Quote

Theory and practice sometimes clash. And when that happens, theory loses. Every single time.

Linus Torvalds

Change background

T
T
T

Change font

TAGS & TOPICS

Linus Torvalds
Age: 54
Born: 1969
Born: December 28
Blogger
Businessperson
Computer Scientist
Engineer
Inventor
Programmer
Software Developer
Software Engineer
Writer
Helsingfors
Linus Benedict Torvalds
LUS
OH3LUS
Sometimes
Every
Time
Clash
Theory
Single
Loses
Practice
Happens

More quotes by Linus Torvalds

Image
I often compare open source to science. To where science took this whole notion of developing ideas in the open and improving on other peoples' ideas and making it into what science is today and the incredible advances that we have had. And I compare that to witchcraft and alchemy, where openness was something you didn't do.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Every once in a while an issue comes up where I have to make a statement. I can't totally avoid all political issues, but I try my best to minimize them. When I do make a statement, I try to be fairly neutral.
Linus Torvalds
Image
I'm simply too content doing what I want to do to really have a very negative attitude towards MicroSoft. They make bad products - so what? I don't need to care, because I happily don't have to use them, and writing my own alternative has been a very gratifying experience in many ways.
Linus Torvalds
Image
The bulk of all patents are crap. Spending time reading them is stupid. It's up to the patent owner to do so, and to enforce them.
Linus Torvalds
Image
The NIH syndrome (Not Invented Here) is a disease.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Once you start thinking more about where you want to be than about making the best product, you're screwed.
Linus Torvalds
Image
The Linux philosophy is laugh in the face of danger. Oops. Wrong one. Do it yourself. That's it.
Linus Torvalds
Image
I started Linux as a desktop operating system. And it's the only area where Linux hasn't completely taken over. That just annoys the hell out of me.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Eventually the revolutionaries become the established culture, and then what will they do
Linus Torvalds
Image
I'd argue that everybody wants to do something that matters, and the fact that Linux has had a huge impact on the tech market and is used virtually everywhere is obviously very personally satisfying. I think programming is fun, and the community around the kernel is great, but a project has to be relevant too.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Quite frankly, even if the choice of C were to do *nothing* but keep the C++ programmers out, that in itself would be a huge reason to use C.
Linus Torvalds
Image
I claim that Mach people (and apparently FreeBSD) are incompetent idiots.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Being open source meant that I could work on the technical side (along with lots of other people), and others who had the interest and inclination could start up companies around it.
Linus Torvalds
Image
A consumer doesn't take anything away: he doesn't actually consume anything. Giving the same thing to a thousand consumers is not really any more expensive than giving it to just one.
Linus Torvalds
Image
It was such a relief to program in user mode for a change. Not having to care about the small stuff is wonderful.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Only wimps use tape backup. Real men just upload their important stuff on ftp and let the rest of the world mirror it.
Linus Torvalds
Image
There are lots of Linux users who don't care how the kernel works but only want to use it is not only a tribute to how good Linux is, but it also brings up issues that I would never have thought of otherwise.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Shareware tends to combine the worst of commercial software with the worst of free software.
Linus Torvalds
Image
Bill Gates really seems to be much more of a business man than a technologist, while I prefer to think of Linux in technical terms rather than as a means to money. As such, I'm not very likely to make the same kind of money that Bill made.
Linus Torvalds
Image
I've tried it a couple of times over the years, mainly because the thing Ubuntu did so well was make Debian usable. I always felt that Debian was a pointless exercise because to me, the point of a distribution is to make everything easy. Easy to install, to be pretty and to be friendly and Ubuntu did that to Debian.
Linus Torvalds