5 ms·

OpenBSD developers: Ted Unangst

105 points by mulander 11y ago

ghostly_s 11y ago
Someone care to explain why this is on the front page here? Skimmed through it but just seems like a pretty typical interview with a developer?
- DanBC 11y ago
  The BSDs are nice operating systems with considerable interest here. These interviews are interesting. The subject of this particular interview is a respected member of HN https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=tedunangst https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=tedunangst
  - ghostly_s 11y ago
    You both answered my question, thanks. I did a cursory Google search and could not determine why this developer would garner any more interest than others interviewed in this series, for example.
- darklajid 11y ago
  The passive agressive answer is 'because people voted for it'. Ignoring that, it very well might be because Ted is rather active on HN. I don't quite understand your question/concern though?
jjoe 11y ago
As I said before, OpenBSD prefers to move a little slow. This has saved us a lot of wasted effort chasing the latest fad, only to switch directions a year later. At the same time, in order to stay relevant and not fall too far behind, we have to guess what’s a passing fad and what’s an inevitable change. "Slow" and "internet" don't go well together in a sentence. Can you imagine taking this "slow" approach as a startup? You'd be left behind in a jiffy! I guess a not-for-profit mentality shields you from obsolescence. That and the NSA has saved OpenBSD big time. More power to them!
- eloy 11y ago
  Slow is not bad. Try to make a revolution doesn't always change things in the long run. However, if you try evolution, things can be improved with small steps, but can achieve impressive results in the long run. The world is more than Silicon Valley startups. While everyone is still using OpenSSL, they made LibreSSL that is slowly taking over the world. For examle, Apple imported the project into their version of OpenSSH.
- dmit 11y ago
  This is a bit disingenuous and you probably know it. Not everything in the world is about startups, and OpenBSD would do just fine without the recent Internet security news. Can you really blame a project for being ahead of the curve on security? Is that really your point?
  - jjoe 11y ago
    Startups aside, how come OpenBSD hasn't made strides in virtualization (not counting QEMU)? Virtualization isn't a fad. Can you imagine OpenBSD as a virtualization host? I'd switch in a heart beat. Can you really justify not being virtualization-ready in 2015/2016? I use Linux as a VM platform but I've donated to OpenBSD because I've always rooted for them. I'm just disappointed they haven't done much in this area.
    - vezzy-fnord 11y ago
      Don't move the goalposts. That said, there is the upcoming: http://undeadly.org/cgi?action=article&sid=20150831183826 http://undeadly.org/cgi?action=article&sid=20150831183826
    - ams6110 11y ago
      You are absolutely deluded, if not stupid, if you think that a worldwide collection of software engineers who can't write operating systems or applications without security holes, can then turn around and suddenly write virtualization layers without security holes. --Theo de Raadt
- 11y ago
bbradley406 11y ago
Some would rather nitpick this interview than see the good in it. This is disappointing considering it covers practical and useful topics. - Ted's progression from first time user to contributor. Start with small diffs in an area you're interested in, and build up if you can. - Re-factoring programs with a strong emphasis on maintenance and security. Technical debt is real, and you certainly don't want it in an OS. - Balancing more menial tasks (maintenance to the existing platform) with interesting additions (new security techniques). The peace of mind from knowing an upgrade won't break or fail, and that security is taken seriously is refreshing. Give OpenBSD a shot, read some of the source or man 9 style (it's more informative than HN arguments).

105 points by mulander 11y ago

Someone care to explain why this is on the front page here? Skimmed through it but just seems like a pretty typical interview with a developer?

DanBC 11y ago
The BSDs are nice operating systems with considerable interest here. These interviews are interesting. The subject of this particular interview is a respected member of HN https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=tedunangst https://news.ycombinator.com/user?id=tedunangst
- ghostly_s 11y ago
  You both answered my question, thanks. I did a cursory Google search and could not determine why this developer would garner any more interest than others interviewed in this series, for example.
darklajid 11y ago
The passive agressive answer is 'because people voted for it'. Ignoring that, it very well might be because Ted is rather active on HN. I don't quite understand your question/concern though?

jjoe 11y ago

As I said before, OpenBSD prefers to move a little slow. This has saved us a lot of wasted effort chasing the latest fad, only to switch directions a year later. At the same time, in order to stay relevant and not fall too far behind, we have to guess what’s a passing fad and what’s an inevitable change. "Slow" and "internet" don't go well together in a sentence. Can you imagine taking this "slow" approach as a startup? You'd be left behind in a jiffy! I guess a not-for-profit mentality shields you from obsolescence. That and the NSA has saved OpenBSD big time. More power to them!

eloy 11y ago
Slow is not bad. Try to make a revolution doesn't always change things in the long run. However, if you try evolution, things can be improved with small steps, but can achieve impressive results in the long run. The world is more than Silicon Valley startups. While everyone is still using OpenSSL, they made LibreSSL that is slowly taking over the world. For examle, Apple imported the project into their version of OpenSSH.
dmit 11y ago
This is a bit disingenuous and you probably know it. Not everything in the world is about startups, and OpenBSD would do just fine without the recent Internet security news. Can you really blame a project for being ahead of the curve on security? Is that really your point?
- jjoe 11y ago
  Startups aside, how come OpenBSD hasn't made strides in virtualization (not counting QEMU)? Virtualization isn't a fad. Can you imagine OpenBSD as a virtualization host? I'd switch in a heart beat. Can you really justify not being virtualization-ready in 2015/2016? I use Linux as a VM platform but I've donated to OpenBSD because I've always rooted for them. I'm just disappointed they haven't done much in this area.
  - vezzy-fnord 11y ago
    Don't move the goalposts. That said, there is the upcoming: http://undeadly.org/cgi?action=article&sid=20150831183826 http://undeadly.org/cgi?action=article&sid=20150831183826
  - ams6110 11y ago
    You are absolutely deluded, if not stupid, if you think that a worldwide collection of software engineers who can't write operating systems or applications without security holes, can then turn around and suddenly write virtualization layers without security holes. --Theo de Raadt
11y ago

bbradley406 11y ago

Some would rather nitpick this interview than see the good in it. This is disappointing considering it covers practical and useful topics. - Ted's progression from first time user to contributor. Start with small diffs in an area you're interested in, and build up if you can. - Re-factoring programs with a strong emphasis on maintenance and security. Technical debt is real, and you certainly don't want it in an OS. - Balancing more menial tasks (maintenance to the existing platform) with interesting additions (new security techniques). The peace of mind from knowing an upgrade won't break or fail, and that security is taken seriously is refreshing. Give OpenBSD a shot, read some of the source or man 9 style (it's more informative than HN arguments).