Mother Anna Torvalds: Pride in Linux-based educational systems in developing countries

Written By
Web Webster
Web Webster
Mar 26, 2000

[ Linux Today reader Martin
Vermeer
writes: ]

The weekly section of Finnish afternoon daily “Iltalehti”
featured an extensive interview with Linus Torvalds, and a short
one with his mother, Anna Torvalds. At the end she remarked on what
gave her the most cause for pride in the operating system that her
son had started developing:

“In Anna’s opinion the greatest achievement of her son is,
that the Linux operating system has been available for use without
cost as the basis for educational systems in developing
countries.

“The mother, who was a political activist in her young years, is
truly proud of this, as she is (and why not?) of the adoption of
her son’s OS as the basis for China’s Red Flag Linux.

“– Improving the condition of life for human beings without
violence and shouting is a true way of being revolutionary.”

Comment MV: As background to this, be it stated that during the
wild sixties, both Nils and Anna Torvalds were active within the
leftist movement and met there; Nils even having been a party
communist. He was photographed on top of an occupied building in
Helsinki centre holding a machine gun, which raised some eyebrows.
Linus is also (literally) a child of this age, being born at the
end of 1969.

Make love, not war indeed 😉

No link, except possibly a Finnish one requiring
registration.

Web Webster

Web Webster

Web Webster has more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience in the tech sector. He’s written and edited news, demand generation, user-focused, and thought leadership content for business software solutions, consumer tech, and Linux Today, he edits and writes for a portfolio of tech industry news and analysis websites including webopedia.com, and DatabaseJournal.com.

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