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Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

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Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#61

Post by javert »

sciurus wrote: post #57
javert wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As opposed to Richard Stallman, who probably does not drink coffee unless it comes from a coffee maker running free softare.

Just to be pedantic... Stallman: I'm less concerned with what happens with embedded systems than I am with real computers. The real reason for this is the moral issues about software freedom are much more significant for computers that users see as a computer. And so I'm not really concerned with what's running inside my microwave oven. Again, I'm happy if people find GNU/Linux useful for that. If some companies find…

Interesting.

I don't agree with Stallman on making this distinction. (I don't agree with him in general, either, though.)

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#62

Post by noonespecial »

oz wrote: post #42
noonespecial wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It would be a tragedy if he had to spend his time managing a bunch of money he can't take with him anyway instead of doing what he loves and benefiting us all. It would be as big a waste as if he was broke and had to flip burgers to make ends meet. This is a rare case where reality seems to actually be optimized for all involved. We, the collective we, have done exceptionally well in this deal, and Linus probably has…

I, for one, would welcome such a tragedy.

Of course you would. So would I. That's why he wrote the kernel and we... didn't.

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#63

Post by sk5t »

mountaineer wrote: post #59
pessimist wrote: post #8

RedHat's $1m stock is his only big payout, apparently. Rather sad, considering the number of mid-level facebook engineers who will become many times as rich in a few months.

A 6000 sq ft house in LO, the most affluent city in Oregon, would run a couple million dollars probably. Throw in the Mercedes and I think he's carved some money out over the years.

I will posit that nobody any significant distance from the west coast knows what "LO" is meant to signify. A little research suggests Lake Oswego, but really...

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#64

Post by sk5t »

femto wrote: post #56
why-el wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where does this put Stallman?

Stallmann got a MacArthur Fellowship, worth USD240,000 in 1990 [1], and a Grace Murray Hopper Award and a Yuri Rubinsky Memorial Award, which had some money attached. Torvalds and Stallmann also had a share of a 100 million yen prize in 2001. It's not quite in the Zuckerberg league, but it at least means he shouldn't have to worry about where the next meal is coming from. [1] http://tech.mit.edu/V110/N30/rms.30n.html

Really? If all I had realized over 22 years was ~US$1.24MM, with nothing else in the pipeline, I'd be seriously concerned about my financial well-being.

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#65

Post by Killah911 »

pessimist wrote: post #8

RedHat's $1m stock is his only big payout, apparently. Rather sad, considering the number of mid-level facebook engineers who will become many times as rich in a few months.

You're able to control very little about the world and the way things turn out. Many people win the lottery. Heck, what's the point of doing a startup if you were just born into tons of money if money's the final goal?

Richest guy in the graveyard or "remembered" guy in the graveyard, YOU'RE STILL IN THE GRAVEYARD. You can either be miserable your whole life and then some, by always thinking about how you're perceived, or you can easily be content and even be OK with dying knowing you did your best at every step and not "regretting" decisions.

The outward "success" doesn't really mean crap (IMHO). Sure, million bucks is nice, sure recognition is nice, but being true to your passions and being the best you... now that to me is success. It really is in the journey, not the destination, and is hardly something people who aren't extremely close to you would know about.

(To those of you who've already guessed, Viktor Frankl's heavily influenced my views here, so props to him!)

"Steve Jobs dated stars..." part was total crap. The only thing I've ever found in that kind of "success" is emptiness. Give me a hard problem, and let me have a crack at it... I only fail, if I give up out of fear of what I perceive as "ultimate failure" of not being able to solve the problem.

The biggest fail in this article to me was how he's supposedly a dad of three and that part barely gets a mention beyond his license plate. I'm a dad of 3, and it's hard as hell trying to keep up with everything & I love it! I was looking forward to see how Linus does it, and apparently it's by having an interesting license plate... (link bait)

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#66

Post by cdibona »

sho_hn wrote: post #39
philip1209 wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm surprised Google hasn't tried to hire him. They hired the inventor of Python, and it would seem up their alley to hire Linus.

I wouldn't be surprised if they did, but I think Linus has carefully avoided working for anyone who might be seen to have a less than neutral stake in Linux. He used to work at Transmeta, a CPU maker, and his first and only Linux-specific employment is at the non-profit Linux Foundation. That said, I also wouldn't be surprised if Google understands this well and hasn't tried to hire him because it makes sense for Lin…

Let me assure you that Linus knows full well he has an open offer at Google or any of a dozen companies.

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#67

Post by usaar333 »

sk5t wrote: post #63
mountaineer wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A 6000 sq ft house in LO, the most affluent city in Oregon, would run a couple million dollars probably. Throw in the Mercedes and I think he's carved some money out over the years.

I will posit that nobody any significant distance from the west coast knows what "LO" is meant to signify. A little research suggests Lake Oswego, but really...

> I will posit that nobody any significant distance from Portland knows what "LO" is meant to signify.

FIFY

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#68

Post by kamaal »

zerostar07 wrote: post #48
icandoitbetter wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Being the famous guy in the graveyard isn't particularly appealing either.

Millions of tourists who pay tributes to graves and memorials would disagree

None of that would matter for the 'dead guy' in the graveyard.

What matters is your experiences when your alive.

What matters more? The rich guy gets a more comfortable coffin too!

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#69

Post by yason »

pessimist wrote: post #8

RedHat's $1m stock is his only big payout, apparently. Rather sad, considering the number of mid-level facebook engineers who will become many times as rich in a few months.

I think that the only reason you actually want lots of money is that you can do what you desire and not have to worry about spending time to actually make a living. Torvalds at least has that covered.

Re: Linus Torvalds: The King of Geeks (And Dad of 3)

#70

Post by philwelch »

frou_dh wrote: post #38
untog wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm far, far more impressed than Jon Hamm does. I've been a techie all my life, and I would walk straight past Linus if I saw him on the street. I only have a very vague idea of what he looks like. And why should it otherwise? He's famous for what he's done, not who he is.

That reminds me of this tweet I saw. I was surprised to recognise 11 of 12 (I think. Not positive on the lower left; don't know the one in the wig). Evidently commissioned by a lover of Clojure: http://twitter.com/#!/ghoseb/status/167501457896120321/photo...

For the record:

Steve Jobs Alan Turing Donald Knuth

John McCarthy J. S. Bach Linus Torvalds

Isaac Newton Rich Hickey Richard Stallman

Edsger Dijkstra Nikola Tesla Dieter Rams

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