4 ms·

Am I the only one who thinks this was named backwards? Like, it should been: Linux Subsystem for Windows, or maybe Windows' Subsystem for Linux

aspaceman 7y ago
Totally agree. Feels like a “windows has to be first” type of thing.
- simplicio 7y ago
  There was a MS employee on twitter the other day (sorry, I forgot who) saying it was because there were legal issues with naming something with a title that has someone else's trademark as the first word.
  - mcny 7y ago
    That completely makes sense in my mind just because my favorite reddit app is called slide for reddit. I think reddit forced everyone to use x for Reddit in their name as opposed to Reddit X.
    - fredzel 7y ago
      It was the case with 'reddit is fun' for android, now it's 'rif is fun'
    - Talanes 7y ago
      Reddit did exactly that, like five or six years ago. A bunch of apps had to change their names, which is how you end up with apps like "rif is fun for Reddit," where the first part stands for "Reddit is Fun."
  - cgravill 7y ago
    Link here to the comment https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610 https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610
- curiousmindz 7y ago
  The naming makes sense when you add ': Windows' Subsystem for Linux
javagram 7y ago
It’s because “Windows Subsystem” is a thing. There was also a “Windows Subsystem” in the past that provided POSIX api’s and others. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/build/reference/subsystem-specify-subsystem?view=vs-2019 https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/build/reference/subsyst... After WSL was dropped in favor of the VM approach in WSL2 it’s just a zombie name though I think?
chrismorgan 7y ago
People commonly say that, but with WSL 1 it was technically quite correct: it’s a Windows Subsystem, for providing Linux. Linux Subsystem for Windows would arguably be slightly inaccurate. The name just feels so strange because Windows hasn’t had many such Subsystems (win32 has essentially been the only one this century). Under WSL2, the WSL name is no longer technically accurate at all, but it’s what everyone knows it as, and the difference normally doesn’t matter, so they keep it.
kbutler 7y ago
I think of it as "Windows Subsystem for [running] Linux". The architecture descends from the Windows NT architecture: The user mode layer of Windows NT is made up of the "Environment subsystems", which run applications written for many different types of operating systems, and the "Integral subsystem", which operates system-specific functions on behalf of environment subsystems. Though as other users pointed out, in WSL 2, the name is inaccurate.
macca321 7y ago
https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610 https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610 >Because we cannot name something leading with a trademark owned by someone else. > >Think of it as Windows' Subsystem for Linux. >#ApostrophiesMatter Just be glad we didn't call it Subsystem For Running POSIX/GNU/Linux Binaries on Windows (SFRPGLBW)

aspaceman 7y ago

Totally agree. Feels like a “windows has to be first” type of thing.

simplicio 7y ago
There was a MS employee on twitter the other day (sorry, I forgot who) saying it was because there were legal issues with naming something with a title that has someone else's trademark as the first word.
- mcny 7y ago
  That completely makes sense in my mind just because my favorite reddit app is called slide for reddit. I think reddit forced everyone to use x for Reddit in their name as opposed to Reddit X.
  - fredzel 7y ago
    It was the case with 'reddit is fun' for android, now it's 'rif is fun'
  - Talanes 7y ago
    Reddit did exactly that, like five or six years ago. A bunch of apps had to change their names, which is how you end up with apps like "rif is fun for Reddit," where the first part stands for "Reddit is Fun."
- cgravill 7y ago
  Link here to the comment https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610 https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610
curiousmindz 7y ago
The naming makes sense when you add ': Windows' Subsystem for Linux

javagram 7y ago

It’s because “Windows Subsystem” is a thing. There was also a “Windows Subsystem” in the past that provided POSIX api’s and others. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/build/reference/subsystem-specify-subsystem?view=vs-2019 https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cpp/build/reference/subsyst... After WSL was dropped in favor of the VM approach in WSL2 it’s just a zombie name though I think?

chrismorgan 7y ago

People commonly say that, but with WSL 1 it was technically quite correct: it’s a Windows Subsystem, for providing Linux. Linux Subsystem for Windows would arguably be slightly inaccurate. The name just feels so strange because Windows hasn’t had many such Subsystems (win32 has essentially been the only one this century). Under WSL2, the WSL name is no longer technically accurate at all, but it’s what everyone knows it as, and the difference normally doesn’t matter, so they keep it.

kbutler 7y ago

I think of it as "Windows Subsystem for [running] Linux". The architecture descends from the Windows NT architecture: The user mode layer of Windows NT is made up of the "Environment subsystems", which run applications written for many different types of operating systems, and the "Integral subsystem", which operates system-specific functions on behalf of environment subsystems. Though as other users pointed out, in WSL 2, the name is inaccurate.

macca321 7y ago

https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610 https://twitter.com/richturn_ms/status/1245481405947076610 >Because we cannot name something leading with a trademark owned by someone else. > >Think of it as Windows' Subsystem for Linux. >#ApostrophiesMatter Just be glad we didn't call it Subsystem For Running POSIX/GNU/Linux Binaries on Windows (SFRPGLBW)