Is Linux an OS, a kernel or both? (Linux vs GNU/Linux)
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- čas přidán 3. 06. 2018
- The word "Linux" has entered into the English language meaning a complete Unix-like operating system based on the Linux kernel, which was originally written by Linus Torvalds.
However there are people that claim that Linux is just a kernel, and not a full OS. People who make such distinctions often insist on using the GNU/Linux moniker.
So, is Linux an OS, a kernel or both? Should we call it Linux or GNU/Linux?
Twitter: / garyexplains
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Gary explains ... Linus Torvalds vs. Richard Stallman.
Linus Torvalds vs Steve Carell
Definitely Richard Stallman, GNU/Linux all the way!
Stallman is also more a philosopher while Linus is more of an engineer.
@@gabrielmmgomide RMS is the one who developed GCC compiler and Emacs text editors. So he is more of an engineer.
@@gabrielmmgomide Excuse my ass, Stallman spent TWENTY FUCKING YEARS building an OS, and what does he get? SHIT ALL! No not after twenty years of work does he get any credit, he's just a philosopher.
"I use Linux as my operating system," I state proudly to the unkempt, bearded man. He swivels around in his desk chair with a devilish gleam in his eyes, ready to mansplain with extreme precision. "Actually", he says with a grin, "Linux is just the kernel. You use GNU+Linux!' I don't miss a beat and reply with a smirk, "I use Alpine, a distro that doesn't include the GNU coreutils, or any other GNU code. It's Linux, but it's not GNU+Linux."
The smile quickly drops from the man's face. His body begins convulsing and he foams at the mouth and drops to the floor with a sickly thud. As he writhes around he screams "I-IT WAS COMPILED WITH GCC! THAT MEANS IT'S STILL GNU!" Coolly, I reply "If windows was compiled with gcc, would that make it GNU?" I interrupt his response with "-and work is being made on the kernel to make it more compiler-agnostic. Even you were correct, you wont be for long."
With a sickly wheeze, the last of the man's life is ejected from his body. He lies on the floor, cold and limp. I've womansplained him to death.
Nice story 😂
Hahaha. Great story. 😂👏
I really wonder where this copypasta originates from
@@Dark6997 Luke Smith.
@@user-he4ef9br7z I should've know it was him
Great explanation sir.
If I remember correctly, the GNU Project wanted to make a whole OS, they just hadn't written the kernel and were using Linux as a stop-gap measure. I don't think they can get out of that now.
I don't think they bother trying. From their perspective, there's a free kernel already that's very good. Why waste resources on trying to better it?
GNU/Hurd - its used in high-reliability installations, especially in cluster environments, in places like CERN
@@paulwratt Citation?
@@paulwratt What's?? Citation please
I thought it was the other way around, where Linus used the GNU tools in Linux. BTW, I seem to recall there is also GNU/BSD.
Linux kernel (no disputes), Linux OS (may or may not contain GNU tools, and mostly for appliances), Linux distribution (user focussed, and probably contains GNU tools, but not necessarily). Of course, just using Linux as a catchall should be OK to most people outside of the zealots.
EG : Alpine Linux
All Linux distros out there contain GNU components like the C compiler and the shell therefore the OS should be called GNU/Linux.
@@ashjcoronado nah. GNU just a bunch of program sitting top on the linux.
@@ashjcoronado "All" Gentoo & Alpine out of the box do not have GNU Components.
Apparently people with common logic about the difference between kernel space and user space are zealots? Shut the fuck up. If you're gonna run to Busybox like a sad fucking crybaby, keep in mind that it's desgisned for embedded systems, not your PC. GNU is the correct catchall, but no, you gits won't let it happen. It's sad how little education you got in kindergarten. You probably clamber your dirty self all the way to r/unixporn spamming that shitty copypasta all over anyone who doesn't use Alpine, while giggling to yourself how funny you think you are. ⚠️SPOILER INCOMING⚠️: you're not funny at all. You're the opposite of funny. You owe zero respect for someone who dedicated twenty entire years of their life to developing a completely free (as in beer AND freedom) operating system, with no restrictions or terms on anyone using it. In fact, you call everyone who has the human decency to owe the tiniest bit of respect a zealot. Your logic is just about as shit as flat earthers.
