Linux-kernel mailing list archive 1999-23,: Re: Profanity in the Linux Kernel?!?!?

# Re: Profanity in the Linux Kernel?!?!?

Linus Torvalds (torvalds@transmeta.com)
9 Jun 1999 05:38:43 GMT

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In article <87vhcypfsp.fsf@phreaker.net>,
Scott Jaderholm <suicydl@phreaker.net> wrote:
>
>I hope that I do not offend too many people.
>
> cd /usr/src/linux ; grep -i fuck `find . -name '*.[ch]'`

I'll just re-iterate my standpoint on this before it gets out of hand..

Profanity and bad taste can be fine. It's usually not a problem, and the
only cases where it should be =really= avoided is in messages to the
user that aren't absolutely lethal this-should-not-ever-happen kind.

But I feel that trying to be too politically correct is a much worse
disease than =any= amount of profanity, and I'm personally much happier
seeing the output of a grep like the above than I would be trying to
clean it up in the name of PC.

That means, for example, that I won't accept cleanup-patches from
anybody else than the maintainers of the specific subsystems. And I
won't do the cleanup myself. I _might_ reject a patch because I felt is
was too foul-mouthed, but to be quite frank I don't think I have ever
done so.

So don't worry. People have sometimes worried that it is
"unprofessional" to use profanity, but if you think professionals don't
swear you've either been living in a monestary or playing golf your
whole life ;)

I'll start worrying when the profanities start to occupy a noticeable
amount of kernel space.

Linus

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- Next message: Kelley Spoon: "Re: Profanity in the Linux Kernel?!?!?"
- Previous message: Dan Hollis: "Re: Devfs, was Re: Migrating to larger numbers"
- Maybe in reply to: Scott Jaderholm: "Profanity in the Linux Kernel?!?!?"
- Next in thread: Dave Cinege: "Re: Profanity in the Linux Kernel?!?!?"