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trans-coord/gnun/gnu linux-and-gnu.html
|
From: |
Yavor Doganov |
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Subject: |
trans-coord/gnun/gnu linux-and-gnu.html |
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Date: |
Sun, 10 Feb 2008 21:10:05 +0000 |
CVSROOT: /sources/trans-coord
Module name: trans-coord
Changes by: Yavor Doganov <yavor> 08/02/10 21:10:05
Modified files:
gnun/gnu : linux-and-gnu.html
Log message:
Automatic sync from the master www repository.
CVSWeb URLs:
http://cvs.savannah.gnu.org/viewcvs/trans-coord/gnun/gnu/linux-and-gnu.html?cvsroot=trans-coord&r1=1.1&r2=1.2
Patches:
Index: linux-and-gnu.html
===================================================================
RCS file: /sources/trans-coord/trans-coord/gnun/gnu/linux-and-gnu.html,v
retrieving revision 1.1
retrieving revision 1.2
diff -u -b -r1.1 -r1.2
--- linux-and-gnu.html 6 Feb 2008 12:18:27 -0000 1.1
+++ linux-and-gnu.html 10 Feb 2008 21:10:04 -0000 1.2
@@ -14,38 +14,40 @@
<p><strong>by <a href="http://www.stallman.org/";>Richard
Stallman</a></strong></p>
<div class="announcement">
- <blockquote><p>To learn more about this issue, you can also read
-our <a href="/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html">GNU/Linux FAQ</a>, our page on
-<a href="/gnu/why-gnu-linux.html">Why GNU/Linux?</a>
-and our page on <a href="/gnu/gnu-users-never-heard-of-gnu.html">GNU
-Users Who Have Never Heard of GNU</a>.</p></blockquote>
+ <blockquote><p>For more information see also
+the <a href="/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html">GNU/Linux FAQ</a>,
+and <a href="/gnu/why-gnu-linux.html">Why GNU/Linux?</a></p>
+ </blockquote>
</div>
<p>
Many computer users run a modified version of
<a href="/philosophy/categories.html#TheGNUsystem">the GNU system</a>
every day, without realizing it. Through a peculiar turn of events,
-the version of GNU which is widely used today is more often known as
-“Linux”, and many users are not aware of the extent of its
-connection with the
+the version of GNU which is widely used today is often called
+“Linux”, and many of its users
+are <a href="/gnu/gnu-users-never-heard-of-gnu.html"> not aware</a>
+that it is basically the GNU system, developed by the
<a href="/gnu/gnu-history.html">GNU Project</a>.</p>
<p>
-There really is a Linux, and these people are using it, but it is not
-the operating system. Linux is the kernel: the program in the system
-that allocates the machine's resources to the other programs that you
-run. The kernel is an essential part of an operating system, but
-useless by itself; it can only function in the context of a complete
-operating system. Linux is normally used in a combination with the
-GNU operating system: the whole system is basically GNU, with Linux
-functioning as its kernel.</p>
-
-<p>
-Many users are not fully aware of the distinction between the kernel,
-which is Linux, and the whole system, which they also call “Linux”.
-The ambiguous use of the name doesn't promote understanding. These
-users often think that Linus Torvalds developed the whole operating
-system in 1991, with a bit of help.</p>
+There really is a Linux, and these people are using it, but it is just
+a part of the system they use. Linux is the kernel: the program in
+the system that allocates the machine's resources to the other
+programs that you run. The kernel is an essential part of an
+operating system, but useless by itself; it can only function in the
+context of a complete operating system. Linux is normally used in
+combination with the GNU operating system: the whole system is
+basically GNU with Linux added, or GNU/Linux. All the so-called
+“Linux” distributions are really distributions of
+GNU/Linux.</p>
+
+<p>
+Many users do not understand the difference between the kernel, which
+is Linux, and the whole system, which they also call
+“Linux”. The ambiguous use of the name doesn't help
+people understand. These users often think that Linus Torvalds
+developed the whole operating system in 1991, with a bit of help.</p>
<p>
Programmers generally know that Linux is a kernel. But since they
@@ -74,7 +76,7 @@
program for a particular job. For example, Linus Torvalds set out to
write a Unix-like kernel (Linux); Donald Knuth set out to write a text
formatter (TeX); Bob Scheifler set out to develop a window system (the
-X Window system). It's natural to measure the contribution of this
+X Window System). It's natural to measure the contribution of this
kind of project by specific programs that came from the project.</p>
<p>
@@ -89,76 +91,71 @@
choice would be “GNU”.</p>
<p>
-But that is not the deepest way to consider the question.
