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The name "Linux" carries more than one semantic payload. Linux in the technical sense is only the kernel, true. But in the social sense, it's also all the trap
by selfhoster11 5y ago
The name "Linux" carries more than one semantic payload.
Linux in the technical sense is only the kernel, true. But in the social sense, it's also all the trappings of an underlying open source system that can be freely moulded by a user if desired. Android and Chrome OS fight against those things.
- jmillikin 5y agoNothing about using Linux implies the rest of the system is open-source, or even particularly customizable. Look at all the pseudo-embedded systems (routers, NAS appliances, TVs) that run Linux beneath a completely closed-source userland. There's a small population of hobbyists who build open-source platforms that use Linux as a component, but those have their own names (Debian, Gentoo) and there's no reason to go around intentionally confusing the layers.