[gyepi]

I hate to be that guy, but this software (with a patent, natch) is definitely not the first or best solution to the potential problem of the /dev/log buffer filling up.

If the standard syslogd is inadequate, how about using a different logger? Gerritt Pape's svlogd, an implementation of DJB's daemontools loggers, solves this problem very nicely, is very reliable, can log over UDP and write to disk if desired. Heck, it can even replace syslog and run more reliably.

Not to say that this software is not useful. It is a great solution if the client software insists on using syslog and cannot be modified or reconfigured and syslogd cannot be modified or replaced. However, these are quite specific and generally unusual cases. For more prosaic circumstances, there are simpler and better solutions.

[jamesgpearce]

The presence of the grant does not mean there is a patent covering this project. It just means that if there is, you're protected as a developer by a license to use it. (This also what the Apache 2.0 license does)

[iostat]

Facebook has its own logging system - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scribe_(log_server) - which they probably use for in-house systems. I would guess that the library in question might be used when they run third-party applications.