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Ubuntu on Windows

(blog.dustinkirkland.com)
2049 points bpierre | 2 comments | 30 Mar 16 16:35 UTC | HN request time: 0.418s | source
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AimHere ◴[30 Mar 16 20:52 UTC] No.11392908[source]▶
It's time that people stopped using the term 'Windows' for this operating system. The Free Software Foundation created the bulk of the userspace, under terms that allow anyone to share, modify and fork the programs, and then Microsoft came along with the one last missing piece of the puzzle - the kernel, and completed the full operating system, which, to be frank, users find completely unusable and worthless without the free software provided by GNU.

The kernel is an important part of the system, sure, but only one among many important parts. We therefore think that, to give full credit to the authors, the whole system should be termed GNU/Windows.

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1. ChuckMcM ◴[30 Mar 16 22:34 UTC] No.11393564[source]▶
Now they will be on us to call it Gnu/Windows :-) More seriously though I think this is a terrific insight, if something of a challenge for Linux kernel enthusiasts. If I could run Ubuntu (or Kubuntu) as my user land on a kernel where all the manufacturers of every gee whiz device had already signed up to port drivers, I would use that in a heartbeat. My current pain point is trying to run Kubuntu on a nearly current generation Intel NUC, because the Iris graphics drivers aren't really compatible if the system goes to sleep the screens never unblank. If the lock screen comes up, plasma shell crashes and then swaps which screen it thinks is the "primary" screen when it restarts. Basically it is unusable. And things like VMWare player don't believe the host has any sort of 3D support even though Meas and OpenGL are up to date. I would trade the mess for a userland I like and a kernel that just works.
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2. willtim ◴[30 Mar 16 22:40 UTC] No.11393586[source]▶
Completely agree. To add another example, Displayport MST on Linux is completely broken on Skylake and Intel have no plan to fix.