The Mind Behind Linux | Linus Torvalds | TED

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Cites j1vms · 2016-05 · on “SpaceX lands rocket at sea second time after satellite launch”

Tesla is really great, but there exists a "take" on Edison that makes him also not so bad. Here, listen to Linus talk about him a bit: [this video] Linus: "I'm more of an Edison..." (TED2016, Feb. 2016)

Cites clusmore · 2019-01 · on “Special Cases Are a Code Smell”

I'm reminded of Linus Torvald's interview at Ted [1] where he talks about programming "taste", and compares the following two code snippets: remove_list_entry(entry) { prev = NULL; walk = head; while (walk != entry) { prev = walk; walk = walk->next; } if (!prev) head = entry->next; else prev->next = entry->next; } remove_list_entry(entry) { indirect = &head; while ((*indirect) != entry) indirect = &(*indirect)->next; *indirect = entry->next; } [1]: [this video]

Cites delusional · 2019-12 · on “Modular C: Reusable and Maintainable Code Using the C Language (1994) [pdf]”

It's sort of funny that linus torvalds actually talked about why that sort of iteration is better: [this video] I think he puts it pretty well (although he them also goes on to say dumb little snippets like that really don't matter in the big picture). Essentially, by making a doubly indirect pointer you get to treat the first element exactly the same way you are going to treat every other element.

Cites chistev · 2026-01 · on “CSS sucks because we don't bother learning it (2022)”

"There are people who care about the UI. I can’t do UI to save my life. I mean, if I was stranded on an island and the only way to get off that island was to make a pretty UI, I’d die there." - Linus Torvalds. Source of the quote above - [this video] If you don't want to watch the whole video, here's the exact part about the UI - [LINK] Transcript - [LINK]

Cites Imustaskforhelp · 2026-01 · on “Code is cheap. Show me the talk”

I don't think Linus is a people person. This is something which he talks about himself in the famous ted-ed video. I just re-watched the video (currently halfway) & I feel like the point of Linux is something which you are forgetting but it was never intended to grow so much and Linux himself in the video when asked says that he never had a moment where he went like oh this went big. In fact he talks about when the project was little. On how he had gratitude when the project had 10 people maybe 100 people working on it and then things only grow over a very large time frame (more than 25-30years? maybe now 35 just searched 34) He talks about how he got other people's idea which he couldn't ha