[9fans] design issues in operating systems

[Andrey A Mirtchovski <aam396@mail.usask.ca>]

just before someone else points it out, i'd like to direct your attention to
this collection of email off the linux kernel list:

http://kerneltrap.org/article.php?sid=398 (slashdot gets the credit for
originating it)..

there you will see linus arguing that he never designed his operating
system, and that it evolved much like evolution. furthermore he claims that
when software is done in such way, it ends up better...

of course there's an obligatory plan9 quote, which is indeed the reason i'm
posting this message :)

the text not preceeded by '>' is linus'

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> Ok. There was no design, just "less than random mutations".
> Deep.

I'm not claiming to be deep, I'm claiming to do it for fun.

I _am_ claiming that the people who think you "design" software are
seriously simplifying the issue, and don't actually realize how they
themselves work.

> There was a overall architecture, from Dennis and Ken.

Ask them. I'll bet you five bucks they'll agree with me, not with you.
I've talked to both, but not really about this particular issue, so I
might lose, but I think I've got the much better odds.

If you want to see a system that was more thoroughly _designed_, you
should probably point not to Dennis and Ken, but to systems like L4 and
Plan-9, and people like Jochen Liedtk and Rob Pike.

And notice how they aren't all that popular or well known? "Design" is
like a religion - too much of it makes you inflexibly and unpopular.
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