This is the story of Linus Benedict Torvalds, the creator of Linux OS in what seems like his own words (well 90% of the book is written as if Linus himself is narrating it). What interested me most and kept me reading the book was knowing how Linus pursued his self-learning of computer science. He started with writing games and toy programs in assembly language then taught himself C and kept doing projects to master his skills. One of the projects was a terminal emulator which he authored on Minix OS. He went on adding features to it and gradually ended up making an OS in a matter of months. He got started with Minix after reading Andy Tanenbaum's book on Operating Systems Design and Implementation (3rd Edition) (Prentice Hall Software Series) which was the book Linus says changed his life.

A good reading for all programmers who like Linux. As Bertrand Russel says - There is much pleasure to be gained from useless knowledge - so even if this book is not talking about any technical details of the OS but the knowing of how it came to be what it is is interesting and pleasure giving in itself. Highly recommended.

I bought this book for a presentation in class about Linux, and I got quite a bit of information out of it. The book goes into the personal history of Linus, his experience with computers, why he first started coding Linux, and it also mentions a few other topics closely associated with Linux, such as open source.
If you're looking for a book that gives the technical ins and outs of Linux, this one will not do you much good, but it's a good book for those interested in the author of Linux, and the start of his project.

"Just for Fun" may just as well be the real-life version of "Spider Man" - a tale of how a computer geek went from a social recluse to an everyday celebrity. Now, don't get me wrong, my friends are the first to brand me as a 'computer geek' also, and I wouldn't change anything about it. "Just for Fun" is an interesting introspective into the story and the mind of Linus. You'll learn about the early day of Linux, the philosophy behind it, and how both the author and the creation burst onto the scene. With a good mix of historical introspective and narrative passages - everything from the birth of GPL to Linus's philosophy of life - it makes for an easy and an entertaining read. If you've ever been exposed to Linux, Unix, or open-source, this is a book you won't regret picking up.

Once you read this book you get a better idea of who Linus Torvalds is, what his background is, what led him to write an operating system, where the name Linux comes from, where Tux came from, and all kinds of other tidbits. The book portrays Torvalds as definitely a rare breed. but it also paints him as a real person with real interests - albeit mainly technical ones. Linus does have a family and this book does cover a little bit about his family. If you want to know both the common and uncommon pieces of information about the guy who wrote an operating system, "Just For Fun", this is the book to get; it is definitely teh definitive book about how Linux came into being and about the man who made it happen.

This is really eye opening stuff. If you are even remotely interested in Open Source Software, this will give you some insight into the mind of Linus Torvalds. On top of being informative it is a really fun read.

An interesting look at an archetypal geek, amd a man who isn't in it for the money, fame, or power, just wanting to have software that did want he wanted it to do. He also saw building linux as an intellectual exercise that he could learn a lot from, working from one computer, to saving up to buy another from a catalogue.

A reasonably reticent and retiring type, it was well done by the author to get this book published.

This book was fun to read. It would make a great movie. Nerdy little kid makes good - in fact becomes the figurehead for an historically important movement worldwide.

A great, honest, humorous, read about the history of Linux and it's creator.
I thoroughly enjoyed it.

One wouldn't expect with a title "Just for Fun" that you would find a complete autobiographical analysis of the authors mind, a treatise on open source or tome on an operating system. The book delivers exactly what Linus says he hopes for in the beginning pages, a fun time. If that's not what you're interested in, then don't read it.

A friend loaned this book to me while taking a Linux class. I wasn't too enthused, thinking it would be some arrogant "how great I am" story, being a guy writing it you know. I was pleasantly surprised.

Throughout the pages, one gets a glimpse into the life of Linus in a sometimes revealing, down to earth journey from his childhood to the present. Along the way, Linus pokes fun at his looks, his nose, his lack of social skills and his inescapable "geekiness". At times it is hilarious.

He talks about growing up in Helsinki, how he came about developing Linux, getting married, getting involved in the open source community, the rise to fame and riches and his take on the meaning of life.

David Diamond adds humor and interest to the story by recording his observations and conversations with Linus and members of his family.

Now I have a little more knowledge about open source and a remarkable "Joe" from Helsinki who created the large sticky snowball of a very cool operating system and shared it with the world.
This book is just a fun read that I enjoyed very much.

Those of us who grew up programming can relate to what he is talking about. Working with old computers and the annoyances of poorly written software. This man is a Genius, and very funny.

Those of us who grew up programming can relate to what he is talking about. Working with old computers and the annoyances of poorly written software. This man is a Genius, and very funny.

The title of this book is very fitting, it seems to be the way things happpened. Linus was never a "go-getter" or someone looking to change the world, just a guy who loved programming, and seemed to do it just for fun, as the title implies.

