SUSE and openSUSE users should be well familiar with the slogan, “have a lot of fun!” I’ve always loved that (and the persistent green themes that accompany SUSE) about SUSE and openSUSE. Have a lot of fun!

Even though most of us use computers to get work done, I think there’s a pervasive attitude within the open source crowd I know that it’s possible to enjoy your work and Get Things Done while still having a good time.

I was thinking about this today when reading Dustin Puryear’s post over on O’Reilly’s Port 25 where he says (I’m paraphrasing here) Microsoft’s problem in academia is that it’s all work and no play, but UNIX (and I’m arbitrarily including Linux in this), vi, gcc, Perl, and the rest of the kit are “more fun to play with.”

Puryear notes, accurately I think:

Most of the innovations in software are from people that tweak, fiddle, and play with concepts, code, and ways of doing things. And THAT is the essence of academia: The freedom to play and learn and make progress.

I believe this is true in the business world as well. Generally speaking, progress is made by those folks who are enthusiastic, engaged, and having fun doing tremendous work. But why is it more fun on the *nix side of the house? I have some theories of my own, but I’d like to hear some of yours first.

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