I'm going to go Linux for a while, then I might Linux some more tomorrow
Are you still Linuxing?
@Tranime Girl how are you doing
@Example Example lol
I stoppped windowsing years ago.... I think I'll stay with Linuxing.
The operating system is GNU+Linux; Linux is the kernel.
You have the unique ability to explain complicated subjects in detail without becoming boring or mundane, a true gift. Thank you!
Thanks Gary .. i am tired of explaining it to the people... Now i can refer them to this video
Richard Stallman will Disagree with this video. I had an email conversation with him several years ago. I used "Linux" and he send me a bunch of articles and told me to use Gnu/Linux. But I never think like this. Yes Linux kernel can be called as an operating system. But I think they push GNU/Linux because 99.99 Percent NON Technical people don't know what is GNU and they don't know what is opensource and Various licence come along with software. So if we use GNU/Linux many people will understand more about software licensing and software Freedom. It is good for everyone. When We call it GNU/Linux were not loosing anything.
How 'bout Apple to Orange instead Apple to Apple!!
@@jpberes Because it's not about claiming authorship. It's about history. Without the GNU project and GPL there wouldn't be free software
@@citrone1474 screw off
@@jpberes
Will the c library is still gnu and the programs are gnu too
I like how Gary made it clear and simple ! Great video 😉
It takes a pretty good teacher to get stuff like this through my thick skull, but somehow you managed to get it done and it cleared up a lot of confusion I've had every time I mess with a Raspi. Thanks...
English is evolving, from my experience with learned students of English, I'm confident that your English professor will love to hear of your googling adventures.
Linux is used often enough to have acquired several meanings other than just the kernel. I was happy enough using Red Hat Linux, Debian GNU/Linux, though I wonder whether Debian GNU/Apache/OpenSSH/OpenLDAP might not better reflect what's in a release.
Thanks for the clarity, Mr. Sims. I am grateful for the GNU Foundations contributions to the Linux Community. But I agree, that they shouldn't obsess over nor claim ownership of Linux. Linus Torvalds wants to share this great creative space with everybody. And I am also grateful for that.
GNU never tried to claim ownership of Linux. Quite the contrary, they advocate the name "GNU/Linux", which gives proper credit to both sides.
If anyone here is trying to claim credit for other people's work then that is Linus because he insists on naming the entire GNU system after himself just because he plugged his kernel into it.
And the matter of name is extremely important. Being credited in the name constitutes marketing so great that corporations would pay millions for it. Being credited in the name means that your name will be mentioned maybe thousands of times each day worldwide for decades.
Everyone knows Linus, but almost no one knows GNU, even though Linus is no more important than GNU when it comes to the creation of GNU/Linux. The whole reason that Linus receives all the attention is because the name credits him for both what his and GNU's work.
And here is why that is important: GNU promotes free software. The more people know and respect GNU, the more people will listen to GNU's message, and thus the more people will understand why free software is worth fighting for. Marketing for GNU thus helps the free software movement.
But now, GNU's work is adding to Linus' reputation thanks to miscrediting. And Linus Torvalds does not care about free software at all, his ideals are just about using open source as a tool for making "good software" ("good" being defined using his ethics, of course), and to use closed source when that is more convenient. So GNU's work being used to promote Torvalds through miss-crediting significantly hurts GNU's cause.
@@dr.c2195 the problems is already too late way too confusing for general public heck fedora also only calls their os linux not gnu/linux.
@@raisofahri5797 I agree. Nowadays it seems like Linus almost receives more credit for the GNU software than the GNU project does.
