Statistics for the 3.3 development cycle

Statistics for the 3.3 development cycle

Posted Mar 9, 2012 1:31 UTC (Fri) by laptop006 (subscriber, #60779)
Parent article: Statistics for the 3.3 development cycle

The numbers are somewhat noisy, but the trend over the last four years suggests that volunteers are not contributing as much as they once were. It is unclear why that might be. One possibility is that the kernel has reached a point where there are few easy jobs left; the complexity of contemporary kernel development may be discouraging volunteers. Or it may simply be that anybody who demonstrates an ability to get code into the kernel tends not to remain a volunteer for long unless that is what they really want to be; all the rest end up getting hired. The truth may be a combination of both - or something else altogether.

One additional factor would be that employers see value in being acknowledged and request their employees contribute @company.com instead of personal mail accounts.

---

(Log in to post comments)