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Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

theregister.co.uk

1–10 of 180 posts

Re: Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

#3
Hear hear! Linus really is the patron saint of grumpy, cynical engineers. There's nothing more frustrating than listening to the bullshit artist spin castles made out of air, knowing that you're the poor son-of-a-gun that's going to have to do the hard work to make it actually happen, and get blamed when reality intrudes on the grand vision.

Also closes with a great quote. Code is easy, it's either right or it's wrong. People are the sticky wicket

> It's almost boring how well our process works," Torvalds said. "All the really stressful times for me have been about process. They haven't been about code. When code doesn't work, that can actually be exciting ... Process problems are a pain in the ass. You never, ever want to have process problems ... That's when people start getting really angry at each other.

Re: Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

#5
The strong words of the title are not the relevant or interesting part of the article (presumably of the talk also). The success in managing the network of kernel collaborators seems to be the real story here.

"It's a social project," said Torvalds. "It's about technology and the technology is what makes people able to agree on issues, because ... there's usually a fairly clear right and wrong."

EDIT: Just for context, HN thankfully edited the title. When I wrote this the post was using the article's title: "Talk of tech innovation is bullsh*t. Shut up and get the work done – says Linus Torvalds"

Re: Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

#6
I like the header and experimented with current trends:

- Talk of AI is bullshit. Shut up and get the work done.

- Talk of Machine Learning is bullshit. Shut up and get the work done.

- Talk of VR is bullshit. Shut up and get the work done.

- Talk of Smart Contracts is bullshit. Shut up and get the work done.

- Talk of IoT is bullshit. Shut up and get the work done.

Not sure if I entirely agree with him but there's some truth.

Re: Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

#7
Someone who should be a multi billionaire says to ignore marketing and sales and just work.

Edit: I'm not saying that he WANTS to be a multi billionaire, but the fact is that he has attained disproportionately less value than he's created. By rights he should be one of the wealthiest people in tech. He might have 150m but that's peanuts given what he's done. The wealth of the guy who made Instagram dwarfs that. The guy who made Whatsapp has a net worth of 8b.

Creation might be 90% perspiration as he says, but perspiration doesn't equal success, and success doesn't equal a career. Obviously everything isn't about money, and Torvald's legacy will be timeless. But if you want to ensure earnings, at some point it's a good idea to sell.

Re: Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

#8
post #7

Someone who should be a multi billionaire says to ignore marketing and sales and just work. Edit: I'm not saying that he WANTS to be a multi billionaire, but the fact is that he has attained disproportionately less value than he's created. By rights he should be one of the wealthiest people in tech. He might have 150m but that's peanuts given what he's done. The wealth of the guy who made Instagram dwarfs that. The g…

If you think money is important you aren't a hacker.

Re: Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

#9
post #7

Someone who should be a multi billionaire says to ignore marketing and sales and just work. Edit: I'm not saying that he WANTS to be a multi billionaire, but the fact is that he has attained disproportionately less value than he's created. By rights he should be one of the wealthiest people in tech. He might have 150m but that's peanuts given what he's done. The wealth of the guy who made Instagram dwarfs that. The g…

Linus Torvalds has an estimated net worth of $150m, I doubt he's worrying about where his next meal is coming from.

Re: Linus Torvalds: Successful projects are 99% perspiration and 1% innovation

#10
Upvote 1000x - I'm sick of hearing people who've done nothing and "thought leaders" ranting on. I'm pleased I put my head down, did work and did something that worked for me that I can encourage others with and give evidence. I wish those who have done nothing would go away - and stop filling my inbox, and targeted advertising spots, and meetups with their crap. I wish I could help others see over the shouting and point to what does work instead of seeing them fall for the hype every time.
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