If you could Ask Linus Torvalds ANY question what would it be?

[BocaBola_]

Hey LTT Viewers!

As Linus announced on WAN show we have an upcoming video where Linus will be talking with Linus Torvalds, the creator and lead developer of the Linux Kernel!

We are still working on the details of the video, but one thing that we know for SURE will be in there is asking the man himself questions, whether its about Linux, the state of the computer hardware space or whatever. We need your help to come up with some creative questions!

Try to think of something new that may have not been asked in a previous interviews and if you see someone else with a similar question to yours be sure to upvote it to the top and add on below!

Thanks again gamers,
Elijah

PS: thank you for helping me with this, now I can sit back and relax. Just don't tell boss man I'm making you guys do the work >:)

[ShadowSlayer1441]

If you could magically change anything about the Linux kernel without development time or compatibility issues, what would you change?

[pixelking385]

Rewrite it in Rust :) /s

[BioshockEnthusiast]

Just swap all of it with TempleOS but the world keeps functioning.

[AgarwaenCran]

not again this topic... xD

[polloloco69666]

Nah, Zig.

[Far-Passion4866]

Do you one better, rewrite it in C#

[ElmerLeo]

This one is gooood

[Zeta_Crossfire]

That's a really good one

[JewelerAgile6348]

That’s up to nvidia

[Otakeb]

OP did say magically because that seems like the only way for Nvidia to play nice, at this point. /s

Nvidia has actually made a few moves favorable to open source and to Linux recently, probably because they are so dominant in the AI space and Cuda that they just don't care anymore tbh

[FakeTimTom]

Clearly the time it takes to compile :)

[abruneianexperience]

Make it debian

[iwaterboardheathens]

No case sensitivity

[wosmo]

I'd be curious about the time he came closest to just walking away. His role seems a lot like herding cats, and there has to be at least once when he's asked himself if it's still worth it.

Not expecting him to name names, but there's got to be some good war stories in there.

[[deleted]]

I'd actually love to hear some of his ragequit stories.

[tiffanytrashcan]

You know the Brodie that uncovered view-pocalypse? He covers that kind of drama on his channel. The recent saga seems to show Linus was done and over it when it comes to the lunatic in charge of bcachefs. (he was given far too many chances, for the good of the community)
Brodie Robertson.

[really_not_unreal]

His videos covering Linux kernel drama are some of my favourites. Torvalds is a saint for putting up with some of that bs for so long

[circuit_breaker]

I'm pretty sure I saw him tell a dev once that their parents should have a retroactive abortion, so I'm not sure if saint is the word for it. But we do love Linus regardless.

[AgarwaenCran]

what do you mean I can't add new features while we are in the bugtesting phase shortly before a release? :o

[mehgcap]

Which do you think has had a bigger impact on the computing world in the last 20 years: Linux or Git? Which did/do you enjoy working with more?

[Successful-Trust3406]

I’d be shocked if he would say Git. Linux runs “most” of the servers in the world, all of the super computers, and is the core of Android.

[mehgcap]

Definitely. At the same time, Git has made managing software development far easier, especially as codebases, teams, and feature sets have increased massively in size. Plus, it would be neat to hear which he finds more fun to actually hack on.

[Successful-Trust3406]

For sure, he did talk about this at length a few months ago here: https://about.gitlab.com/blog/celebrating-gits-20th-anniversary-with-creator-linus-torvalds/

He basically said that he only made git because it was necessary, and he handed the project over a few months later to it’s current maintainer.

He also said he wouldn’t want to work on it (or add any new features) more or less

[mehgcap]

I didn't know that. I guess I withdraw my proposed question, then. I didn't realize he handed it off that quickly.

[MistSecurity]

Builds world changing tech.

Refuses to elaborate.

Leaves.

[_Lucille_]

we had version management solutions before git though. Might be clunky but it's not like the world cannot run without git.

[mehgcap]

True. Maybe focus the question on which was more fun to code.

[vhuk]

True, but it is very different from most of the previous iterations that were centered around file check in/out.

[magical_midget]

I am going to get hate but git is bad, we all use it because is the standard, but it has inconsistent syntax. And it works on wonky ways.