Personally I think we would be better off just making up another name for the whole system, like how Google named their Linux distro "Android".
@@dr.c2195 Another name. Like Unbuntu is just called Unbuntu? And Debian is often just called Debian. I could go on.
@@peircedan Indeed. Somehow I completely overlooked that.
Great video! It would be great to dive a little bit deeper in this one. For example what elements of a Distro are part of kernel and what not. Also the different layers of a Linux distribution/flavor.
Alpine Linux _can_ use "uClibc" (so can BusyBox), _but_ it is built by default against "Musl" and so is BusyBox - It was the Alpine distribution that pushed "musl" development, in part because "uclibc" _only_ produces static binaries (all-in-one), as opposed to dynamically linked binaries (at run time)
Another great video Gary, Thanks. for the book recommendation as well thanks again.
Always enjoying your videos ! I would really want to watch more videos like this one, which explain things that are common knowledge to the professionals but not well known to the normal, uninitiated folks ! Its enjoyable because your videos are easy to understand even to regular people. Don't mind being too much specifically being correct with the language or technicals with your explanations. People like me want to hear explanations that are easy to understand which is right in general. I think you're channel is great in a way similar to the 8-bit guy or the Techquikie channel but in a slightly different area. Keep up with the great videos !
Glad to hear you are enjoying the videos. Any specific topics you want to see covered? Thanks for comparing my channel to the 8-bit Guy and Techquickie, that is a real compliment, thanks. I hope I can duplicate their success!
Gary! I LOVE THIS VIDEO! What about the GNU tools now available in Windows 10? Why don't we see the FSF pushing an agenda to start calling it GNU/Windows?
LOL, exactly!
Calling it GNU/Windows would be somewhat of an insult. As you probably know, there is virtually no "foss" {free and open-source} software available on Windows (with few exceptions). GNU is supposed to be about open-source. And Microsoft Windows is all about getting the green at any cost. [End of micro-rant/micro-conniption]
they should call windows 10 as windows10/windowsNT
@@waynestewart1919 they also hate the term "open source"
@@mariolis Oh yeah. They prefer FOSS. Aye yah! lol
Thanks for clearing things out, grateful to you.
What a satisfying video.. thanks for explaining it so beautifully . Cheers.
Great in-depth explanation. Loved it.
really good! great explanation Gary! Cheers!!
Glad you enjoyed it
I am watching you from an elderly Lenovo Thinkpad running the Linux Mind distribution. The major point being that this system would not run MS Windows 10, never mind MS Windows 11. Yet the Linux kernel has this old beast humming along nicely, thus saving resources and me money. At 68 I really appreciate that, and you for a truly lucid explanation of a problem that I had not run into. Now I can act like I know something, rather than just a recent convert to the world of Linux.
I just download the Linux Kernel and talk to it. IT WISPERS BACK
I'm really liking your videos :)
I totally with you on this one! There have too many people working on too many Linux based projects to simply blanket them as GNU. This is especially true when don't use any GNU tools at all.
I use linux/GNU/arch/mozilla software/kde/libreoffice/jetbrains ides. All of these (aside from the kernel itself) contain tools that help me communicate with the kernel. It's just much easier to say "I use Linux" because the kernel is the main thing that will be in common among all linux distributions. The only other necessary clarification would be "I use Arch Linux", but "Arch" itself is an operating system built on top of the linux kernel, so I can just say "I use Arch". Then add "btw" because yes. Anyways, great video!
enjoying your series on linux Gary, nicely executed.
We used that book as part of our references in Operating Systems class back in college
Nice one Sir!
Thanks all for sharing the information and being so fair
I think we should call the OS by its Distributions Name + Its Kernel. Like: Debian/Linux, Debian/Herd. If you describe the Kernel without a GNU userland, just call it Linux. Richard Stallman still has a good point, since at the point he wrote his opinion, GNU code made up the biggest part.
The FSF has always said, that a system running Linux kernel with other userlands are ofcourse not GNU/Linux systems.
