How much do you know about your kernel? Like really know? Considering how critically important the Linux kernel is to the world—and, perhaps just as important, to our own personal computers and gadgets—it's rather amazing how little most people actually know about it.

Some time back, the folks from Purism sent me a question: "Would you like to record some voice-over for a little commercial we're making?" "Sure," I say. "Why not?" They give me a script, show me a rough cut of the footage, and I record a few lines. Easy peasy. The only problem? The commercial was for something that I think is a really great idea. And, the finished commercial gave me a serious case of the giggles. Yet I couldn't tell anyone about it. I was sworn to secrecy.

Three kernel developers describe what it's really like to work on the kernel, how they interact with developers from other companies, some pet peeves and how to get started. Like most Linux users, I rarely touch the actual code for the Linux kernel. Sure, I've looked at it. I've even compiled the kernel myself on a handful of occasions—sometimes to try out something new or simply to say I could do it ("Linux From Scratch" is a bit of a right of passage).

NVMe drives have paved the way for computing at stellar speeds, but the technology didn't suddenly appear overnight. It was through an evolutionary process that we now rely on the very performant SSD for our primary storage tier.

This issue of Linux Journal marks the magazine's 25th anniversary. So, I thought I'd look back to see when I wrote my first article, and I was horrified to see that it was in 2000. I'm too young to have been writing articles for more than 18 years! Here's to another 25 years for Linux Journal and all of the authors who have made it what it is.