Can you really consider linux distros based off of arch, a solely arch-based distro?
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Brickwizard
Well-Known Member
IMO no, arch is a fully developed distribution, LFS is a collection of base code on which you need to build a usable distribution,
All Linux builds share the same base codes so they are all related.
INFO.
The first text based Linux was 1992,HJ Lu Linux 0.12
The first GUI Linux was TAMU 1.0A. later in 1992
All Linux builds share the same base codes so they are all related.
INFO.
The first text based Linux was 1992,HJ Lu Linux 0.12
The first GUI Linux was TAMU 1.0A. later in 1992
There are only a few 'real' distros, those that actually compile the software, all others are 'spins' of these distros.
Does it matter? Of course not, as they are all using the Linux kernel & GNU software, only the package managers differ.
Does it matter? Of course not, as they are all using the Linux kernel & GNU software, only the package managers differ.
It's not clear to me that it's a stupid question at all, but rather raises the issue of versions of linux.
Whilst it's superficially the case that all linux distros use a linux kernel, and most use GNU software, that notion actually obscures the very real differences.
The notion that any linux distro can be constructed to have the same functions as any other distro, may be technically the case, but in the real world of computing, it's very often not a trivial matter to do that, which is the basic reason so many specialised linux distros exists.
To build a basic linux installation and then install the functionality of a specialised distro, doesn't just involve installaton of a bunch of specialised applications, but will often involve the need to compile a new linux kernel as well, sort out dependencies and conflicts, and ensure functionality. Developers of specialised linuxes usually issue kernels which deviate significantly from the vanilla kernel.org kernel so that their kernels are optimised for their speciality.
Here are some examples of specialised linux distros:
Alpine linux: a very small distro with no GNU utilities by default and suitable for embedded environments. It uses busybox utilities.
Academix: a distro specialised for education and for the installation of educational apps in maths, and sciences.
AV Linux: a distro specialised in video and audio production software.
Apodio: a distro specialising in music production and editing.
wattOS: a distro specialised for low energy consumption and efficient energy use.
Here is a more comprehensive look at specialised distros:
Comprehensive list of all special purpose Linux distributions| Linux Guide
Here is the complete list of all Linux distributions that are developed for special purpose. If you are a fan Linux operating system, you need to review and bookmark this page as you will need it in your future Linux projects.
www.coding-bootcamps.com
Often specialised distros are small operations, sometimes very small communities and sometimes even a single person. That is however, no reflection on their usefulness. There's more nuance in the area of specialised linux and of linux in general than the broad brush statements provide.
If I were interested in a debate, I'd suggest that Gentoo would be closer to LFS where at least you're picking and choosing while you compile your own system.
But, LFS is its own thing. It's more like a recipe for making a Linux-based OS - with all the possible ingredients you can think of. Well, yeah, Gentoo is kinda like that as well now that I think about it. Though, I guess you can get Gentoo up and running in just a few hours now - if you've done it a dozen times already.
But, LFS is its own thing. It's more like a recipe for making a Linux-based OS - with all the possible ingredients you can think of. Well, yeah, Gentoo is kinda like that as well now that I think about it. Though, I guess you can get Gentoo up and running in just a few hours now - if you've done it a dozen times already.
Exactly. I went through the entire LFS exercise a couple of times a couple of years ago.
It's great that you have a working Linux on your system now.... but now comes the updates,
patches, security fixes, new apps, new features, etc...
The best thing about the mainstream distro's... is package management.
DNF/YUM, APT/APT-GET, Zypper, Pacman, and I'm sure I'm missing a few others....
Does anybody realize how much times and effort is put into that? How many people work how many hours
every time there is a new release of an application that has any system dependencies.
Yeah you can build an LFS system in a couple of days depending how fast your computer is....
But keeping it updated and patched... that's a whole 'nother game.
waves hands
I'm on the Lubuntu team, as an official member and everything. I don't actually do that part, but I see how much effort goes into making just an official Ubuntu flavor. People probably don't know and probably don't appreciate the effort that goes into it.
If they did, they'd be less frustrated when things break and more amazed when things actually work - which is far more often than one might expect if they saw what goes into it.
It's a bit like food. Everybody eats food but many of them don't really want to know how it's made. When you field-dress your first large animal (like a whitetail deer) you really start to appreciate your food.
Alright, that's not the best analogy, but it's what I've got.
I know of (online only, I think) a couple of people who have LFS systems as their main systems and keep them maintained. I too have gone through LFS and BLFS a few times. It's not even remotely worth the effort (to me).
And I say "online only" but I'm not really sure. I've been to a few Linux-y events and (for example) once drunkenly invited Slashdot, like all of Slashdot, to a house I used to own for an NYE bash. It wasn't a big crowd but a bit more than a few showed up. Some of those nerds (an endearing term) might have LFS systems! One of the LFS fans (on another forum) is actually an elderly lady. I think that's pretty awesome. So, you never know who's using LFS! (It's not me!)
I haven't gone through LFS but from what I've seen LFS provides the code for you to build your own distribution and Arch Linux(and Gentoo) provide you build blocks.
