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Portability is for people who cannot write new programs

“Portability is for people who cannot write new programs” quote by Linus Torvalds
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“Portability is for people who cannot write new programs”

Linus Torvalds

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Portability is needed when programmers can’t create new code from scratch

In simple terms: Portability helps when you can’t write new programs

Key Takeaway

Favor portable solutions over bespoke code

Themes

software engineering pragmatism efficiency

Mood

practical technical

Type

instructional technical

When to use this quote

  • open‑source contributions
  • cross‑platform apps
  • legacy system maintenance

Key Concepts

Code reuse platform independence

Questions to Reflect On

  • When is custom code preferable?
  • How do you balance portability and performance?
A Different Perspective

May limit optimization for specific cases

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