-The GNU Project was not, is not, a project to develop specific
-software packages. It was not a
-project <a href="/software/gcc/gcc.html"> to develop a C compiler</a>,
-although we did that. It was not a project to develop a text editor,
-although we developed one. The GNU Project's aim was to develop <em>a
-complete free Unix-like system</em>: GNU.</p>
+But that is not the deepest way to consider the question. The GNU
+Project was not, is not, a project to develop specific software
+packages. It was not a project <a href="/software/gcc/gcc.html"> to
+develop a C compiler</a>, although we did that. It was not a project
+to develop a text editor, although we developed one. The GNU Project
+set out to develop <em>a complete free Unix-like system</em>: GNU.</p>
<p>
Many people have made major contributions to the free software in the
-system, and they all deserve credit. But the reason it is <em>an
-integrated system</em>—and not just a collection of useful
-programs—is because the GNU Project set out to make it one. We made
-a list of the programs needed to make a <em>complete</em> free system,
-and we systematically found, wrote, or found people to write
-everything on the list. We wrote essential but unexciting
+system, and they all deserve credit for their software. But the
+reason it is <em>an integrated system</em>—and not just a
+collection of useful programs—is because the GNU Project set out
+to make it one. We made a list of the programs needed to make
+a <em>complete</em> free system, and we systematically found, wrote,
+or found people to write everything on the list. We wrote essential
+but unexciting
<a href="#unexciting">(1)</a> components because you can't have a system
without them. Some of our system components, the programming tools,
became popular on their own among programmers, but we wrote many
components that are not tools <a href="#nottools">(2)</a>. We even
developed a chess game, GNU Chess, because a complete system needs
-good games too.</p>
+games too.</p>
<p>
By the early 90s we had put together the whole system aside from the
-kernel (and we were also working on a kernel, the
+kernel. We had also started a kernel, the
<a href="/software/hurd/hurd.html">GNU Hurd</a>, which runs on top of
-Mach). Developing this kernel has been a lot harder than we expected;
+Mach. Developing this kernel has been a lot harder than we expected;
<a href="/software/hurd/hurd-and-linux.html">the GNU Hurd started
working reliably in 2001</a>, but it is a long way from being ready
for people to use in general.</p>
<p>
-Fortunately, we didn't have to wait for the Hurd, because Linux was
-available. When Linus Torvalds wrote Linux, he filled the last major
-gap. People could then put Linux together with the GNU system to make
-a complete free system: a Linux-based version of the GNU system; the
-GNU/Linux system, for short. The earliest Linux release notes
-recognized that Linux was a kernel, used with parts of GNU:
-<a
-href="http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/Historic/old-versions/RELNOTES-0.01";>
-“Most of the tools used with linux are GNU software and are under the
-GNU copyleft. These tools aren't in the distribution - ask me (or GNU)
-for more info.”</a></p>
+Fortunately, we didn't have to wait for the Hurd, because of Linux.
