018, @02:07PM (#736516)

          So, basically, the original Linux

  • (Score: 2) by chromas on Monday September 17 2018, @11:44PM

    by chromas (34) Subscriber Badge on Monday September 17 2018, @11:44PM (#736285) Journal

    pull a Brendan Eich

    Start a new operating system based on reskinned Windows?