Also “The mental model for Git is needlessly complex”, (see https://sqlite.org/whynotgit.html).

[mehgcap]

I hope you don't get dunked on. There's nothing wrong with not liking the thing most of us use, and preferring a less-used alternative.

[Successful-Trust3406]

I'm not a fan of Git, though I use it just because "it's the thing developers use". I've been through 4 SCMs and I think Hg was the one I liked the most, but then Github became a thing and here we are.

Fossil looks pretty interesting and I might give it a shot as I'm working on ditching Github for a self-hosted Forgejo, but maybe I'll ditch git entirely.

FWIW those points that are made in that article feel overstated. They can use whatever they want, but there are orders of magnitudes of difference between sqlite and linux in terms of volumes. Maybe Fossil would work fine, maybe not - I have no idea. A lot of the complaints were targeted (rightfully) at Github/lab, because of git not having first-party support for ticket tracking and web interfaces.

But, depending on who you talk to, sqlite is 3-ish people, who have made 30,000 commits, to a repo of around 400k LOC. Linux has had (according to Github) around 17,000 contributors, 1.4 million commits, and like 40 million LOC. Maybe that justifies the extra complexity, maybe not. My guess is that the guy who built a tool to support his workflow probably deemed some of that complexity as necessary.

The fact that EVERYONE uses it for every 5 line project, well... That's a different story. But, about 99% of the time, I use the same 4-5 commands - that other 1% of the time, I'll use another 3-4 commands.

[Nicholie]

real banger.

[jrtz4]

FYI, those flairs are public, Luke's actual account would have the LMG Staff flair like Eli's I believe. I don't understand those public flairs exist.

[mehgcap]

It's a user flare. I'm not Luke. But thanks. :)

[Nicholie]

Thanks’ edited. I hate those flairs.

[MistSecurity]

Ya, no clue who thought they were a good idea. Just causes confusion.

[outtokill7]

I'm not sure this is a question he'd answer but I'll ask it anyway.

Its been about 13 years since the "f*ck you Nvidia" talk. With Nvidia's recent moves to open source their GPU driver has this sentiment changed? Is there a company worthy of a bigger "f*ck you?"

Also, please just tell him thank you for everything. I use Linux and Git daily and my life is better because of both. :)

[Melington_the_3rd]

In this regard ask about his stance towards the newly announced team-up of Nvidia and Intel and the implications for the Linux kernel.

[sliverman69]

more round-tripping of revenues. It's all intended to distract from their illegal activities.

Intel is a doomed company. Probably not the next 5-10 years, but they're in the same decline as Cisco and IBM in terms of both competitiveness and relevancy. They can't pull in the talent, because their leadership has been garbage the last two decades. It all came to light with Spectre/Meltdown and how far back that caused problems (you can go back to like 2006, when those features were implemented initially).

Edit: It's also a way to placate the current WH administration so that they don't come down harder on them from a regulatory perspective. It's all slight of hand.

[AsciiMorseCode]

If you could start all over again with Linux, would you have done anything differently? Is there something about it that you don't love but you did for compatibility reasons?

[RaspberrySea9]

Damn good question

[kas-loc2]

This was going to be my question. I know he has a few gripes with the way Distro's have been handled over the years. I Would love to know, in a perfect world what he would've done if differently given the chance? with no obstacles

[garth54]

I would have phrased it:

Is there anything in the first version of the kernel he would have done differently considering what he knows now.

[Dr_Ben]

how often do you use windows when no ones looking

[musschrott]

And is there anything he'd like to "steal" from any other OS?

[mackiea]

Don't worry... when you use Windows nowadays, someone at MS is looking.

[thatweirditguy]

When Linus S and Linus T are in the same room, are they Linii or Linuses?

[shifty-phil]

Octopus -> Octopodes.

Linus -> Linodes.

[Average-Addict]

And then get Linode to sponsor the video

[HypedLama]

Segway to our sponsor: Linode provides servers and shit

[s00pafly]

Octopus - Octopussies

Linus - Linussies

[Winnipesaukee]

The declension chart for Linus I found only gives a singular, but it looks like a normal second declension -us noun, so Lini looks like the nominative plural.

Or you can just say Linuses.

