Linus Torvalds F-bombs Nvidia over lack of Linux support
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Linus Torvalds, the software engineer who became the chief architect of the Linux kernel, has hit out against graphics giant Nvidia for its lack of support for the Linux platform.
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During a Q&A session at the Aalto University in Finland, Torvalds identifies Nvidia as "the single worst company we've ever dealt with" before unexpectedly turning to the camera and delivering an F-bomb complete with the middle finger gesture.
(Click here if you want to jump directly to the question that elicits the F-bomb response.)
Torvalds' frustration is worsened by the fact that Nvidia is unwilling to support Linux despite being a big player in the Android market with its Tegra line of ARM chips, especially given that Android is based on the Linux kernel.
While I agree -- and in many ways sympathize -- with Torvalds' point about Nvidia with regards to Linux support, I don't agree with the suggestion that any community is entitled to anything beyond what a company advertises as offering. We do have to bear in mind that Nvidia is under no obligation to do anything to help the Linux community, and any suggestion that Nvidia -- or any other company -- should play nicely with open source is based on nothing more than a feeling of entitlement.
Considering the overall size of the Linux desktop and notebook market share, it's a tiny drop in the ocean compared to Nvidia's other markets. It makes sense for Nvidia to embrace the Android market because it has found a way to make money from it, but it makes little sense for the company to sink R&D money into Linux on the desktop, no matter how many F-bombs Torvalds drops or how many times he flips the bird.
Image source: Aalto University/YouTube.
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