Quotes of the week

Please don't read if easily trolled. I'm due a moan.

Linux *needs* a decent kernel level debugger. Yes I know the ongoing fear of going microkernel
by implementing such, but realistically, it's many times easier using a kernel debugger than a
crawling virtual machine.

Sometimes I feel Linus doesn't listen to normal people. People who actually frequent different
code bases, projects and the kind of people who embrace a multitude of different skill sets
(not always through desire). For example, some of us follow the money bug and others the
academia bug. Normal people would embrace a wonderful IOKit-clone, built with C++ niceness
(there's more than enough to embrace than balk at tyvm); but no, we hear quite regularly and
without much debate an emphatic "sshpt, never."

Personally, it's nicer to develop an IOKit driver for MacOS than it is a linux driver - second
guessing a poorly created API to gain a hit/miss chance of cscope'ing the right one isn't a
sound development method. Calling member functions is. Personally, I find it refreshing
knowing that the addresses and deconstruction I'm getting is what's actually executed - not a
best guess, post "fixed" version I cant step backwards and forwards in! 

It's very hard to say "I don't like it, but show me the money" and not cause a feature to
fizzle out. When Linus stays on the side and expects some kind of proof, stating so clearly
he's not interested/not going to help, it really does start the whole mental rail-roading
process in his supporters.

Didn't I read somewhere recently that Linus only really cares about the desktop? That made me
terribly uncomfortable - more the knowing that it's so easy to say something and not believe
it, than the sad realisation that one "yes/no" man with so much weight behind him can be a
feature killer, hurting the developers that need him to progress the most.

It's 2008 folks. Not 1991.