That there is a kernel development team seems, that does control Linux
kernel development independently of any single vendor seems like it is
worth getting across to the public.
One does not want "Linux" run off with by any particular vendor, in the
long term.
Therefore, I think it wise to get this one right, as a template
for future ones, now that Linux has reached the attention of the mass
market press.
Further comments below.
- Jim Gettys
> Sender: owner-linux-kernel@vger.rutgers.edu
> From: Riccardo Facchetti <fizban@tin.it>
> Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 11:47:40 +0000 (/etc/localtime)
> To: Greg Smart <GSmart@tennyson.com.au>
> Cc: "'linux-kernel'" <linux-kernel@vger.rutgers.edu>
> Subject: Re: *** next draft - press release ***
> -----
> On Fri, 15 Jan 1999, Greg Smart wrote:
>
> > ----------- now I make a fool of myself :-) ---------- - no you
> > didn't :-)
>
> IMO noone here is making fool of him/herself ... the press release is a
> serious thing that we must do right and since noone of us is a marketing
> droid this thing is much more difficult to get right that writing code :)
>
> > LINUX KERNEL 2.2
> > Santa Clara CA, January XX, 1999
> ^^^^^^^
> Hehe ... today is 15 ... 2 weeks to go ... is it possible ? :)
>
> > Today the software developers led by Linus Torvalds release a major update
> ^^^
>
> Here I think we must stress that we are a team. We should not give the
> impression that there is a bunch of casual developers coordinated by
> Linus that have written an OS.
>
> I suggest to change that sentence this way:
>
> "Today the Linux Software Development Team led by Linus Torvalds ..."
Should be "kernel development team"; others lead other parts of the
system. Be generous in giving credit to others; there is more than
enough to go around. Be inclusive, not exclusive.
>
> This is something worth doing because the market is expecting a stable
> development crew and while developers come and go (even if there are much
> more ones that come than the ones that go), the Linux Software Development
> Team is always working.
>
> > to the Linux operating system. This update brings increased scalability,
> > new hardware support, and a large collection of low-level features.
> > Highlights include:
>
> First of all we IMHO _must_ stress that Linux is very good at desktop
> computing:
>
> * Superior workstation and day to day working environment, with super
> stable Operating System and high quality software including Windows-like
> Graphical User Interfaces, complete Office Automation Suites compatible
> with the Microsoft Office suite, Internet Navigation packages for
> running faster on the Information Highway, complete development suites
> for writing your own software with the language of your choice.
I think that these claims are premature....
To be blunt: the gui's available for X have NOT be competitive, much
less superior. This has been a major disappointment to me. Don't
add to the Linux hype here. Even as one of the people who started
X, I mostly abandoned it, and saw no hope. I dual boot Windows 98
and Linux, and have used Windoze much more than UNIX the last few years;
what Linux provides "out of the box" for a GUI is pretty laughable.
Linux does NOT need oversell right now, and this group making claims that
are patently false will badly hurt credibility.
I just installed Gnome; I have the new office software that
is on the market; there IS serious hope (and maybe KDE already provides
this level of function, but I note it is not "standard" on Linux today),
of Linux having a competative or superior GUI within the year
but any such claim right now is blowing smoke.
>
> > new life to older 486-based computers. Support is widely available
>
> Here we should change that 486-based to 386-based ... don't limit our
> suporting to the lower end ... someone is still using 386 :)
>
> > suggest that Linux had 10 to 20 million users at the end of 1998.
> ^^^^^^^^
>
> 10 to 20 interval is too wide an estimate ... I suggest that we have to:
>
> "Initial estimates suggest that Linux is well introduced into the server
> niche owning 17% of the market not counting the innumerable desktop
> installations for which an estimate is really difficult given the 'free
> download, free copy' distribution policy."
You better have the reference here to the analyst report. Also
the "not counting" clause is very confusing, particularly for non native
speakers of English.
- Jim Gettys
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