Summary: The popular press and trade journals summarise the Linux Collaboration Summit using some quote about kernel hackers being increasingly-senior people (as one just ought to expect given the age of this project)

ONE of our readers has raised concerns that an innocent quote from a senior Linux hacker is being inflated and taken out of context in order to summarise an entire summit (like last week's) with a single line of FUD. We saw that last year when "Linux is bloated" became somewhat of a tagline or a motto for the event, or least because of the technology/Wintel press. It concentrates on weaknesses, cherry-picking a few and then accentuating these.

One of our readers, who prefers to remain anonymous, has asked us to debate this or at least put forth the situation. He said that journalists "try and find something negative to say about Open Source" and as examples he gives:

a. No one uses Linux

Hitachi and the phone makers move to Linux

b. The Linux base is fragmenting

Linux developers are the most experienced on the planet

c. Linux developers are all old.

Here is the new example (through Slashdot): "Why Linux Is Not Attracting Young Developers"

Our reader then adds the Guardian as an example of the FUD (although Charles Arthur just passes on a message), quoting in part what he considers to be their formula:

Take some quotes from a kernel developer and then spin them into a whole 'Linux no attracting developers' issue. What are the actual figures, number of kernel developers?

Ohh look, they didn't quote this bit...

"Each two month release of the Linux kernel tends to include about 10,000 changes, with 1,100-1,200 developers contributing code, many of them for the first time. The process hasn't slackened..."

Linus Torvalds has publicly said that he does not wish to be asked about Microsoft because anything he says, assuming it's controversial or divisive enough, turns into articles and headlines that portray him negatively. It seems as though there's never a deficiency for quote-diggers, no matter who in kernel development makes which statements. Maybe the mainstream media is just looking at Linux like it looks at Castro or Wikipedia (which is perceived as an enemy to many publishers). ⬆