This story is his look into himself, and you really get to know Linus by the end of the book. His self deprecating humor and humility really shines through, and suprised me a lot. This is a guy who almost refuses to take credit for his contributions to open source. He doesn't put himself down, unless joking, but he doesn't build himself up either. He just acts as if he's some dopey programmer who got lucky and created something neat. His fans have a hard time agreeing with that.

You get to know Linus well, because of his frank dialog, and very honest depiction of himself and situations. You find that his true passion is family, and he's a warm hearted caring guy, not the egotistical maniac he probably could be if he wanted.

You get to know him, his colleagues, and his mother very well. You stroll through his whirlwind journey of creating Linux, and all the things that transpired. Its a nice story, a really easy read, and you really don't have to be technically savvy to enjoy it, in the least bit. A great book that is well worth the entry fee, and worth reading again and again.

One reason I rated this audio CD so low was the packaging
- The 5 CD's aren't labeled. This made change CD's in
the car difficult.
- As far as I could tell, the CD's were all just one track.
Most recorded books put a chapter on each track.
In my car CD player, they way you forward is to skip to the
next track. Not possible with this one.

This book started as a great telling of history. The author really got to know Linus well and I feel he presented Linus as he really is ... the good, the not so good, the learning experiences. It was really nice to hear the history of Linux. The end was a disappointment. The book finishes by pontificating on Intellectual Property rights. Interesting, but not what I was in the market to purchase.

Really interesting point of view of an historical fact by people not interested in just the business.

You'd better be somewhat geek to get the language of this book. It's a fun book. If you are in the IT industry and have affinity for open source and Linux you'd better be reading this book. One thing I did not like is although I *know* Linus is not such a person to *act* as a hero, he is presented to be so. If the book was named ...accidental hero rather than ...accidental revolutionary, I'd not be buying it I guess. But it made me feel a bit like than. Other than that, a very fun book to read.

This book is an entertaining look at the life and philosophy of one of the most important figures in the recent history of computing. The conversational style employed allows Linus to come through in an approachable, quirky manner while making the book itself a fast, enjoyable read. Moreover, you do not need to be among the computing cognoscenti in order to understand this book. Sure, a bit of technical background will provide a richer reading, but this is a book that the average person can sit down with and enjoy.

The book introduces Linus and his family, their history, how Linus became an "accidental revolutionary," and his thoughts surrounding this process. Reading this is a bit like reading an interview, watching a home movie or two, and then topping it off with a few diary entries. The result is that Linus comes off as a real person rather than the focus of a fan-book. That Linus is so forthcoming with his faults, his self-effacing humor, and the mundane aspects of his past only strengthens this feeling. Thus while reading this book won't make you an expert on computing, or even just the Linux operating system, it will give you a very solid understanding of a key figure.

A good book to get a feel for the life of Linus Torvalds, the inventor of Linux, a computer operating system. The book contains insights into his life, living a frugal computer-geek existence in Finland struggling to make his computer payments to eventually, a mansion in California and getting involved in the "American Dream". It comes across in the book that the author did his research actually spending many personable hours with Linus and family.
Aside from an anecdotal biography the book contains some gems. One is Linus's philosophy of the progression of technology. The introduction of a new invention at first aids survival, then supports social order and efficiency, then as the invention becomes common place, the item is obtained for it entertainment value. Linux the operating system, was written, "Just for Fun" and so provides the title.
The other strong point of this book is that it contains one of the better explanations of the "free software" concept, licensing, and copyrights and licensing intellectual property v.s. creativity. This reader would have liked the book more if it were a little more technical. I also found the author's conversational style to the reader irritating as if talking to a child.

Well the title was right. The book is "Just for Fun". It is a lighthearted look at Linus' short life so far. Sharing both
his Finnish heritage (and experiences in Finland) as well as well as his Silicon Valley life I found some connection to his
experiences. I laughed at his frank description of the lack of any life in San Jose. Although his childhood and adolescent
experiences in dealing with his geekiness was amusing they were just a bit much. If was a bit surprising that the author was
has written for Red Herring magazine was a little light on the technical side of things.

Two things spoke to me however. His personal observations on the Open Source Movement versus commercial software development; and his detailed account of why work has to be fun.

He talks about how work climbs the evolutionary latter from being neccasary for survival, to the need to be a part of a greater social cause and then just for plain fun. The three part evolutionary process helps to explain how dedicated hackers
help to create Linux while not directly benefiting financially.

