Re: "Torn between two OS" - Solaris vs Linux

From: Roger Leigh (${roger}_at_invalid.whinlatter.uklinux.net.invalid)
Date: 01/05/05 

Date: Wed, 05 Jan 2005 21:54:37 +0000

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Rich Teer <rich.teer@rite-group.com> writes:

> On Wed, 5 Jan 2005, Roger Leigh wrote:
>
>> Well, they aren't part of the base operating system; they are programs
>> which run on top of the operating system, and you can happily do
>
> OK, I understand that. But what is the definition of the "base OS"?
> I would expect to find stuff like Mozilla and Perl on any Linux
> distro, and much of the other stuff in /bin one can live without.

I think one could invent quite a number of definitions: there's a big
gray area between "kernel only" and "everything I find useful". One
definition for Debian could be "everything in base"
(http://packages.debian.org/unstable/base/), or "everything required
to boot a functional system". I would certainly include libc, the
shell, getty/login, and the core file/text utilities, and also the
package management tools. On a Linux system, that's mostly GNU, apart
from Linux-specific setup tools (hdparm, fbset, loadkeys, setfont
etc.--tools to configure the kernel) and miscellaneous bits like
getty.

>> without. The operating system is GNU, running on a Linux kernel.
>>
>> Apart from the philosophical reasons espoused by e.g. RMS for calling
>> it "GNU/Linux", there are also practical considerations. It's
>
> Couldn't the same argument be applied to *BSD? Or are the userland
> tools in BSD different to the ones typical of a Linux distro?In
> other words, is BSD's "ls" the same as GNU ls, or a different one?

They are typically BSD-specific equivalents, though the GNU versions
are often available as ports. I think grep and awk are the
exceptions, though this may no longer be the case.

> Certainly some of the tools, like gcc, are the same, so why doesn't
> RMS insist on GNU/BSD?

Debian is working on several kernels in addition to Linux, for example
Debian GNU/Hurd. More recently, there are porting efforts to the
FreeBSD and NetBSD kernels. As an example, the NetBSD port is
referred to as "Debian GNU/kNetBSD" (GNU on a NetBSD kernel). The
name was picked at the request of the NetBSD folks in order that there
be no confusion that is wasn't an entire NetBSD system.

  http://www.nl.debian.org/ports/netbsd/
  http://www.nl.debian.org/ports/kfreebsd-gnu/

Historically, the BSDs have been independent systems in their own
right; unlike Linux, which has been using GNU basically since the
start, they don't depend upon GNU code to function (other than for the
compiler), so I think that's probably why RMS doesn't insist. I think
there would be trouble if he did! Some BSD folks are so anti-GPL,
they are working on a GCC replacement (which goes to show that
licensing issues can be a big motivator ;-)

  http://www.tendra.org/

Some light entertainment may be found here:

  http://lists.freebsd.org/pipermail/freebsd-chat/2003-June/000783.html
  http://lists.freebsd.org/pipermail/freebsd-chat/2004-December/002991.html

Regards,
Roger

- --
Roger Leigh
                Printing on GNU/Linux? http://gimp-print.sourceforge.net/
                Debian GNU/Linux http://www.debian.org/
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