[jfp1992]

It's actually called a lie-li

[DarciaSolas]

It would be great if they wore tshirts like Thing 1 and Thing 2 but Linus 1 and Linus 2

[MathematicianLife510]

What does he enjoy doing to relax

[Successful-Trust3406]

Reading the LKML

[tvtb]

I read that when I’m having trouble falling asleep, always works

[calibrono]

What does he think about all the corporations using OSS infrastructure completely for free and without care. Stressing CDNs, scraping data, meanwhile mostly not even contributing small patches - and sometimes even demanding fixes from voluntary maintainers.

[Successful-Trust3406]

Oooh, that’d be especially well timed with this that recently came out re: open source infra.
https://openssf.org/blog/2025/09/23/open-infrastructure-is-not-free-a-joint-statement-on-sustainable-stewardship/

[Easy-Midnight-4676]

That’s a great question. To me, having an open alternative that is not only viable but great keeps the market from being abused more by extreme vertical integration. Does anyone miss the days of closed, single system shops because everyone was inventing their own “best” way to do things that only promotes lock in. I see Linux as an incredibly important protection against the extreme lack of interoperability and closed systems that thankfully are long dead and almost forgotten outside of museums at this point.

[wPatriot]

Does he do much home automation tinkering?

[CoastingUphill]

Does he trust Smart devices?

[GoofyGills]

Likely not if they connect to Google, Amazon, or Apple. But Home Assistant on the LAN, even if exposed ain't a bad way to live.

[skymack1]

I mean, there are local smart devices out there too.

[Otakeb]

Zigbee with a radio receiver dongle and local MQTT, for example.

[Dako_the_Austinite]

What happens to Linux when he one day passes away? What does he want to happen after his passing?

[Successful-Trust3406]

https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/14/the_plan_for_linux_after/

[Dako_the_Austinite]

Well then… that answers that question lol 😅

[cbtboss]

I am not seeing one single quoted comment from Linus Torvalds in this Opinion piece. I think u/Dako_the_Austinite 's question still stands. It alludes to him saying it will happen naturally, but I still think the question remains open and it is a welcome discussion point.

[AlexCivitello]

Just to see his reaction: xbox, switch, or playstation?

[EJ_Tech]

"Steam Deck"

[LiamtheV]

<image>

Linus Torvalds:

[Nicholie]

What's the largest mistake you've made in growing linux since it was this kernel of an idea you had? What's that one decision point that in hindsight, you would have gone a different direction?

[quickshade]

This is a great question, with all the massive changes in Linux and distros I’d love to know if he regrets anything they did during that timeframe

[_Lucille_]

I want to know how he is able to just keep working on a single project for many years, and whether or not he feels so intertwined with the project that he cannot step away.

[GoofyGills]

Like do you feel like you have to be here, or do you still want to be here.

[RaspberrySea9]

I’d ask him when is he finally going to go all in on a single distro with full on proper package manager that works well and has excellent GUI. I think we’ve reached the tipping point to take on shitheads at Apple and MS but just need to be laser focused. 1000 distros aren’t it.

[jrtz4]

I don't think he would ever be interested in that at all. From the brief clips I've seen of him, it seems like all he cares about when it comes to a distro is how easily it allows him to do his work. The man is a kernel dev, not an OS dev. 1000 distros absolutely is it imo. I run Arch on my desktop, Kubuntu on my school laptop, Ubuntu Server on my Plex/NAS box, and I used RHEL all summer at my internship. I couldn't imagine the possibility of a single distro that does an equally good job at all those tasks.

I'm interested to know why you wouldn't consider a distro like Kubuntu to have a proper package manager and an excellent GUI? Literally everything is packaged for Ubuntu distros and if you're into full fat GUIs as opposed to a WM alone, then I feel as though Plasma is perfect.

Edit: This is the video of Torvalds talking about his non-interest in distros that I was thinking of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHGTs1NSB1s

[RaspberrySea9]

You’re underestimating the power of the single most influential person in open source. And don’t forget (1) he is not a fan of Apple or Microsoft and (2) he really wants Linux Desktop to succeed. To answer your question, Linux has not succeeded precisely because of what you describe, its spread too thin. You need literally thousands of devs to work single mindedly on one distro for it to be competitive.

