September 22nd, 2009

Torvalds calls Linux "bloated" and "scary." Is he right? [poll]

Posted by Sam Diaz @ 2:45 am

Categories: General, Linux

Tags: Linux, Open Source, UNIX, Operating Systems, Software, Sam Diaz

Has Linux become a victim of its own success?

At the LinuxCon conference in Portland this week, Linux creator Linus Torvalds dropped a bit of a bomb when he said that the open-source kernel had not become the “streamlined, hyper-efficient kernel I envisioned when I started writing Linux” and instead was now “bloated,” “huge” and “scary,” according to reports.

Bloated, huh? So does that mean that Linux is starting to look more like Windows? Matt Asay, who writes the  Open Road blog on CNET says that, yes, Linux and Windows are starting to show signs of resemblance. He writes:

I suspect that successful open-source projects, generally, will increasingly look more like Microsoft as they grow. Simultaneously, Microsoft is slowly learning from open source, and I think it will capitulate, too.

Torvalds’ comments came after Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux Foundation, boasted some growth in Linux: 2.7 million lines of code added to the kernel in the last year with 10,923 lines added daily but only 5,647 deleted daily.

I’m not deeply entrenched into the Linux community so it’s tough for me to chime in here. I know Linux is powering smartphones out there and data centers, as well, and I know that both smartphones are doing more while data centers are becoming more efficient.

So I turn the debate over to you. Cast your vote and feel free to chime in.

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