Speaking of Android, Linus calls the Android kernel a fork of Linux. Because it's so heavily modified.
The Clang compiler can and is often used, but not all software compiles with it though
My first EVER experience with a distro of GNU/Linux, was "SuSE Linux 8.1 Personal", the 3 CD set of which was given to me - and which I treasure - by my dear Uncle, back in 2002/3. I recall sitting looking at all this foreign geekese flying past on my GET, wondering what on EARTH it all meant, and extremely excited.
I've just reinstalled it on my 18 year old Dell Latitude C600 Pentium III laptop, then installed VLC, and watched *"Revolution OS"* absolutely flawlessly on it.
Nailed it! I kinda understood this for the first time.😊
I'm already in love with this channel!
Loved the quick segments on AA and it's so good to see a channel educating about Linux in a friendly manner.
Gary has an amazing way to explain things. I love his videos.
Did you altogether resolve the point about Bash - is this the sole command line tool?
What point about bash? Of course it isn't the only "shell".
@@GaryExplains 'of course' from your lofty heights - it wasn't clear to me, but thx 😊
What is the book you talked about in this video?
Very good explanation. I think since most people are using GNU over other types command line software it's easier to just say Linux.
Hey Gary what do you think about the MS Github aquisition? Is it a worthy topic of discussion?
git.siliconpin.com
That is definitely a worthy topic of discussion.
Excellent video Garry. Linux has come on leaps and bounds since the project was started many years ago. It might of just started out as a kernel but today it is much more than that. It's all over the world in thousands if not millions of device big or small in size IoT or just running on a 15 year laptop Linux and open source is the best thing to come out of computer science. Linux Torvalds is a genius.
Nice informative video. But the thing is people will believe what they want to believe. It's really difficult to change someone's mind. But hats off for the effort. You explained quiet eloquently.
Is possible to compare Linux kernel with windows and Apple also is it possible to bring the Features of windows or any other kernel to Linux?
Could you explain the difference amongst Interactive, Non-Interactive, Login and Non-Login Shells?
Waiting for this, thanks ...
Your video is very informative
Sir ! From windows,Mac,linux,ubuntu Which will be better n efficient OS to for home use? Also for programing which one will be the pick? I want to install OS on my new laptop.
Hi Gary, love your videos!! I have one more confusion and that's regarding the difference between a Linux distro vs packages vs repositories. I just don't get it. A video on that would be very helpful.
A distro is a distribution meaning an installer plus all the software. The software is released as packages (and there are different formats for those) and a repository is the online archive for those packages.
@@GaryExplains That helps 😀, Thanks again ✨
Thank you very much sir for explaining this type of highly informative topics..
Sir pls make a video on Arm Cortex A76..
Videos are the Cortex-A76 are coming this week (I hope) over on the AA channel.
Is chrome Os considered Linux distribution or not?
Yes, but use only the kernel, is not GNU system
So Federico does that make Chrome OS a Linus system and not a GNU/Linux system?
It can be considered as a Linux distro , it is based on Gentoo.
Chrome OS is based on Gentoo, which is both, Linux and GNU.
Linux is only a kernel, so only that is not a OS. Chrome OS is not a GNU/Linux or a ( Wrong called) "Linux" distro. For example Android use the Linux Kernel but is not a distro of linux. so Chrome os is the same.
Well explained ..... And btw whats the band on ur hand sir?
It is a FitBit.
Gary Explains which model sir?
It is a Charge 2.
Makes sense. Well explained.
So, you can install GNU\Hurd or you can de-GNU your Linux, hard part is compiling kernel with something else, there is not much of gnu in modern linux except gcc , and gcc can be replaced, and lots of gnu tools have compatible alternatives
Yes Sir! I really enjoyed this one .
Thank you Sir.
Thanks, this was very enlightening. So far I belonged to the people who told others using GNU/Linux would be more appropriate. I didn't think of all the other components in a distro.