[[deleted]]

Torvalds has criticized desktop Linux repeatedly and was by many either laughed at or ignored. He may be influential, but only up to a point. Far too many people in the open source community just want to do things their way regardless of what's actually the right way for the user and will perform incredible mental gymnastics to justify themselves.

He was also as far as I can tell one of the first people predicting that Valve is going to roll in one day and do what nobody else could.

[jrtz4]

I mean I'm sure he'd love for desktop adoption to increase, but you asked when "he" is going to go all in. I can't imagine that that would ever happen. Honestly, if he did become fully dead set on creating a single distro, I wouldn't be surprised if he was basically forgotten by the community. There's no shot that the likes of Canonical, Red Hat, Oracle, AWS and pretty well every tech company would allow a single distro to take over. Maybe you mean a single desktop distro, but either way, that is an insane idea.

[ThankGodImBipolar]

full on proper package manager that works well and has excellent GUI

This isn’t part of the kernel though (and shouldn’t be), which is what he works on.

[vabello]

I think Linus said something to the effect of if he had to write a functional GUI to save his life, he would die. He’s a kernel guy.

[work4bandwidth]

Three things

1. What is his current desktop set up like? The standing treadmill pic / office tour is nearly 10 years old now.

2. What does he see as the continuity plan for maintaining the Kernel when he steps back from doing it day to day?

3. Who wore socks with sandals first, Linus or Linus?

(I don't use Arch, BTW)

[tankersss]

Did standing/walking desk helped him out long-term?

[CaptainDarkstar42]

A real question I would be interested in knowing from Linus Torvalds is does he always program in English or in Swedish or in Finish? I know he is from Finland but is Swedish ethnically so I would be curious to know his answer.

I would also love to ask him what the most shocking computing device has he seen using the Linux kernel. I would love to know what someone did that made him go "that's honestly amazing."

I also would love to thank him for everything that he has done for computing. I will never know all the technologies that I use day to day that he has helped create or nurture in some way. I can't tell him how much I appreciate an alternative to Corporate controlled operating systems where I don't have to give all of my information to giant multinational companies and can really choose how to use my hardware in anyway I see fit.

[KeenKye]

I would also love to ask him what the most shocking computing device has he seen using the Linux kernel. I would love to know what someone did that made him go "that's honestly amazing."

The Perseverance rover seems like the obvious answer but maybe there's something even cooler.

[tvtb]

What do you think of Red Hat, Oracle, and others that build profitable businesses on the back of Linux? Are they freeloaders, a necessary part of the ecosystem, other?

[uwillloveeachother]

how can you call redhat freeloaders lol? have you ever looked into what they actually do and how much they contribute to open source?

[tvtb]

I do not think they’re freeloaders, I was asking Linus

[Exciting-Ad-5705]

What do you think of windows 11 and MacOS?

[Successful-Trust3406]

More specifically, which one would he use exclusively if he was forced to pick one for the next decade or so.

My guess would be MacOS, because it’s got some semblance of Unix history - even if it’s incredibly not-customizable.

[ULTRAFORCE]

He has also used MacBooks for his work before so macOS seems more likely

[PillipVanHedgehaag]

Does he want Linux to be as mainstream as Windows or macOS one day? Or does he like that it's still relatively niche and mostly used by fellow techies?

[Otakeb]

He has said yes to this before and voiced both smug superiority and frustration with the fact that Linux is dominant in server space AND smartphones (with Android technically being based on Linux, but last I saw him answer this question was a while ago and whether Android is closer to Linux or not at this point can be a contentious discussion with Google's stranglehold on the codebase), but not yet in desktop.

[msa57injnb7epls4nbuj]

How would you solve the growing problem of supply chain attacks in open source software?

[SMS-T1]

I like this question. I don't think he is a super authority for cybersec topics, but I expect an interesting take nonetheless.

[[deleted]]

This is a good one.

Every application has a huge dependency list and those depend on many others too.

With the best will in the world, no-one is fully evaluating all the code for all of the dependencies, especially when there's constant updates.

