GNU question

[agger]

Does anybody know if and to what extent it has been considered adapting the FSF's (OK, rms') convention of calling our favorite operating system "GNU/Linux"?

Okay, Ubuntu Linux is long enough and sounds cooler than "Ubuntu GNU/Linux"; but even though I don't really care if the GNU project is "given its due", it *is* true that Linux is quite dependent on GNU tools as well as the GPL.

But I'm not really critical of people calling it only Linux (after all, GNU is quite well-known and given plenty of credit anyhow), would just like to know if anybody know of the considerations behind the choice that was made?

[Kvark]

I try to call it GNU/Linux but often short it to just Linux. As for Ubuntu I just call it Ubuntu.

The name "GNU" was a mistake. GNU's Not Unix is a clever word game but it doesn't sound cool and a gnu is possibly the most uncool animal of them all. Linux sounds very cool and the mascot Tux is also very cool.

On the other hand it doesn't seem logical to name all the distros, all the programs and everything else on the GNU/Linux side after the tiny kernel alone. I don't know what the biggest thing the various distros got in common is, maybe it is just the little kernel, maybe GNU - whatever that is, or maybe something else...

[weasel fierce]

I generally use Linux, unless the person Im speaking to is computer literate

[Buffalo Soldier]

I try to use "GNU/Linux" most of the time, but when I'm lazy... it's just "linux".

[Kimm]

Linus Torvalds calls it Linux, I call it Linux!

[benplaut]

ahh, we've been reading /. ..., haven't we ;-)

[isTHEr3mOr3]

If people want to know the OS I installed, I will tell them it's Linux.
Someday I hope I can tell I'm using Ubuntu and everybody will know what it stands for.

I really think the GNU thing is something for fanatics and will not help the "good cause "

[slux]

GNU/FSF is *definitely* not just RMS!

I mostly use GNU/Linux but sometimes just Linux because I feel too pedantic if I use it each and every time.

I do this because I genuinely feel freedom is important and the GNU project is largely responsible for what we have today.

[az]

Linus Torvalds calls it Linux, I call it Linux!


Yes, but he is *the* kernel guy.

It is and always will be GNU/linux. Until, one day, somebody comes up with another operating system to run on top of the linux kernel.

It can be GNU/BSD or GNU/whatever. The important part of what we know as the linux operating system is the GPL and the GNU toolchain.

Linux is Free Libre open source software. So is a lot of other stuff. It just happens that "linux" is the vernacular for "GNU/Linux" and everybody knows that.



So to sum up my point: It is "GNU/Linux" but you can call it "linux" if you like.