The Linux philosophy is 'Laugh in the face of danger'. Oops. Wrong One. 'Do it yourself'. Yes, that's it.
Linus Torvalds

If Microsoft ever does applications for Linux it means I've won.
Linus Torvalds

My name is Linus, and I am your God.
Linus Torvalds

I'd much rather have 15 people arguing about something than 15 people splitting into two camps, each side convinced it's right and not talking to the other.
Linus Torvalds

To be honest, the fact that people trust you gives you a lot of power over people. Having another person's trust is more powerful than all other management techniques put together.
Linus Torvalds

A consumer doesn't take anything away: he doesn't actually consume anything. Giving the same thing to a thousand consumers is not really any more expensive than giving it to just one.
Linus Torvalds

I like to think that I've been a good manager. That fact has been very instrumental in making Linux a successful product.
Linus Torvalds

Software is like sex: it's better when it's free.
Linus Torvalds

The thing with Linux is that the developers themselves are actually customers too: that has always been an important part of Linux.
Linus Torvalds

No-one has ever called me a cool dude. I'm somewhere between geek and normal.
Linus Torvalds

I think, fundamentally, open source does tend to be more stable software. It's the right way to do things.
Linus Torvalds

Microsoft isn't evil, they just make really crappy operating systems.
Linus Torvalds

When you say 'I wrote a program that crashed Windows,' people just stare at you blankly and say 'Hey, I got those with the system, for free.'
Linus Torvalds

I often compare open source to science. To where science took this whole notion of developing ideas in the open and improving on other peoples' ideas and making it into what science is today and the incredible advances that we have had. And I compare that to witchcraft and alchemy, where openness was something you didn't do.
Linus Torvalds

I'm sitting in my home office wearing a bathrobe. The same way I'm not going to start wearing ties, I'm also not going to buy into the fake politeness, the lying, the office politics and backstabbing, the passive aggressiveness, and the buzzwords.
Linus Torvalds

Most good programmers do programming not because they expect to get paid or get adulation by the public, but because it is fun to program.
Linus Torvalds

See, you not only have to be a good coder to create a system like Linux, you have to be a sneaky bastard too.
Linus Torvalds

Any program is only as good as it is useful.
Linus Torvalds

Artists usually don't make all that much money, and they often keep their artistic hobby despite the money rather than due to it.
Linus Torvalds

Before the commercial ventures, Linux tended to be rather hard to set up, because most of the developers were motivated mainly by their own interests.
Linus Torvalds

Finnish companies tend to be very traditional, not taking many risks. Silicon Valley is completely different: people here really live on the edge.
Linus Torvalds

Helsinki isn't all that bad. It's a very nice city, and it's cold really only in wintertime.
Linus Torvalds

Helsinki may not be as cold as you make it out to be, but California is still a lot nicer. I don't remember the last time I couldn't walk around in shorts all day.
Linus Torvalds

I do get my pizzas paid for by Linux indirectly.
Linus Torvalds

I don't expect to go hungry if I decide to leave the University. Resume: Linux looks pretty good in many places.
Linus Torvalds

I don't try to be a threat to MicroSoft, mainly because I don't really see MS as competition. Especially not Windows-the goals of Linux and Windows are simply so different.
Linus Torvalds

Biography
Nationality: Finnish
Type: Businessman
Born: December 28, 1969