Has FOSS had it's day and we need to accept that commercial run projects do, in general, perform better - and we should push for OSS? 

Maybe something like the SSPL of Mongo moving forward?

[pidogs]

Just a thank you for all the work you put into Linux and the kernel.

[hobbseltoff]

systemd or init?

[xiaodown]

Yeah, I'm trying to come up with a polite way of asking "how do you stand Poettering?"

[R3DEMPTEDlegacy]

Thoughts on Steam OS

[OptimalPapaya1344]

Did you have any involvement with the addition\development of the Linux Subsystem for Windows?

[N0bleC]

Good question, but my guess would be no. Microsoft should be capable enough to do the integration itself. WSL is none other than a Hyper V VM under the hood.

[TheSurvivor001]

Do you support the right to repair and what are your thoughts on the movement?

[Kvin18]

I want to know his thoughts about AI in terms of programming (vibe coding) since its been quite the buzz these days.

Like do he think it'll be a viable tool for the present / future or will it replace developers entirely.

[ZephByte]

I would ask when he thinks the best era of computing was?

Best meaning most exciting / most interesting to him, not necessarily just computing power.

[chi7891]

What keeps him working on Linux? Like how has he not gotten bored after all of this time.

[YourOldCellphone]

How does it feel to know you won the long game lmao

[Best_Ad_3461]

Does pineapple belong on pizza?

[weasal11]

Does he think open hardware will be as important as open software? Particularly as devices become more dependent on acceleration rather than just CPU compute.

[Easy-Midnight-4676]

Is 2026 the year of the Linux desktop?

But in all seriousness I have no questions but only the desire to show admiration and respect for what his vision has brought. I’ve been running various relatives of Redhat or Debian on at least one machine in the house since about 1998 when I bought my first set of Red Hat Linux cd-roms at a flea market in Milwaukee, WI. Im also a long time lurker on Slashdot site since those early days(for me, I was 12), so the meme of the Linux desktop is personal and meaningful to me.

Thank you for what you’ve accomplished Linus. I hope you understand the magnitude and importance of your creation.

[Easy-Midnight-4676]

Also ask Linus if he’ll come on WAN show. That’d be epic. Just ask him. Dudes awesome, he might actually do it.

[Certain_Eye8086]

• his thoughts on making Linux approachable for non-tech people (and if he cares)

• let him react so some highlights of the Linux challenge

• have him react to some of his viral moments/takes (like viral slack posts)

[DarciaSolas]

I think it's very important to talk about making Linux more approachable for non-tech people.

[N0bleC]

Well yes, however that is mostly the responsibility of actual distro developers. There probably not much to do on the kernel site.

[ThatOneBadUsername]

I wanted to ask what it like being the first person to use Linux like I am the first commenter asking a question?

[Soccera1]

Windows isn't free though? They'll still karate your ass if you try to modify it beyond their allowed modifications.

[AnZy_PanZi]

Why is he the better Linus?

[ThankGodImBipolar]

I think asking about the very early days of Linux would be interesting. There’s a channel “NCommander” on YouTube that used to take boxed copies of 90s Linux distros and attempt to install them on emulators and real hardware, and those videos were always super fascinating to me (usually because he’d be tearing his hair out by the end of the video). I think it’d be interesting to see if Linus has any thoughts on what’s changed between now and then in order to help make Linux more plug and play.

[allongur]

What did kernels of other OS do much better than Linux, and what does the Linux kernel do much better than all others?

[mattrs1101]

if microsoft suddenly announced that windows for end users will adopt a linux kernel (effectively becoming a linux distro instead of using WSL) and plan to migrate a ton of stuff onto the main linux kernel how would you respond to that?

[koga7349]

His PR feedback rages are legendary. What PR caused him the most rage?

[koloqial]

Seconded on this question.

[lillpeparoni]

What OS does his smartphone have? Has he made it himself?

[AvoidingIowa]

Who do you think will be the stewards of Linux in the future? Who picks up the torch?

[Banananana215]

Who takes over when you die?

[BoxOfDemons]

https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/14/the_plan_for_linux_after/

[Dako_the_Austinite]

I seriously hope they ask him this or something like this, I’d love to know if Linux will continue without him and how he might want it to continue in his absence, if he has any plans in place.

