Merge branch 'master' into foss_factory

2 files changed, 49 insertions, 39 deletions

diff --git a/faq/how_many_developers.mdwn b/faq/how_many_developers.mdwn
index 3c430ca4..ab8e8f28 100644
--- a/faq/how_many_developers.mdwn
+++ b/faq/how_many_developers.mdwn
@@ -8,18 +8,55 @@ Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.  A copy of the license
 is included in the section entitled [[GNU Free Documentation
 License|/fdl]]."]]"""]]
 
-[[!meta title="How many developers are working on the GNU Hurd?"]]
+[[!meta title="How many developers are working on the GNU Hurd, and why so
+few?"]]
 
-Not many.  One handful work on it in their free time, and another two
-handful do help with [[Debian GNU/Hurd|hurd/running/debian]] and
-[[hurd/running/Arch_Hurd]] packaging.  Also, an additional handful of
-former developers are still available for answering technical questions,
-but are not really participating in the current development anymore.
 
-For reaching out to new developers, we're participating in [[Google's
-Summer of Code program|community/gsoc]].  Likewise, any interested party
-(*you*!) are very welcome to start [[contributing]].  Mentoring is
-possible, too, to help you get started.
+# How Many Developers?
 
-Continue reading some speculation about [[why so few developers]] are working
-on the GNU Hurd.
+One handful works on the core of the system in their free time, and another
+handful helps with [[Debian GNU/Hurd|hurd/running/debian]] and
+[[hurd/running/Arch_Hurd]] packaging.  Also, an additional handful of former
+developers are still available for answering technical questions, but are not
+participating in the current development anymore.
+
+In the past (that is, a lot of years ago), the FSF did pay a few developers for
+working full time on the GNU Hurd.  But that was for a limited amount of time
+only, and evidently, it was too little for getting the system into a
+competitive state.  Nowadays, it's only unpaid and free-time volunteers' work.
+
+In contrast to the Linux kernel, there is no industry involvement in
+development.  For one, this is a good thing: independency; no conflicts of
+interests.  For another, it is also a bad thing: no dedicated full-time
+manpower -- which matters a lot.
+
+
+# Why So Few?
+
+We can only speculate.  One major problem might be that the [[architectural
+benefits|advantages]] are generally perceived as very abstract, with little
+practical benefit.  We currently don't have many tools that are actually making
+use of all the possibilities.
+
+Another reason is that it's been taking too long.  Today, most people don't
+believe it will ever be ready for production use, and thus would consider
+involvement a waste of time.  This latter point is invalid, of course, as
+learning can never be a waste of time.  The same holds for the [[challenges]]
+raised by the GNU Hurd -- we can only learn and improve upon working on them.
+
+For likely the same reasons there is no industry interest in the GNU Hurd: its
+advantages are too abstract and incomplete for being of interest there.
+
+As for the scientific sector, the GNU Hurd projects was rather about *using* a
+[[microkernel]] intead of doing research on them, for example.  But, there have
+been some projects and theses done, and some scientific papers published on GNU
+Hurd topics, and we're generally very interested in further such projects.
+
+
+# Attracting New Faces
+
+We're an open project: any interested party (*you*!) are very welcome to start
+[[contributing]].  Mentoring is possible, too, to help you get started.
+
+Likewise, for reaching out to new developers, we're participating in [[Google's
+Summer of Code program|community/gsoc]].
diff --git a/faq/why_so_few_developers.mdwn b/faq/why_so_few_developers.mdwn
deleted file mode 100644
index a2740abc..00000000
--- a/faq/why_so_few_developers.mdwn
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,27 +0,0 @@
-[[!meta copyright="Copyright © 2010 Free Software Foundation, Inc."]]
-
-[[!meta license="""[[!toggle id="license" text="GFDL 1.2+"]][[!toggleable
-id="license" text="Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this
-document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or
-any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant
-Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts.  A copy of the license
-is included in the section entitled [[GNU Free Documentation
-License|/fdl]]."]]"""]]
-
-[[!meta title="Why are there so few developers working on the GNU
-Hurd?"]]
-
-[[There aren't working a lot of people on the GNU
-Hurd|how_many_developers]].  Why is this?
-
-We can only speculate.  One major problem might be that the
-[[architectural benefits|advantages]] are generally perceived as very
-abstract, with little practical benefits.  We don't have many tools to
-present actually making use of the possibilities.
-
-Another reason is that it's been taking too long.  Most people don't
-believe it will ever be ready for production use, and thus would consider
-involvement a waste of time.  This latter point is invalid, of course, as
-learning can never be a waste of time.  The same holds for the
-[[challenges]] raised by the GNU Hurd -- we can only learn and improve
-upon working on them.