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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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Sell us on your favorite exotic/niche distro (discuss.online)

submitted 5 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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The Linux ecosystem is vast and diverse, offering a multitude of distributions to suit every need and preference. With hundreds of distros to choose from, it's a pity that most are rarely mentioned while the popular ones are constantly being regurgitated.

This thread aims to celebrate this diversity and shine a light on smaller projects with passionate developers. I invite you to pitch your favorite underappreciated distro and share your experiences with those lesser-known Linux distributions that deserve more attention.

While there are no strict rules or banlists, I encourage you to focus on truly niche or exotic distributions rather than the more commonly discussed ones. Consider touching upon what makes your chosen distro unique:

What features or philosophies set it apart?
Why do you favor it over other distros, including the popular ones? (Beyond "It just works.")
In what situations would you recommend it to others?

Whether it's a specialized distro for a particular use case or a general-purpose OS with a unique twist, let's explore the road less traveled in the Linux landscape. Your insights could introduce fellow enthusiasts to their next favorite distribution!

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[–] iopq 3 points 5 months ago (2 children)

In NixOS there's a bot that automatically bumps versions

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 months ago

The NixOS ecosystem while maybe sometimes both chaotic and heavily centralized just seems miles ahead of what Guix System has to offer unfortunately; nix is a weird language (I'm not qualified to rate it but people have called it a bad DSL), but it does the job, and there were some factors that ruled out Guix System for me. Secure Boot support was one of them, which NixOS doesn't support "natively", but there is Lanzaboote. For better or for worse this kind of forced me to look into flakes very early.

[–] hitwright 2 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Thanks for the info, although versioning afaik not the thing that keeps it behind. There are tools to import the necessary packages with 'guix import crate'. It automatically selects the necessary packages.

Difficulties arise when Cargo.toml for example uses git as source. Then you have to pull and write specifications for not a standard package. The build system is isolated and cannot download anything off the internet.

[–] iopq 3 points 5 months ago (1 children)

So what nix does is it hashes the inputs, so git still works even immutably if the hash matches

[–] hitwright 2 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Does nix require the exact commit be written out for the package, or does it generate a hash during the build taking the newest git commit?

[–] iopq 2 points 5 months ago

You need to write the hash in the package, so it requires the exact commit