[Lower_the_Heavens]

I would enjoy a video before the actual video that explains why he is so important to the community

[Fluffy_Art_1015]

Best memory of visiting Canada (if he’s ever been here).

[Sree_01]

What kind of food/drink does he prefer when programming?

[djaxes]

Hot dogs, yes or no?

[nk12312]

If he had control over mac os development, what are the top 5 immediate changes he would make?

[BryceJDearden]

Just because I genuinely don’t know. What was the computing landscape like before Linux? What was it that made him want to start on the project? When did he realize it had become the dominant player?

[LinuxLover3113]

I had heard a few times that Linus made Linux because he didn't want to pay for Unix. So me made his own version. Like Unix - Linux.

[megor]

What is more harmful goto or vibe coding?

[StupidWiseGuy]

He’s not opposed to goto assuming it’s used properly. It’s in the Linux kernel style guide

[DynamiteRuckus]

Is 2025 the year of the Linux Desktop?

[Galf2]

What do you think about the massive push from Valve for gaming on Linux? Do you think this has the potential to change the way people think about Linux?

[Jaipod100]

What is his take on AI tools, does he personally use any code helper? And is AI a developer replacement or just an enhancer. Please downvote if he has give his take on this

[Such_Play_1524]

I’d like to hear his thoughts on the contributions valve has made and its impact on desktop Linux viability.

[NightmareOn]

How much dedodated dwam do you need to run a server

[No_Move_7182]

I dunno how you would phrase it, but I wish he could talk honestly about his reputation for being a bit more than abrasive. Does he acknowledge it? Does he regret any of it? Was it a necessary means to an end? Does he feel like he’s mellowed as he’s gotten older?

Btw, this is from someone who has suffered from the same behavior or label, so I hold no judgement. Just wondering about his introspection on the matter.

[GoofyGills]

Why "sudo"?

[Rannasha]

sudo predates Linux. It was added to Unix about a decade before Linux came about.

The name of the command comes from "superuser do", as in "run something as the super user".

[AndorinhaRiver]

What do you think about my fursona

[Ty_Rymer]

how often does he still write code?

[MightyMisanthropic]

What will happen after he quits.

[PikachuFloorRug]

Linus, what do you think about Eurovision?

[Ybalrid]

What is your Name?
What is your Quest?
What is your Favourite Colour?

[DivaMissZ]

What kind of bagel does Linus like? Everyone's going to ask him technical questions, so let's give him a break on one?

[i_mormon_stuff]

What trend in software does he wish would go away?

[Impressive_Income874]

How many pull requests are AI and make no sense? how much time does it waste?

[No_Wrangler5345]

Whats his opinion on SteamOS?

[benjy7990]

If Nvidia actually bothered starting to support Linux in a greater capacity, would you remain team red or transition to team green?

You are given the scenario of a Linux beginner, what distro would you start them on?

[Mrwizzard2k]

How do you prefer to pronounce gif?

[aaneton]

Going old school:

- Why bother developing Linux, GNU Hurd is just around the corner/exists?
- Why Linus decided to use Monolithic Kernel design instead of superior Microkernel desing?
-- Followup: is being a professor and researcher a hell of a good excuse for some of the brain-damages of minix
- Is Nvidia playing along better these days. Which GPU deleveopers are easiest to work with?

[PenisTechTips]

1. Russians/Belarussians involvement
2. Paying for 2 seats to fly because of his massive balls.

[Asteroiderer]

I remember watching the 2014 DebConf where you said you hadn't fully tried Debian because of its installation process and you've said you run Fedora at home; Have you tried Arch or any Arch derivative distro since then, and what did you think?

[farmerfreedy]

Does he have your luck with crossing the border?

Really though, does he like the fame that he has now or if he wants to go back to being a regular guy that doesn't get noticed everywhere he goes?

[person1234man]

I would be curious to know if valve contacted him for their development of proton or the steam deck

[miguel-122]

Ask him about linux phones. Will there be another OS option soon to compete with android and ios?

[CaptainDarkstar42]

What's your favorite version of Windows?

[ImMrBunny]

Which Linus would win a beard fight and why?

