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

theregister.co.uk

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

#31

Post by anjc »

VeejayRampay wrote: post #28
wingerlang wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> He's got something more important than that, a legacy. Why is that important?

In my opinion, a legacy like that of Linus means that he's produced a piece of software that has positively impacted the lives of people. It's important because he's actually delivered on the famous SV con-artist promise of "making the world a better place". Not directly, as in curing diseases or revolutionizing energy production or consumption, but in ways that help people in developing countries access information…

Positively impacting lives is surely important.

That's besides the point. My point is that working without selling is not a viable strategy for 99% of people. Hell it barely worked for him in terms of earnings, and he's one of the most impactful people in tech history.

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

#32

Post by [deleted] »

richmarr wrote: post #13
theprotocol wrote: post #4

It takes all kinds. I say this seriously and without intent to offend: it's good to have a grouchy curmudgeon in the industry to keep us grounded.

Thank goodness for that one specific grouchy curmudgeon, otherwise there would be no grouchy curmudgeons and we'd all live like Eloi and waste the days away braiding each others hair :)

[deleted]

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

#33

Post by bad_user »

wingerlang wrote: post #19
VeejayRampay wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You somehow make it unclear whether or not Linus not being a multi-billionaire is a good or a bad thing. Are you saying that because he didn't try to monetize his code as much as he could have, it somehow makes his opinion less valuable? The man created Linux AND git, it doesn't matter whether or not he's got billions. He's got something more important than that, a legacy.

> He's got something more important than that, a legacy. Why is that important?

On your deathbed, are you going to regret not making more money? If your basic needs have been met and your children have been well educated and aren't starving, then the answer is probably no.

But many of us will regret not spending more time with our loved ones, or not leaving something of value behind, something we created.

The truth is many of us aren't doing this for the money, because let's be honest, most of us have an IQ over average and we could work in the finance industry, which is far more lucrative for making actual money. Or we could build a local business selling products or services for local needs, not "disrupting" anything in the process. Or we could end up in upper the management of big corporations, in safe and high paying positions, instead of doing the actual coding. Etc, etc.

We, the software developers, are creating, we've got the creator's virus. It's both a blessing and a curse.

Oh and if any recruiters are reading this, those of us with passion, experience and capacity for solving hard problems might be motivated by technologies or projects, but we aren't cheap or exploitable, so for as long as we are on the right side of the demand/supply curve if you're looking for cheap, then GTFO!

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

#34

Post by anjc »

jacquesm wrote: post #30
anjc wrote: 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…

> but the fact is that he has attained far less value than he's created. This goes for an extremely large portion of humanity, probably > 99.99%. Very few people manage to extract all of the value they created (and sometimes more), and most of those people are not the nicest ones.

Oh well absolutely, but Linus' value creation/wealth disparity is mindblowing. Again, I'm not suggesting that money is everything, and I'm sure that he'd say he doesn't care about money. But he's advocating an ethos which wouldn't work for most people, and which barely worked for him in terms of earnings.

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

#36

Post by vacri »

anjc wrote: 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…

Torvalds didn't say that marketing and sales wasn't work. He said that crapping on about innovation isn't work, and that work is in the details. And the same is true in sales as well - who would you rather work for you in sales, the one who spends their time crapping on about how huge everything is going to be, or the one who spends their time pounding the pavement, making calls? The work is in the details in sales as well.

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

#37

Post by anjc »

bad_user wrote: post #33
wingerlang wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> He's got something more important than that, a legacy. Why is that important?

On your deathbed, are you going to regret not making more money? If your basic needs have been met and your children have been well educated and aren't starving, then the answer is probably no. But many of us will regret not spending more time with our loved ones, or not leaving something of value behind, something we created. The truth is many of us aren't doing this for the money, because let's be honest, most of u…

Nice romantic view but the fact is that 95% of people in the western world can't afford society's perceptions of "basic needs". I'd wager that most people you hear talking about innovation, outside of Websummit and so on, are living hand-to-mouth and very much need to sell their ideas.

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

#38

Post by anjc »

vacri wrote: post #36
anjc wrote: 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…

Torvalds didn't say that marketing and sales wasn't work. He said that crapping on about innovation isn't work, and that work is in the details. And the same is true in sales as well - who would you rather work for you in sales, the one who spends their time crapping on about how huge everything is going to be, or the one who spends their time pounding the pavement, making calls? The work is in the details in sales a…

That's all very true, but the people you typically hear 'crapping on about innovation' are doing their job, and have more than likely put enormous effort into perfecting their documentation, presentations, delivery, pitching, market analysis etc etc.

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

#39

Post by frederikvs »

It's funny how he says "Don't do this big 'think different'... screw that", apparently without realising that Apple did exactly what he's talking about. Almost all of Apple's big innovations were stolen from other places, and then they shut up, and got to work : making it work properly, making it user friendly, making it sexy, and then selling it.

Apple's slogan may have been "think different", and they have the image of being radical innovators, but hardly any of their innovations actually originated with them. Apple is 99% perspiration and 1% stealing good ideas :-)

There's even an infographic : http://mashable.com/2012/10/27/apple-stolen-ideas/#Fs4Q5gSS....

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

#40

Post by lr4444lr »

richmarr wrote: post #27
altitudinous wrote: post #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 po…

Many people work in marketing in some way or other, and that work fulfils an important function. I'm not particularly thrilled about it either, but we don't currently operate in a perfect information market and human bandwidth needs to be used to propogate ideas. Rage on it if you like, but you're yelling against the wind. My recommendation would be to save your blood pressure.

As long as everyone knows their place. I've found that the people - who add nothing more than their opining, expounding, and big promises but confuse having a core idea for the sweat that forges it into reality - to be lazy, parasitic, and dishonest manipulators of the worst sort who look at the people doing the real work as their instrument. To me, no one is more irksome in a business, and when they have equity it's an injustice I simply can't tolerate.
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