this post was submitted on 29 Aug 2024
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Wedson Almeida Filho is a Microsoft engineer who has been prolific in his contributions to the Rust for the Linux kernel code over the past several years. Wedson has worked on many Rust Linux kernel features and even did a experimental EXT2 file-system driver port to Rust. But he's had enough and is now stepping away from the Rust for Linux efforts.

From Wedon's post on the kernel mailing list:

I am retiring from the project. After almost 4 years, I find myself lacking the energy and enthusiasm I once had to respond to some of the nontechnical nonsense, so it's best to leave it up to those who still have it in them.

...

I truly believe the future of kernels is with memory-safe languages. I am no visionary but if Linux doesn't internalize this, I'm afraid some other kernel will do to it what it did to Unix.

Lastly, I'll leave a small, 3min 30s, sample for context here: https://youtu.be/WiPp9YEBV0Q?t=1529 -- and to reiterate, no one is trying force anyone else to learn Rust nor prevent refactorings of C code."

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[–] [email protected] -3 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (53 children)

The kernel is mostly written in C, by C developers... understandably they're rather refactor C code to make it better instead of rewritting everything in the current fancy language that'll save the world this time (especially considering proponents of said language always, at every chance they get, sell it as C is crap, this is better).

Linux is over 30yo and keeps getting better and more stable, that's the power of open-source.

[–] [email protected] 129 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

This sounds exactly like the type of nontechnical nonsense they're complaining about: attacking a strawman ("they're trying to prevent people from refactoring C code and making them rewrite everything in the current fancy language") even after explicitly calling out that that was not going to happen ("and to reiterate, no one is trying force anyone else to learn Rust nor prevent refactorings of C code").

[–] [email protected] -4 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

They said it wasn't going to happen but their plan will result in it happening, how do you square that?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

You tell me how it will result in it happening. Who even has the power to force people to learn Rust?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Linus and GKH, if they merge something that breaks every time C programmers change a kernel API

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago

And where did you find that they will do that?

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