Maybe it's best to not call the whole thing Linux at all. It's just Debian, Mint, Arch, etc. Only if you want to list what is used it might be worth thinking about the importance of different components. Hardly anyone is using just the kernel. Therefore, it might be an important component but far from being the whole thing ...
Linguistic aspects aside: Linux for the entire OS/distro is a name we use only to not confusing people that doesn't know that much. I used to use GRUB2/systemd/Debian/su/XFCE/Gnu/Linux, but for technical reasons I now have to use GRUB2/systemd/Ubuntu/su-sudo/XFCE/Gnu/Linux.
Good video. One can understand Stallman's frustration at not getting as much recognition as he deserves for establishing a framework for free software and laying the foundation on which Linux is built, but in the end language has to be effective and economical, and GNU and even Linux becomes assumed when referring to "running Ubuntu 18.04" for example. Because Linux is so universal, spanning everything from microcontrollers to the biggest supercomputers, it is inevitable that the many different associated user environment distributions will have many different names, and the common elements of GNU and Linux will be simply assumed.
Just like what happend with compiling, its steps are preprocessing, linking, etc, and the actual compiling. But the word compiling got extended to the whole process
Could you make a video on the differences between Intel/AMD processors and ARM processors.
Different applications..
0:16
I using the GNU OS
Which exist in many distributions for many platforms , simple easy and understandable.
@TheBlackiwid GNU OS on pc
Debian distributions can be installed on mobile.
Android can be installed on pc.
So is GNU Hurd stable yet?
This is almost like comparing Wine to wine-gaming-nine and wine-staging-pba
Hey Gary,
I enjoyed the video, but there are a couple mistakes here I think.
First, there’s no GNU Foundation. There’s the Free Software Foundation. And the GPL is the General Public License not the GNU Public License. The name comes from an earlier era of GNU when projects each had their own licenses: the Emacs Public License, etc. A few of these are still around today, such as the Nethack Public License.
I think something missed in the video is that GNU was working on an operating system for the best part of a decade before Linux was released under the GPL in 1992 and while most people using some flavor of GNU nowadays are using it with Linux that wasn’t always the case.
Further to the notion of GNU versions of Linux, well there are a few. GNU and the FSF were fundamental in the creation of Debian and Debian to this day has versions of GNU with different kernels including the FreeBSD kernel which is rather popular amongst those who are using it. GNU also has a project that works on the kernel Linux called Linux-Libre which removes various nonfree pieces of code from Linux. Finally, it’s worth noting that the definition of Unix-like operating system is defined by POSIX.
Best,
matt
Well done 👏🏻 sir
Good video. Some thirty-one years after GNU Hurd development kicked off, there are Debian releases that do use the Hurd kernel, so there we do see a viable reason to use GNU/Hurd vs GNU/Linux. That said, I would actually be more inclined to call those Debian Linux and Debian Hurd respectively. I don't have any dogs in the race of which to speak, however, and I really don't get fussed beyond the occasional pedantic comment on a random tech video. 🤓
So how does the layers stack? VM Excluded….Bare metal, kernel, shell, distro, OS? I’m older & my 9 yr old is trying to get into computers. Seems very passionate about it & I know it could be a good future for her. I am trying to gain knowledge as well to help in any way I can but I’m a bit confused after switching from basically downloading a new Mac OS on my MacBook and just using the GUI. I never even looked at Linux or touched the terminal. It’s crazy how much cooler the computer is when you start to dig a little deeper.
In very rough terms it is the hardware then the kernel and then user space. The latter can be either a command line or a GUI or both. On top of those come the apps and tools like web browsers, compilers, games, whatever.
