I have been monitoring the debian developers mailing list via Usenet and some things are showing up that at first disturbed me. Now that I have had a little time to think about it, it appears that there needs to be some kind of period of reflection on what Debian (in particular) and Linux (in general) are doing and where they are going and what is the best way to get there.
The leaders of the various linux projects (including Linus himself) are growing into a world different than the one they were in when they built what we now call the linux community. They have famillies, jobs, homes. Can we expect the same level of effort and output from them when they could devote most of their waking hours (and probably more) to Linux? Is it time to begin to delegate more of the responsibility to younger hot-shots in school with no carreer, no mortgage, no chicken-pox to interfere in their development of linux? As thoughts turn to college education for their offspring, medical expenses, projects at work requiring 16-hour days, who is going to put in the long days on Linux that used to be the norm for this group of (now) elders? :) Who do you pass the torch to? Has it been thought about? In the grand scheme of things, if Debian went tits-up tomarrow, Bruce would still have projects due at work, Linus would still have a child to feed, clothe, and educate. In other words, maybe it is time to pass a larger share of the work to a hungry, eager, younger group that can devote all weekend, a summer, long night hours to the project. I suggest that after 2.0 has settled down, that there be a hiatis (?sp) for 90 days for review and reflection and that a conference be held (different than the one just held in Santa Cruz) between the key figures in the linux community where they might identify a new crop of up-and-coming stars to pass more of the development of the OS to while they concentrate on getting their kids raised and carreers fostered. While I am not ready to go packing Bruce off to the nursing home just yet, I guess that what I am trying to say is that I see some of the criticism in that list as being a bit short-sighted particularly when famillies are involved. Bruce and Linus (and many others) have probably sacrificed a lot more of their life to the project than maybe they should have to. In the grand scheme of things, when you look over that kid's homework, maybe Linux does not seem so important. That is when, I think, it should be passed on to someone that is living and breathing Linux. It IS the most important thing to the young hot-shot that wants to make their mark on improving the system. That will change and they, in turn, will pass it along to the next bunch once they discover that there are probably more important things. It is either that or we create some kind of system where linux development will provide for people's housing, food, medical care and education of progeny. There should be some mechanism put in place where the right people can be the core deveoplers of the OS, evolve to a mentor-elder position in the community with more time to devote to more important issues while remaining in very close touch with the community and maybe finally, retiring BACK to a more active role once the kids are on their own. Just something for you all to think about on a slow Tuesday evening. gb ing and where they are going and what is the best way to get there. The leaders of the various linux projects (including Linus himself) are growing into a world different than the one they were i -- TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM THIS MAILING LIST: e-mail the word "unsubscribe" to [EMAIL PROTECTED] . Trouble? e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] .