Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it. I've never understood why most major Linux distribution creators chose to come up with their own /

Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it. I've never understood why most major Linux distribution creators chose to come up with their own /etc/*-release files. Why make it distribution-specific at all? In all seriousness, what's wrong with the /etc/release file (Solaris) that predates Linux? The name is obvious, terse, and easy to remember.