Also, to actually say something about the culture-dependency of communication:

When coordinating a large project with people from many cultures, I'd say that a safe bet would be to assume that there is some general set of standards that you use to communicate with these people from various cultures. Not to be abusive like that for the heck of it is probably a good starting point. If Linus feels that because he represents Finns culturally here and is entitled to that kind of behaviour, then he's essentially imposing his culture on others -- and if everyone is going to behave eccentrically according to their cultures, then we're almost by definition going to have bad communication, as we don't share cultures.

Personally, I think all that culture-wankery is just an excuse though. He's just being a dick :p

I am Finnish and as such I get his management by perkele-reference very well and should probably understand what he means by claiming his rages on the KML are somehow particularly Finnish if communication is culture-dependent ;-)

We do tend to value being to the point and no-nonsense, but I can't really see being too much of a raging hothead as being a very Finnish feature -- it would detract from actually getting stuff done, and you'd lose face by losing your cool. Mgmt by perkele is actually something Finnish corporate types are trying to get rid of and it hasn't been done since the 80s, as too authoritarian military-style structures do not serve a modern organization well.

As a funny cultural anecdote, I find it interesting that Linus would identify with cursing and these things. He is a Fenno-Swede after all, and their minority culture tends to stress to the point of hilarity their relative high level of civilized conduct as compared to us barbaric Finnish-speaking forest people... if the TV shows that push the "correct" view of our Swedish speakers are any guide, he should be exchanging pleasantries with his boyfriend on a boat in the archipelago while knitting Moomins and sipping champagne.

In his attempts to explain himself, I really dislike the way he creates straw men about minority victimization, political correctness and "getting along despite differences". Good communication is good communication and a shitstorm is rarely helpful in any way. I do enjoy a good argument, but even the best slap-downs I've ever seen are very economical in nature...

Probably third, actually.

For as much as I respect Linus for the work he's done, his outbursts are getting old and are not funny anymore. I dislike political correctness and bullshit as well, but if you really have a point to make in this regard, it can be made with less rhetorical aggression, even when being blunt about it.

Cool, I knew this would make a comeback from the 60s or something.

I've got a very classical kind of algorithmics and math-heavy CS degree and work as a web-based business application developer. My academic education has nothing to do with what I do daily, except perhaps has served as some kind of a demonstration that I am capable of critical thought, which is quite important in my every day job, making sure that customers' systems don't totally screw up their businesses.

It really depends. Finland is in a similar situation; it seems like we fund the education of an enormous amount of Chinese students at taxpayer expense, like we do in the case of natives.

Whether they just go back to China and make use of their diplomas in their completely dog-eat-dog economy, or whether they choose to stay and live here, is the question. I personally know multiple Chinese people here who choose to stay because the society is preferable, and that is certainly nice, but whether the whole picture works... I don't know.

As a Finnish guy who has been following Nokia since the 90s, yes I do have a pretty good idea.

The important part with enthusiasts is that the enthusiasts are early adopters and often developers. And I'd say that they can recognize a slick UI when they see one, and so can the rest of the population.

I own one, and it really is very nice. It's too bad Stephen Elop intentionally refused to have it sold in most major markets; I guess he wanted his precious WinPhones in people's pockets instead.

Where-ever it was sold however, I hear it did very well among enthusiasts such as myself. The UI has been marveled about by non-geeks when they've got to play with mine.

I'm running Linux on on a Zenbook, and this is what I really prefer to a really crappy "netbook", thank you very much.

My claim here is that the calculus is such that as NK just doesn't matter ideologically anymore to China, so they have no motivation to "support" it in any meaningful way, regional stability concerns aside. International diplomacy is often a matter of trading concerns, so if I were China I would just hope the NK crazies went away and I didn't have to "take their side" when I have much more important issues to defend (trade, Taiwan...)

I'm not all that certain that China will unconditionally prop them up. They already have quite a problem on their hands with NK that they are no longer ideologically interested, and that China's real interests in international trade and so on are just hurt by any overt support of NK.

What China is interested in is that their border region with NK doesn't get flooded with refugees if NK suddenly implodes. So I'd say that China might be our best bet at encouraging internal changes inside NK.

If only it were Chihuahua... chien is "dog" in French :)

Last time I checked Nokia is based in Finland which is not in the US...