this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2023
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Linux
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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Yeah, you have the choice of have your software be controlled by companies that could just stop licensing it.
But the point of GNU is to disallow closing down sources. Companies don't like that, because it's not profitable. They need non gnu stuff so that they can build money printing closed gardens with it.
Not using GNU software doesn't mean you don't use any copyleft licenses or GPL.
GPL, also known as GNU GPL. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License
The reason for non GNU distros is to maintain the right of closing down the source of whatever product you build with it, disallowing the customer's software freedoms.
It would be pointless to have a non GNU system with other copyleft protections, because that's counter to the reason why they exist, in the first place.
What they are saying is that you do not need to use GNU software ( a specific set of software from the Free Software Foundation ) to use GPL software.
The GPL is a license. The G in GPL stands for General, not GNU. It is sometimes called the GNU GPL as the GPL was originally conceived for the GNU Project. Much like the G in GTK stands for GIMP but now GTK itself is far bigger than the GIMP Project, the GPL is much bigger than GNU.
GNU is a software distribution, one with the original aim of creating a free UNIX ( or POSIX OS rather ).
As a percentage of software included, the amount of actual GNU software in a typical Linux distro is quite small actually. There may be a lot of GPL software but the majority of it is not GNU. Look no further than the Linux kernel itself for an example of that. Your desktop environment may be another. Most of your graphics stack is probably MIT licensed though. There is more MIT licensed software in a Linux distro than anything else and the MIT license predates the GPL. There are many other licenses used as well of course with BSD and Apache being a couple of other major ones.
Chimera is proof of what I am saying really. It is essentially GNU free by default. Yet, if you looked at a typical Fedora install, it would be the same software you use on Chimera. Avoiding systemd ( not GNU ), GNU utils, GCC, and Glibc are important design decisions but those are going to be a small fraction of the software installed.
I happen to find the GNU stuff a bit overcomplicated and bloated. I feel the same about Systemd. So, I like the choices Chimera has made.
The “reason” for “non GNU” distros is certainly not so they can be shut down. Technical choices are made for other reasons. Some of us find “permissive” licenses more free than the GPL. The idea that non-GPL is unsafe and will get shut down is not born out in practice as evidenced by the fact that there is more healthy, long lived non-GPL Open Source software than there is GPL software.
Non-GPL software will stay free and Open as long as there is a community around it. Sure, if there is no community and we are leeching off a company, they could take future versions away from us. But if we are just leeching, how is that wrong. It is only their future work they can take away. We still get to keep the old stuff. If there is no community, GPL software is no better. Either way, we only get the old stuff. The Internet is full of GPL and even GNU software that is unmaintained and of little use to anyone.
A negative contribution that GNU has made is the trend of its fans claiming credit for other people’s work. I do not like the term GNU / Linux as most of the software in a distro people throw that label on is not GNU. Similarly, talking about distros as though they are protected by the GPL is crazy as most of the software in that distro is not GPL.
MUSL is MIT licensed which is why Chimera can use it. LLVM / Clang is Apache licensed and Chimera can enjoy all the corporate contributed code and patents that come with that. Obviously the BSD utils are BSD incensed and again freely available. You do not need the GPL and certainly not GNU to make a great Linux distro.
This is not a rant against the GPL by any means though even GNU. I use them both and am very thankful for them. I certainly acknowledge their place in history. I just hate how both the GPL and GNU are positioned to diminish the contributions of others.
Thank you for going deeper in the subject. Software licenses are fertile ground for infinite lawyery debate. :)
I'm dipping my toes into understanding the licenses, and of course I don't fully understand the details of all of the possible software combinations and it's licenses implications.
I'm assuming distros could be considered derivative work, and therefore covered by GPL, when using GPL software. Which would make most closed source applications based on such distros inviable. That's why I though about how could a non-GPL distro be useful.
If my assumption is wrong, which is perfectly possible, then I'm wrong.
Again, thank you for articulating it!
Besides what LeFantome said, I don't understand why other copyleft protections without GNU is counter to the reason they exist.
You're confusing the GPL with GNU