Kernel Panic: FAQ

C. B. Wright

What is Kernel Panic?

It’s a sibling of Help Desk, published intermittently (though my aim is to publish every Wednesday), that focuses on the IT division of NifTech, a mid-sized technology company from an indeterminate location.

This is one of those Linux comics, isn’t it?

Well it sort of worked out that way. That’s not how it started.

How did you get the idea for this comic?

I was originally hired to create this comic for an IBM website. A consultant who was a fan of the strip asked me if I’d be interested in creating a Unix-themed comic that would appear on an IBM site that dealt specifically with Unix issues. Kernel Panic was the result of that, and I’m told it was pretty popular during its short run. Unfortunately, the web site sort of folded, and Kernel Panic lost its home. I was right in the middle of a story arc when that happened so I moved it over to Ubersoft.net to finish it, and I keep adding to it from time to time.

Have you stopped doing Kernel Panic?

No, I just update it a lot less frequently.

Help Desk is nice and all, but I REALLY like Kernel Panic. Why don’t you spend more time updating Kernel Panic?

I enjoy doing Kernel Panic, but there are two things that prevent me from updating it more often:

1. Help Desk has been and is my priority. That’s just the way it is. Sorry.

2. Kernel Panic is a story about a bunch of Linux/Unix/BSD geeks. They know a lot more about that world than I do (I’m a relative newbie) and it makes it a lot harder to write jokes when you’re only marginally familiar with the millieu.

Does Kernel Panic take place in the same world as Help Desk?

It does.

Do you ever plan to do a crossover?

I already have.

Why is this FAQ shorter than the Help Desk FAQ?

People ask even fewer questions about Kernel Panic than they do about Help Desk.