@@GaryExplains oh nice! Thank you very much for the response! Great channel liked & subscribed!
after pondering this for a while it made me wonder if a "linux" operating system consists about 13% of the linux kernel and 15% of gnu tools and packages what is the other 72%?
www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html makes it sound like it's 90% GNU and 5% Linux, it says that the kernel is just a program inside the GNU OS and you shouldn't even call the kernel "Linux" but "the Linux kernel". (Which would imply that the Linux kernel is the kernel of the Linux OS.) It also says he calls GNU an OS because it is trying to replace Unix which was an OS but later he says that an OS has to include at least those hundreds of programs included in BSD but to my knowledge BSD is based on Unix so Unix is not an OS, so GNU is not an OS?
I read that article half way through and at the beginning I was ready to be convinced but instead, I now am tempted to despise GNU because they sound like assholes. They say it's okay to call it GNU but it's not okay to call it Linux, it is acceptable to call it "GNU slash Linux" because Linus also did some work. Not the hard work, though.
@@leysont yes but that biased x is not gnu, mesa is not gnu, kde is not gnu, wayland is not gnu
gnu and the linux kernel combined does not make up more than 30% of a typical linux distribution
further more there are linux distributions that don't don't include gnu at all like the frankenstein of an android but also others like glendix and alphine linux and more
but yes at this point they sound like jerks and indifferent to the work that was done by all the other organizations, tho i have no idea what their true intentions are with that post
the explanation understood successfully. thank you.
I loved the video. It is very informative and it explained many of the things I have wanted to know for a while. Thank you for making this video.
That's actually a pretty good point!
Alpine is a general purpose OS and uses musl (not ulibc any more). I run it on my laptop.
Clearly explained!
brave of you to talk about this topic. its almost asking for idiots to start furiously typing about why their opinion is the correct one. thanks for not being an ass, and posing a clear and well informed argument.
Hey gary is it true that Android is actually running on vm based on linux kernel?
Not quite. Android uses the Linux kernel at it core. But to run Java programs it uses a Java Virtual Machine (JVM), which is how all Java programs are run, from PCs to Supercomputers.
Got It Professor !
1:59 I think metonymy is the right term for that concept?
There are several misunderstandings in this video. The GNU Project is not claiming that every system that uses Linux is the GNU system. Some systems that run Linux are fundamentally GNU, in that it uses GNU tools and other components of GNU that are not produced by the project, as the basis /for the operating system/ (regardless of whether it uses GNOME or KDE or anything else). So, Ubuntu, Knoppix, Debian, Fedora, etc. are distributions of GNU/Linux. Yet, the GNU Project recognizes that Android is /not/ a GNU system, hence, Android /cannot/ be called GNU/Linux. No operating system that does not use for its foundation the GNU tools are to be considered GNU/Linux. Also, another thing, the reason for the "slash" or the "plus" of the "GNU/Linux" name is to distinguish Linux from the GNU system. It is not an effort to appropriate Linux, the kernel. Stallman insists that Linux is a separate project, and has no problem with that fact.
There are several misunderstandings in your comment. The GNU project believes it has the right to hijack any Unix-like OS and call it GNU/Something. Today's Linux systems are complex and comprehensive and the contribution of GNU, while important, is not paramount. However the GNU project does say that anything that even includes a few basic tools from GNU be called GNU. I quote from the FAQ, "The principal developer is the GNU Project, and the system is basically GNU." Such a statement is hubris at best. Calling distros GNU/Linux is disingenuous and neglects the importance of other components and projects. I believe that the GNU project should be given its fair share of the credit, but so should Apache or Firefox, etc. Insisting on GNU in the name is misleading and inappropriate. Also, I never said anywhere that the GNU project is trying to appropriate the kernel.
Amazing, mindblown
Thanks Gary, very informative. My Mother-in-Law is British, and she's always mentioning how she "Hoovers" her bedroom (even though she uses a Dyson Vacuum cleaner). I constantly want to correct her, but I'm scared of her, so I just let it go.
Yep, we always "hoovered" in our house as well!
I like the user's perspective definition :)
Thank You... It was worth waking up today. Any day I learn something new... it was worth waking-up on that particular day. I didn't know Ping Pong was a brand. Cool. Thanx.
