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Every once in a while I try to imagine a world where Linux never existed. Some software feels sort-of inevitable. For instance, even if Microsoft and Apple's de
by Exmoor 5y ago
Every once in a while I try to imagine a world where Linux never existed. Some software feels sort-of inevitable. For instance, even if Microsoft and Apple's desktop operating systems had failed, it seems almost certain that there would have been a dominant desktop graphical operating system (OS/2, etc.) so the landscape would have looked fairly similar to today.
Linux just feels different. There have been other open source operating systems, but to me it doesn't feel like they would have inherently taken over the same market that Linux has now if it had never existed. Like, do I really think my phone, my VM server, and my cloud computing infrastructure would be running FreeBSD in this parallel universe? Maybe, but I suspect they would have more likely ended up using separate, more-closed, operating systems.
- zabzonk 5y ago> Maybe, but I suspect they would have more likely ended up using separate, more-closed, operating systems. Like, for example, one written by Apple?
- rdsnsca 5y agoor Microsoft.
- mhh__ 5y agoThey probably wouldn't be running the same OS if it was licenced under a BSD licence - the GPL encourages Linux-like projects to be both open and centralized which is why we have Linux today.
- Koshkin 5y ago> a world where Linux never existed would be dominated by the BSDs!
- nickt 5y agoNot sure if you’re talking about Berkeley Software Distribution of Blue Screen of Death but I suppose either would be right!
- AdmiralAsshat 5y agoThe standard acronym used for the Blue Screen of Death is BSOD. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_screen_of_death https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_screen_of_death
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]