[ Back to Kevin's Homepage | Back to Ramblings and Brain Farts ]

Why does linux suck?

Because it's inherently unstable, and is stuck in perpetual-upgrade mode.

Case in point:

(Specifically in this instance, tcl/tk). I tried compiling application XYZ, and it says it needs itcl. so I get itcl, compile, but it needs a tcl development tree. So I go and download tcl, compile it, but itcl still fails. An hour later, I figure out that itcl needs tcl8.2, not tcl8.0 as I've been using. (with tcl8.3 or tcl8.4 being the latest?) THEN, the app still doesn't compile. Take a closer look and it wants itcl 3.0, not 3.1. ARGH! Older versions of itcl are nowhere to be found.

How stupid can these dependencies get?

I don't mean to say that everything about linux sucks, just primarily the perpetual-upgrade mode that they're stuck in.

I remember, being a teenager, having discussions with my dad that pop music had to change to stay fresh, otherwise it would get old. He went on to question why older people enjoy classical music so much, even though it's hundreds of years old? At the time I didn't get it, but I do now. The stability of something that works is valuable. Not wasting one's time constantly upgrading, looking for the next version - why bother? If you have something that works, why upgrade?

perl5 has been exceedingly stable in this respect. while tcl/tk/itcl keep spawning new versions every few months/weeks, perl5 has been relatively stable for a very long time.

2000.01.10 kjw - created
2000.01.10 kjw - last modified