Free for All | Page 7

the
ability to interface with Macintoshes, and they write special code that makes this task
easier. Others who run really big databases may want larger file systems that can store
more information without limits.
All of these people work at their own pace. Some work in their homes, like Alan Cox.
Some work in university labs. Others work for businesses that use Linux and encourage
their programmers to plug away so it serves their needs.
The team is united by mailing lists. The Linux Kernel mailing list hooks up Cox in
Britain, Torvalds in Silicon Valley, and the others around the globe. They post notes to
the list and discuss ideas. Sometimes verbal fights break out, and sometimes everyone
agrees. Sometimes people light a candle by actually writing new code to make the kernel
better, and other times they just curse the darkness.
Cox is now one of several people responsible for coordinating the addition of new code.
He tests it for compatibility and guides Linux authors to make sure they're working
together optimally. In essence, he tests every piece of incoming software to make sure all
of the gauges work with the right system of measurement so there will be no glitches. He
tries to remove the incompatibilities that marred Zorro.
Often, others will duplicate Cox's work. Some new features are very popular and have
many cooks minding the stew. The technology for speeding up computers with multiple
CPUs lets each computer harness the extra power, so many list members test it frequently.
They want the fastest machines they can get, and smoothing the flow of data between the
CPUs is the best way to let the machines cooperate.
Other features are not so popular, and they're tackled by the people who need the features.
Some people want to hook their Linux boxes up to Macintoshes. Doing that smoothly can

require some work in the kernel. Others may want to add special code to enable a special
device like a high-speed camera or a strange type of disk drive. These groups often work
on their own but coordinate their solutions with the main crowd. Ideally, they'll be able to
come up with some patches that solve their problem without breaking some other part of
the system.
It's a very social and political process that unrolls in slow motion through e-mail
messages. One person makes a suggestion. Others may agree. Someone may squabble
with the idea because it seems inelegant, sloppy, or, worst of all, dangerous. After some
time, a rough consensus evolves. Easy problems can be solved in days or even minutes,
but complicated decisions can wait as the debate rages for years.
Each day, Cox and his virtual colleagues pore through the lists trying to figure out how to
make Linux better, faster, and more usable. Sometimes they skip out to watch a movie.
Sometimes they go for hikes. But one thing they don't do is spend months huddled in
conference rooms trying to come up with legal arguments. Until recently, the Linux folks
didn't have money for lawyers, and that means they didn't get sidetracked by figuring out
how to get big and powerful people like Richard Schmalensee to tell a court that there's
no monopoly in the computer operating system business.
3.2 SUITS AGAINST HACKERS .........................
Schmalensee and Cox couldn't be more different from each other. One is a career
technocrat who moves easily between the government and MIT. The other is what used
to be known as an absentminded professor--the kind who works when he's really
interested in a problem. It just so happens that Cox is pretty intrigued with building a
better operating system than the various editions of Windows that form the basis of
Microsoft's domination of the computer industry.
The battle between Linux and Microsoft is lining up to be the classic fight between the
people like Schmalensee and the people like Cox. On one side are the armies of lawyers,
lobbyists, salesmen, and expensive executives who are armed with patents, lawsuits, and
legislation. They are skilled at moving the levers of power until the gears line up just
right and billions of dollars pour into their pockets. They know how to schmooze, toady,
beg, or even threaten until they wear the mantle of authority and command the piety and
devotion of the world. People buy Microsoft because it's "the standard." No one decreed
this, but somehow it has come to be.
On the other side are a bunch of guys who just like playing with computers and will do
anything to take them apart. They're not like the guy in the song by John Mellencamp
who sings "I fight authority and authority always wins." Some might have an attitude, but
most just want to look at the insides of their computers and