I use to work for the ministry of science in my country, they made a linux distro and call it gnu/linux I always found that to be odd since only a tiny group of people were allow to contribute to it.
Holy crap, how does this dude only have 30K?
Great video. But Gary - you're sufficiently framed, and if you're not reading off a teleprompter .....you can just turn that camera monitor away from you :)
U are just rockbuster busting doubts which i had like hard rocks. Can u please make video scope of python in linux and machine learning .
If I find a difference in definition for a word, I tend to wonder what has caused the difference.
Don't forget another interesting permutation which illustrates how much these components can be mixed and matched: Debian GNU/kFreeBSD
Thanks for the link :)
Why is Android not on DistroWatch?
The shorthand seems to have stuck, like it or otherwise. It's not unlike "applications.' Apps are finger foods enjoyed before a meal -- not programs.
I think it's appropriate to it call it GNU/Linux for most people that knowingly use one of the major Linux distros since those almost exclusively are indeed a Linux kernel with the GNU software suite. The GNU software can make a major difference when it comes to how the user interacts with the kernel so I think it makes sense to pair them as GNU/Linux.
That being said, most people know what someone means when they say Linux so tacking it on as a technicality to one up somebody or prove some kind of implied superiority is just annoying.
Moral of the story: call it whatever you want. Most people in the topic know what you mean and if someone else wants to nitpick over semantics that's a "them" problem.
This time Garry, I am going to completely agree with you.
The GNUs have one point on their side. When Linus started to write a kernel, for a Unix-like OS, the GNUs and Mr Stallman had been working on this back-yard Unix which is free for about 5 years, and they didn't start with the kernel. They started with the compiler and the tool chain. They also started to write a kernel, but that didn't work out all that well, and they bogged down in details and being over-ambitious. Linus didn't start a project to take over their tools, and they didn't write tools to go with Linus's kernel, but hackers and builders and people who wanted a free OS, realised the two projects were conceptually the same, and fairly close to compatible anyway, so they started to port the GNU tools to Linus's kernel, and call the result LINUX. This wasn't a decision made or a strategy chosen by either Stallman or Torvolds... The case / argument to call it GNU Linux of course came from Stallman. He has a point, but it's clumsy and unnecessary. He is simply being political.
If you really want to be correct, it probably should be called GNU Linux, but equally, if you really want to be correct, then you should always refer to Microsoft Windows, and perhaps add the version as well, because otherwise you're not telling the whole story. In some settings, that's possibly a completely correct statement, but in others you're simply being silly on principle. When you call it Windows or Win-10 then every reasonable person knows exactly what you're talking about, so why be a girl about it?
Interestingly or Otherwise GNU Linux is something that wold also earn the FSF's protest. (no guys we didn't create Linux. Put the slash (or plus or whatever) on:/)
make a video about the difference between Linux distros...etc
Nice video, I been calling them OS for over 20 years lol
Are you reading from a script and all the pauses/cuts are you turning the page? It really seems that something like that is happening. Whenever you finish a small topic you pause, there is a jump cut, and you start reading again. It's pretty distractions. There must be a teleprompter application you can get.
LOL, no I am not reading from a script. All the cuts are because the Internet is full of people who analyze everything to the 100th degree, like your analysis above and if I misspeak or misquote something then I 100 comments about how I got something wrong, so sometimes I need to re-do segments to get it just right... of course then people like you moan about that... I can't win!!!! 🤣
great .. thanks
In an embedded system, the operating system can be only the kernel. But outside this area, most of the time we talk about the kernel + userland or user space software.
Like with anything, saying GNU/Linux or simply Linux should be done correctly. When we're referring to a distro's name, it doesn't make any sense to add "GNU" or even "Linux" if the makers didn't put it in there. It's a name, respect it, so distro names such as "Solus", "IPFire" and "Ubuntu" are perfectly valid.