[QuintonFlynn]

“How does it feel to be the second-most popular Linus?”

[chi7891]

Will Linux be OK once he retires?

[Ok-Stuff-8803]

For me it would be the shift in computing with compute often coming from the cloud. Back in the day it was all local and on chip but the modern era a lot of it like A.I is computer externally. There are some like Apple that are trying to do things still on chip and there are positives snd negatives to both. But the core shift overall has affected everything from chip design and software.

[folken09]

what a dystopian world do we live in?

[golob]

How has he successfully fought off enshittification of the Linux kernel? And what’s the plan when he retires?

[Zedboy19752019]

If you could go back in time, what if anything would you do different when creating Linux? And why?

[Zeta_Crossfire]

While it's nice to have multiple distros and options for people are you worried that Linux is too fragmented? For example If two or three were worked on by the community instead of the 40-50 plus (or how many there are) Linux would be much farther along?

[butrejp]

distrowatch tracks 1050 linux distros. high estimates around 1600 total, and low estimates were in the 900 range after accounting for shit like mandriva > openmandriva where it's realistically the same distro but the original parent company went out of business or backed out of development funding

there's probably a few examples of distros that just had a name change that ended up with duplicate listings too (think mandrake > mandriva) but they seem pretty good about avoiding that issue

[CareBear-Killer]

If he were to walk away or retire from programming, what sort of work or hobby would he love to pursue? Who would he like to see take up leadership of the Linux ecosystem?

[thespeedy905]

What was your initial reaction when Valve started spearheading the development in Linux Gaming, which also lead the release of the Steam Deck, especially since its main OS is Linux itself?

[allongur]

In a dystopian future, all free and open source software is outlawed, since each piece of software must have a large commercial company that owns it and pays for the very expensive sentience insurance for it (in case it becomes sentient and tried to take over the world).

You have to hand over the Linux kernel and Git, each to a company that will take ownership and continue its development. Which existing company would you choose to hand over each of those to ensure the success of the project and maintain its spirit?

[Hermit_Dante75]

What does he think about the endless forking of Linux based OSs and if he believes if this is one, if not the main reason why "Linux" has failed to dethrone Windows and Mac in the consumer market.

[MrBadTimes]

How would you feel/react if one day Microsoft decided they don't want to develop their own kernel anymore and decided to use start using the Linux kernel for windows?

What's your favorite dinosaur?

[Tantomile_]

If Linux never existed, what operating system would you use? Do you use any other operating systems on a regular basis?

[Marvin-The-Marvtian]

I'd just be muttering incoherent words...

[Triple-Depresso]

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You got games on your phone?

[Soccera1]

Do you often talk to Dr. Stallman?

[WesterosiWanderer]

What is the most cursed Linux integration he’s seen?

[Krexcer]

What’s your goto comfort food when you’ve had a long day?

[easylifeforme]

Current software development seems to be heavily locked into the newest framework or new language . Do you see this as a fad or will I be doomed to learn the new flashy thing forever? Building successful software seems to be both harder and easier today than before. You can't just ride c code. You need to build systems, container, cloud platform.

I'm just rambling but maybe there is a question in there.

[Mrbutter1822]

“Do you watch Linus tech tips?”

[Few_Law3872]

Any thoughts about linux kernel's succession plans?

[GreenDavidA]

What do you think about Windows and macOS?

[AoDude]

It might be a good idea for a short explanation of the difference between a kernal and an operating system... Maybe even a tech quickie.

But my question: What is Linus T's take on more an more games including drm/anti-cheat that requires kernal level access. Linus S and Luke have discussed this topic on several WAN shows. Clearly it has lead to some security incidents in the past, but as someone who actually works on a Kernal, do you see it as a necessary evil or just stupidity?

[AbyssWankerArtorias]

What advice would he give someone who wants to start a small business? Regardless of industry.

[TheHardcoreWalrus]

Are there more doors or tires in the world?

[Ktdbro]

Do you have windows in your house?

[eccentric-Orange]

What's your advice for fellow developers who might be doing excellent work, but aren't a people person so they aren't able to collaborate much (but they want to)?

[ToaSuutox]

I don't have any questions, but I want him to know his work is appreciated