The Hurd

[Luciano Miguel Ferreira Rocha]

Stop that, will you?

My opinion isn't worth much, I wasn't around when Linux or the Hurd or GNU
started, but here is what I think of this matter:

There is no reason to call a Linux sytem GNU.

Why not? Well, when Linux was started it wasn't even an operating system,
and as some one has pointed out (sorry, I can't find that email), the
development was somewhat closed.

So he continued developing his terminal and, with the help of a global
community it ended as a kernel.

Now why should it be named, by itself, GNU/Linux (or GNU/Something)? Just
because it was developed with GNU tools? Of course not, that would be
absurd. And I even think the FSF/GNU people wouldn't like that, that
someone else, independent of them, released a program with their name on
it.

So now for the system, not the kernel itself.

Well, the first system I used as Slackware, a long time ago. And it used
BSD libc, BSD netutils, BSD_a_lot, and of course some GNU utils also, and
X11, etc. Of these, which were the most important? Well, libc was surely
of the utmost importance, and to me and a lot of people the netutils was
the second most importante piece (after all, it was called an OS for
hackers...).

So then, should it be called BSD/Linux instead? Well, after a few years the
BSD parts diminished, and the GNU parts increased. Then we would had had to
rename all systems to GNU/Linux instead of BSD/Linux. But now, today, the
GNU part as diminished in relevance in comparision with the rest of the
system: the configuration tools, the X Window System, KDE, Mozilla, and lot
of others. I mean, a user would use Linux or GNU/Linux for hours without
seeing any GNU component...

So I see no reason to call Linux GNU/Linux. I believe X, KDE and third party
tools have brought more people to Linux than the GNU tools, after all, looks
does matter...

Anyway, I do think you and everybody else are entitled to call it GNU/Linux
system if you like, but I don't think you are entitled to make me call it
GNU/Linux reasoning that I'm insulting GNU by doing so.

Best regards,
Luciano Rocha

-- 
Luciano Rocha, strange at nsk.yi.org

The trouble with computers is that they do what you tell them, not what
you want.
                -- D. Cohen