However, if someone describes their operating system as "a GNU/Linux distro", they are correct as long as it has the Linux kernel and GNU software in it. This can easily create confusion if we look at the operating system's definition, because most people either didn't study computer science or they weren't good enough with it, so it's either no information at all, or insufficient information on the matter. When we're talking about an operating system outside the embedded area, it's common sense that we assume both the kernel and extra software. And the vast majority of Linux distros include the GNU tools, which qualifies them as GNU/Linux operating systems.
Now the problem is with people who give their opinions like they're the absolute truth, while pretending the correct way is either referring to the operating system as Linux (or the distro's name), or call it Linux+GNU+systemd+Xorg+Cinnamon+blabla. That's rubbish. Linux itself "claims" to be a kernel, which is available at kernel.org, so if you're inclined into taking claims for granted, read their website.
The GNU people, on the other hand, make things a bit difficult because instead of being gentle about the use of "GNU" when referring to the operating system, they also say "Most operating system distributions based on Linux as kernel are basically modified versions of the GNU operating system." That's also rubbish because by naming it "the GNU operating system" they're basically hijacking the OS name that they themselves promote in most places on their website: "GNU/Linux".
The one thing people can agree with, is the fact that the desktop and server operating systems using the GNU tools along with the Linux kernel is the "lowest common denominator" that qualifies as an operating system, which is the kernel + some software that allows user interaction - be it a text-based or graphical-based user interface. And in hundreds of distributions, this "lowest common denominator" is the Linux kernel and the GNU tools. So calling these GNU/Linux distros is valid. And calling them Linux distros is also valid, because they still are software distributions of the Linux kernel with additional software along with it.
So if you use Ubuntu and you say you're a Linux user, you're correct because your operating system contains Linux and you use it - although indirectly. But if you say your operating system is Linux, you're wrong because your operating system is *Ubuntu*. And if you want to mention Linux, you can either say it's a Linux-based operating system or a GNU/Linux operating system, but don't put an equal sign between Linux and operating system when you're not running the kernel exclusively, because that's a mistake. And it's also a mistake to name it "GNU/Linux" when you don't even have the GNU tools alongside the Linux kernel.
As for English being flexible, so are other languages. But that doesn't change the fact that the technical language is in a world of its own. So use "GNU/Linux" if you want to be nice to the many people who worked on the GNU project that has become a vital part of hundreds of operating systems, but do so only if you're sure you don't make a technical mistake. Otherwise, stick to your distro's name and no one should complain about anything, and your technical skills won't be questioned.
Stallings book is not "THE book" of operating system design. Silberschatz and Tanenbaum's books are much more of a reference... Especially in classroom contexts! A more recent one which I reccomend is "Operating Systems: Principles and Practice" by Anderson and Dahlin.
Yeah, good point, you are probably right about that!
2:34 GNUances, ha...
I am happy that I don’t have to attend to a computer science class to know about this explanation. Thank You very much, Mr. Gary, Sir. I am very insterested in computer science even though I studied electronic engineering. But knowledges can be obtained everywhere.
Which Linux distribution comes closest to Mac OS in terms of reliability, compatibility and user friendliness?
I know your comment is 3 years old so this is likely unhelpful lol. But look into elementaryos
@@luigigrabspam4596 thanks. :) I actually have been using Ubuntu for a while now. Seems very are though I've read that elementary OS is cleaner in terms of appearance, but also based on Ubuntu
Gary explains can also rename his channel to Gary Mansplains. Works either way. Good videos!
He could, but why would he want to? "Mansplain" is not even a word.
Well explained, Gary. Perhaps GNU foundation, and RS in particular, should concentrate on perpetually "around the corner" HURD kernel than screaming like petulant children throwing tantrums "it's GNU, it's GNU!".
Some distributions do humor them and call themselves GNU/Linux, but, as you said, GNU tools are just one option among many, albeit an important and popular one.