+Once Torvalds wrote Linux, it fit into the last major gap in the GNU
+system. People could
+then <a
href="http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kernel/Historic/old-versions/RELNOTES-0.01";>
+combine Linux with with the GNU system</a> to make a complete free
+system: a Linux-based version of the GNU system; the GNU/Linux system,
+for short.</p>
<p>
-Putting them together was not a trivial job. Some GNU
+Making them work well together was not a trivial job. Some GNU
components<a href="#somecomponents">(3)</a> needed substantial change
to work with Linux. Integrating a complete system as a distribution
that would work “out of the box” was a big job, too. It
required addressing the issue of how to install and boot the
system—a problem we had not tackled, because we hadn't yet
reached that point. Thus, the people who developed the various system
-distributions did a lot of essential work. But it was work that,
-in the nature of things, was surely going to be done by someone.</p>
+distributions did a lot of essential work. But it was work that, in
+the nature of things, was surely going to be done by someone.</p>
<p>
The GNU Project supports GNU/Linux systems as well as <em>the</em> GNU
-system, and the FSF funds work on them. The FSF funded the rewriting
-of the Linux-related extensions to the GNU C library, so that now they
+system. The <a href="http://fsf.org/";>FSF</a> funded the rewriting of
+the Linux-related extensions to the GNU C library, so that now they
are well integrated, and the newest GNU/Linux systems use the current
library release with no changes. The FSF also funded an early stage
of the development of Debian GNU/Linux.</p>
<p>
-We use Linux-based GNU systems today for all of our work, and we hope
-you will use them too. Today there are many different variants of the
-GNU/Linux system (often called “distros”). Most of them include
-non-free software—their developers follow the philosophy associated
-with Linux rather than that of GNU. But there are also
+Today there are many different variants of the GNU/Linux system (often
+called “distros”). Most of them include non-free
+software—their developers follow the philosophy associated with
+Linux rather than that of GNU. But there are also
<a href="/links/links.html#FreeGNULinuxDistributions"> completely free
GNU/Linux distros</a>. The FSF supports computer facilities for two
of these distributions, <a href="http://ututo.org";>Ututo</a>
@@ -168,25 +165,24 @@
eliminating various non-free programs. Nowadays, the usual version of
Linux contains non-free programs too. These programs are intended to
be loaded into I/O devices when the system starts, and they are
-present in binary form only, included in the "source code" in the form
-of long series of numbers. Thus, maintaining free GNU/Linux
-distributions now entails maintaining
+included, as long series of numbers, in the "source code" of Linux.
+Thus, maintaining free GNU/Linux distributions now entails maintaining
a <a href="http://directory.fsf.org/project/linux";> free version of
Linux</a> too.</p>
<p>Whether you use GNU/Linux or not, please don't confuse the public
-by using the name “Linux” ambiguously. Linux is the kernel, one of
-the essential major components of the system. The system as a whole
-is more or less the GNU system, with Linux added. When you're talking
-about this combination, please call it “GNU/Linux”.</p>
+by using the name “Linux” ambiguously. Linux is the
+kernel, one of the essential major components of the system. The
+system as a whole is basically the GNU system, with Linux added. When
+you're talking about this combination, please call it
+“GNU/Linux”.</p>
<p>
-If you want to make a link on “GNU/Linux” for further reference,
-this page and <a href="/gnu/the-gnu-project.html">
+If you want to make a link on “GNU/Linux” for further
+reference, this page and <a href="/gnu/the-gnu-project.html">
http://www.gnu.org/gnu/the-gnu-project.html</a> are good choices. If
you mention Linux, the kernel, and want to add a link for further
-reference, <a
-href="http://foldoc.doc.ic.ac.uk/foldoc/foldoc.cgi?Linux";>
+reference, <a href="http://foldoc.doc.ic.ac.uk/foldoc/foldoc.cgi?Linux";>
http://foldoc.doc.ic.ac.uk/foldoc/foldoc.cgi?Linux</a> is a good URL
to use.</p>
@@ -280,7 +276,7 @@
<p>
Updated:
<!-- timestamp start -->
-$Date: 2008/02/06 12:18:27 $
+$Date: 2008/02/10 21:10:04 $
<!-- timestamp end -->
</p>
</div>
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