Sarah Sharp Steps Down As Linux Kernel Developer

[Daktyl198]

Would we even care if it was a guy? I'm pretty sure there's been loads of male programmers who have stepped out of kernel development because they didn't like the environment but we can't really name a single one. And the kernel have lived on.

Also, management by perkele.

This so much.

I understand that the LKML is not a nice place, it's never been one and there have been several attempts to fix that by people (both male and female). The only reason this is getting so much attention is because she cried victim/sexism when her methods didn't work. I'm not going to find fault with her trying to do something about the conduct, but she's a sore loser pure and simple.

Honestly, if this gets coverage in major Linux news sites for more than 3 days, I'm going to be severely disappointed. It's just not news, and the more we make it look like news the more she's going to go around thinking she "won" against those "tyrants" in the LKML.

[duby229]

She's stating the obvious history of the Linux Kernel Community. It is full of immature, misogynistic a-holes who have never been professional in their communications. If it weren't for the billions of corporate dollars invested in it the Linux Operating system would have died 20 years ago.

I definitely disagree with that. The reason linux draws so much investment is because it has value.

[asdfblah]

Honestly, I dislike working in places in which people treat you like sh!t. OTOH, I guess you shouldn't take them too seriously... Unless you know they have emotional/mental problems, of course.
Anyway, thanks for your work, Sarah. Just ignore the stupid people that watch too much TV (A TV show like "South Park" as a source on how to live your life? Your life must be really sad...).
On another topic, I still have problems liking internet SJWs, though.

People talk, interact criticize, and feelings get hurt. That's the way it is. This story reminded me of an article I read a few days back : http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/...n-mind/399356/

One of my high school teachers imprinted these words into my brain : life isn't fair, deal with it... Living by this helps me quite a lot.

One thing is accepting reality, the other is to try to change it, at least a bit. These things aren't mutually exclusive.

[uid313]

Linux created Linux and its runs everything in the world, I don't think anyone should criticise him.
He have done a fantastic work and continues to do so!
How would Linux be if didn't put his foot down and and just let any patch get accepted?
The Linux kernel is his life, he have worked on it for over 20 years, he don't want it it polluted with junk code.

Programmers are geeks, and kernel programming is unlike other programming, these people are alpha-geeks.
They care about code, logic and patterns. Many of em do not posses good social skills.
It is important that they can stay in a environment where they are accepted and you can look past their blunders so they can do what they do good ? develope.
Do not impose all these codes of conduct on these misfits, it will just chase them away and you will be left with people pleasing, suit-wearing, neck-tie wearing, clean cut, cologne wearing, haircombed developers who don't know anything about programming.

[brent]

Linux created Linux and its runs everything in the world, I don't think anyone should criticise him.
He have done a fantastic work and continues to do so!

Oh come on. I almost completely disagree with Sarah Sharp's assessment of the Linux community. Still, it is perfectly fine to criticise Linus. I don't think Linus' hard-line management style is wrong, but in some cases he clearly stepped over the line. Curiously not in those cases when she got into discussions on the LKML, where she basically feels offended by a stupid nerd basement joke:

http://marc.info/?l=linux-kernel&m=137390362508794&w=2

Greg might be a giant and he might squish people without ever even noticing, but that's just a grave, deadly physical threat no real kernel hacker ever feels threatened by. (Not much can hurt us deep in our dark basements after all, except maybe earthquakes, gamma ray eruptions and Mom trying to clean up around the computers.)

[bjoswald]

Oh, just another SJW then. Carry on.

[Luke_Wolf]

This so much.

I understand that the LKML is not a nice place, it's never been one and there have been several attempts to fix that by people (both male and female). The only reason this is getting so much attention is because she cried victim/sexism when her methods didn't work. I'm not going to find fault with her trying to do something about the conduct, but she's a sore loser pure and simple.

Honestly, if this gets coverage in major Linux news sites for more than 3 days, I'm going to be severely disappointed. It's just not news, and the more we make it look like news the more she's going to go around thinking she "won" against those "tyrants" in the LKML.

+1 to you both, To be honest given her tantrum in what was it 2011? 2012? I thought she had already left.

[kernelOfTruth]

Contributing to the discussion:

I kinda find it sad that she goes (kernel developer side) - she did some nice work on the USB subsystem (XHCI specifically ?)

Oh come on. I almost completely disagree with Sarah Sharp's assessment of the Linux community. Still, it is perfectly fine to criticise Linus. I don't think Linus' hard-line management style is wrong, but in some cases he clearly stepped over the line. Curiously not in those cases when she got into discussions on the LKML, where she basically feels offended by a stupid nerd basement joke:

http://marc.info/?l=linux-kernel&m=137390362508794&w=2

How is that NOT cool ?

it's a sort of bro-wrangling, trolling, nagging (sorry can't come up with the correct term) - venting off some steam

OF COURSE the only girl in that discussion will get offended, since she's used to other way to do so (or due to social conditioning hasn't learned anything similar and calmy turns into a pressure cooker - not cool ) - so what ?

in kindergarten or school times girls would say: "hum - boys and their ways !" and move on

I don't get it

[toyotabedzrock]

I think more developers the better gender doesn't matter. But I have to take issue when things like emotional honesty are redefined as radical. Or when being blunt and terse is turned into a sexist attack.

[dealcorn]

If kernel developers had employee status, the sexist nonsense Sarah is concerned with would be shut down immediately at significant financial costs. I believe the conduct is nominally legal because kernel developers are "volunteers". However, volunteer status is iffy because kernel developers are frequently employees compensated to volunteer as a kernel developers. Perhaps the correct solution is to just recognize that the nominal "voluntary" relationship that defines open source is a sham with the effect that employers spend billions mandating that their employees work in a hostile, sexist environment. Courts may then look though the sham and impose significant penalties wherever they want. Deny it if you like, but this conduct is no longer acceptable. Time to grow up.