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This reminds me of a time when I emailed rms about the entire GNU/Linux naming controversy. I had said that perhaps Linux could officially be the name of the OS
by kunai 14y ago
This reminds me of a time when I emailed rms about the entire GNU/Linux naming controversy. I had said that perhaps Linux could officially be the name of the OS, and also that to solve the problem of GNU and the FSF not receiving credit, that people could be educated on who actually wrote Linux.
Needless to say, he disagreed. Stallman is as stubborn as a boulder, and a complete extremist.
But he's also right.
- dllthomas 14y agoGNU/Linux is precise in the way alternatives aren't. Linux kernel running BusyBox? Linux, but no GNU software; not GNU/Linux. GNU utilities, BSD kernel? GNU but no Linux; not GNU/Linux. These are things that exist: lots of routers and similar "running Linux" use BusyBox; Debian will let you install a BSD kernel. Of course, "I am running Linux on my desktop" is accurate, and carries the expectation that you're using much of the rest of the GNU system because that's by far the most reasonable (and common) option... so people say that, because it's fewer syllables, and the FSF feels like they're not getting the credit they quite rightly deserve, and that's the situation we're in. But changing the name of the GNU project to Linux is not a solution at all; they're still working on Herd for one thing.