Linux pioneer interview (page 1 of 3)

When he served as vice president for Internet Technology at IBM, he led the company's initial forays into the Net.

LER: Over the past decade, you've been at the forefront of some of the most important IT developments, how does that make you feel?

Patrick: Innovation is so important in our lives, so it's important to think about it and talk about it. I have no crystal ball, but I have been fortunate to see and participate in what was just around the corner—not 20 years from now or 10 years from now or even five years from now. Some of the most important things going on right now nobody talked about five years ago. Some of the most important things are right under our noses or already here, but their significance is not always appreciated.

LER: How do you determine if something will have an impact and isn't just the flavor of the day in the hype cycle?

Patrick: Not by studying it, talking to pundits or venture capitalists investing in it, or talking to the CEO of a start-up betting his future on it, but by using it, by living it and using it yourself. That's how you can determine what it's all about.

LER: So have you applied that approach to Linux?

Patrick: A lot of people have opinions about Linux. But the best way to form an opinion about Linux is by using it.

LER: So are you using Linux?

Patrick: I have a number of Linux computers in my home that are actually controlling my home. When you use it, you know it is real.

LER: Are there other tests?

Patrick: Talk to students. I used to say that if you had any doubts about Java, go to your favorite university and talk to computer-science students. Ask them if they have heard of Java, and they'll say that of course they've heard of Java and in fact they are using it. That's true about Linux as well.

LER: How should the implementation of innovation within a company work?

Patrick: There are two things at work. One is the more generic point about business cases. How do you justify something new? Frequently, the question should be reversed. How can we justify not adopting a new technology? When it comes to trying new things and incorporating new ideas, the way to deal with that is through a skunk-works approach. I urge every corporation to have a skunk-works. If you're a small company, it may be a part-time person. If you're a big company, it may be a group of a dozen people. It's a little group of people that you don't over manage.

LER: And what do they do?

Patrick: They have their fingers in everything that's new and are using it. When there's something that's compelling, you adopt it. Do you need a business case to have telephones or a fax machine? You may have a business case to pick this telephone system or that one, but you don't need a business case to say if you need any telephones.

LER: Should that approach be applied to Linux?

Patrick: I think Linux is a bit different, although I do believe that all companies should be at least experimenting and prototyping with Linux. There's the financial side of it that needs to be dealt with the same as every other financial consideration. But the bigger issue with Linux is the freedom that it provides. It's not about free; it's about freedom.

LER: What do you mean by that?

Patrick: I don't think anybody I know in business or otherwise, downloads a free copy of Linux.