The most interesting discussion I took from this book however was his opinions on the Open Source versus the Commercial software industry (Redmond, Washington). He gives some great examples of the US market for cell phones compared with Europe. He states that because the Europeans cooperated on an agreement on standards first this led to levels of innovation far greater than that experienced here. I also found his example of the music industry compelling. His claim is that the MP3 standard (as well as file swapping services) started in reaction to the user UN-friendly policies of the music industry of pushing one hit song CDs down the consumers throat. To get around buying a CD with only one or two songs that are worth hearing, consumers have circumvented the system by swapping only those one or two songs that are any good.

A light read with some interesting insights. If you want to read more about the Open Source Movement however there are books out there which present it in greater detail.

This book is exactly what I expected it to be.
Linus don't give us a detailed explanation on why he did things this way but frankly, this is not an error for a book of this category.This book is an auto biografy, not a kernel hacker's book.
Reading this book you will feel how the Torvald's life is going on.
It's true. Reading this you will undertand Torvalds is tired about Linux.Yes. Linux is now a job, no more an hobby. Linux is responsability.With great surprise you'll discover that Torvalds has nothing against Microsoft. This book is fun. I like the Tovald's way of writing. Very informal. I read this book three times and I consider it one of the best autobiographies I ever read.Higly recommended.

I picked this up to read during a 10-hour plane ride. Having been using both Linux and FreeBSD for my business, this book struck my interest.

I'm not really even sure what this book is supposed to be or who the intended audience is. The book is dumbed down and details are skimmed over, which is frustrating for any Linux user. Only a Linux user would want to read this anyway and they would want a technical book.

Most of the book is written by Linus. While the history of his life is interesting, the lack of details and technical know-how is left out. I was hoping for more under-the-hood details and OS vs OS discussion. Instead of the "my way is better", I was hoping for more of a discussion on architecture views. Clearly, other OS authors don't think they are writing anything less than their best either.

Sadly, Linus seems to have lost the passion for his OS. I was expecting an uplifting sales pitch or a "we will do anything in our power to make Linux the best it can be". Instead you are faced with him stating that he doesn't know what the future will bring. That is a bit scary coming from the one that controls the kernel. Money has clearly gone to his head. There is nothing wrong with money, just the attitude that usually comes along with it.

Linus seems to use this book as a means for venting. Bashing everything to other operating systems (normally with no argument to back it up) to root beer. Hey, I like root beer! The venting includes some big names in the industry some of whom he walked out on.

Other important open source contributors and biggest names in Linux development are left out. The open source movement happened because a lot of people worked together, not just on this project but many other important ones such as X, Perl, Apache, KDE, Gnome, etc, etc.

The co-author really makes the book frustrating. Extra chapters a sprinkled in with recaps of visits with Linus. He follows him around like a lost puppy and observes him as a comic book hero. Instead of adding anything to the story of Linux, he only sheds light on visits, observations, and family details. To make matters worse, the guy uses a MAC. Why is this guy writing the book?

Highlights include a bit more background on Linus's personal life, a rapidly skipped-over timeline of Linux OS, his Finnish-to-America transition, some details on Java, and some interesting takes on the open-source movement.

Frustrations include Linus's constant complaining, lack of technical detail, poor co-author that doesn't use or know anything about Linux, unnecessary opinions about the meaning of life among other things, and lack of passion for Linux.

This book could have been so much better, but it is still worth reading if these topics interest you.
Linus, you are a good guy but you aren't my hero.

In Just for Fun, Linus Torvalds, the Finnish creator of the Linux operating system, mixes his personal story, told in both narrative and e-mail dispatches, with the saga of his development of the Linux operating system. Torvalds' personal account makes the book fascinating. He began as a self-proclaimed nerd (and even a jerk) who labored to create an operating system in his garage and eventually became the head of the world's largest open source project. By requiring buyers and licensees to keep the Linux source code open, Torvalds assures the continued technological evolution of his system. The episodic nature of the book makes it choppy, the technical descriptions are hard for the uninitiated to track and co-writer David Diamond's digressions are revealing about Torvalds' personal life, but a little disruptive. Even so, we recommend this entertaining, interesting book that may even lead you to consider using Linux on your computer, whether or not you are another self-proclaimed computer nerd.

First problem Mr. Torvalds co-wrote the book - should've left it to the professionals. Though one gets the impression from the book that he's such a control freak that wasn't an option. Considering his ego I'm suprised the book wasn't longer. A lot of drivel, negative comments about industry people he's met, ego stroking, self-important blather. He's cashed out, made his millions and good for him - think he'd acknowledge the Free Software Foundation/GNU etc. instead of critizing them. Nothing wrong with being a sell-out, just don't deny it and minimize the contributions others made to your success.

Nice reading, several good ideas.
Mr. Torvalds deserves what he got.
I just hope to use some day Fredix or Diannix OS.
Jag gör det!