this post was submitted on 09 Jan 2024
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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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[–] youngGoku 12 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I explained to finance why we had to purchase licenses for for a UI library. To justify the costs, they asked what the alternative was. I told them we don't have the talent or resources to develop our own UI library... But I offered up free open source alternatives.

Unfortunately the FOSS stuff never gets approved by IT due to vulnerability / threats.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

But is FOSS actually more vulnerable?

[–] youngGoku 6 points 10 months ago

Depends, sometimes not always. Having source available makes it easy for hackers to find exploit but also makes it easier for community to identify and address exploits.

So... For a large active community project, it's likely fairly secure but for smaller projects with 1 or just a few developers it might be vulnerable.