On Mon, 20 Feb 2023 16:10:05 +1100, Peter 'Shaggy' Haywood wrote:

>
> I would use Linux (and/or other free operating systems) no matter
> what. Sure, I like the fact that I get my OS for gratis. But there's
> more to it than that. Linux and FOSS really are better than the
> alternative (which is no alternative, really) from Microstuffed.
>

Spot on! Straight Ahead!

Needless to say, I agree completely.

In college, I knew that computers were the absolute future and so I made
sure to educate myself thoroughly in digital technology. I studied logic
gates and Boolean algebra. I could build adders and even multipliers from
simple hardware. Then came assembly language. (Screw that high-level,
obscurantist crap!) I could beat C in both size and speed.

Then came GNU/Linux and I was totally floored! Here was a system that
I could actually USE and most importantly EXPLORE. Micro$oft was made for
the unwashed, ignoramus masses but GNU/Linux was made for a technically
inclined minority.

As with any "newbie" I needed assistance. Mandrake was my first Linux
installation and I can still vividly recall when the blinking cursor first
came up on the console. "It works!" I exclaimed.

But now how do I shut the damned thing down! It took a few minutes of
searching before I discovered the command "shutdown -h now" -- a command
which I still use to this very day.

I wanted it all for myself. I wanted no dependence on these distro wizards
and other do-dads. To achieve that goal I had to learn and learn I did.
After all, I possessed all of the necessary background.

The most significant thing that I did learn is that GNU/Linux is surprisingly
SIMPLE. Yes, SIMPLE -- as an OS should be. During boot the fantastic kernel
does virtually everything required. Only a simple follow through by the user
need be done to get completely up and running to a desired state.

Of course, a GNU/Linux system can be configured in a myriad of ways and
some of those ways can be very complex, but for a straightforward single-user,
standalone, desktop workstation SIMPLICITY is the rule.

Regarding software and libraries, it is amazing how literally thousands of
globally scattered FOSS projects can join together into a seamless whole.
I have had only minimal problems with dependency issues. In fact the worst
trouble has come from the commercial contributors like Nvidia.

However, I will admit that it would be quite impossible for a single human
being, even working 18 hours a day, to maintain by himself an entire GNU/Linux
system. That's where LFS and Gentoo come to the rescue. (Even better was Paludis,
but they have withered on the vine.)

My advice is simple:

1) Learn how to configure and compile the Linux kernel.

2) Study the LFS boot scripts: https://mirror.download.it/lfs/pub/lfs/lfs-packages/11.3/lfs-bootscripts-20230101.tar.xz

Put them together and become the master of your own destiny.

The tin-pot distro maintainers, especially RedHat, want to take GNU/Linux
down the Micro$oft highway. The sooner that every user tells them to
"kiss off" the better.

To conclude, I will express my profound gratitude and admiration to all
the folks who maintain Gentoo and LFS. Without their selfless commitment
there could be no true independence and freedom in the GNU/Linux universe.
We would all be, as many are, RedHat/Ubuntu lackeys.

On 2023-03-31, Little Lester <lsquared@linux.rocks> wrote:
> On Mon, 20 Feb 2023 16:10:05 +1100, Peter 'Shaggy' Haywood wrote:
>
>>
>> I would use Linux (and/or other free operating systems) no matter
>> what. Sure, I like the fact that I get my OS for gratis. But there's
>> more to it than that. Linux and FOSS really are better than the
>> alternative (which is no alternative, really) from Microstuffed.
>>
>
> Spot on! Straight Ahead!
>
> Needless to say, I agree completely.
>
> In college, I knew that computers were the absolute future and so I made
> sure to educate myself thoroughly in digital technology. I studied logic
> gates and Boolean algebra. I could build adders and even multipliers from
> simple hardware. Then came assembly language. (Screw that high-level,
> obscurantist crap!) I could beat C in both size and speed.
>
> Then came GNU/Linux and I was totally floored! Here was a system that
> I could actually USE and most importantly EXPLORE. Micro$oft was made for
> the unwashed, ignoramus masses but GNU/Linux was made for a technically
> inclined minority.
>
> As with any "newbie" I needed assistance. Mandrake was my first Linux
> installation and I can still vividly recall when the blinking cursor first
> came up on the console. "It works!" I exclaimed.
>
> But now how do I shut the damned thing down! It took a few minutes of
> searching before I discovered the command "shutdown -h now" -- a command
> which I still use to this very day.
>
> I wanted it all for myself. I wanted no dependence on these distro wizards
> and other do-dads. To achieve that goal I had to learn and learn I did.
> After all, I possessed all of the necessary background.
>
> The most significant thing that I did learn is that GNU/Linux is surprisingly
> SIMPLE. Yes, SIMPLE -- as an OS should be. During boot the fantastic kernel
> does virtually everything required. Only a simple follow through by the user
> need be done to get completely up and running to a desired state.
>
> Of course, a GNU/Linux system can be configured in a myriad of ways and
> some of those ways can be very complex, but for a straightforward single-user,
> standalone, desktop workstation SIMPLICITY is the rule.
>
> Regarding software and libraries, it is amazing how literally thousands of
> globally scattered FOSS projects can join together into a seamless whole.
> I have had only minimal problems with dependency issues. In fact the worst
> trouble has come from the commercial contributors like Nvidia.
>
> However, I will admit that it would be quite impossible for a single human
> being, even working 18 hours a day, to maintain by himself an entire GNU/Linux
> system. That's where LFS and Gentoo come to the rescue. (Even better was Paludis,
> but they have withered on the vine.)
>
> My advice is simple:
>
> 1) Learn how to configure and compile the Linux kernel.
>
> 2) Study the LFS boot scripts: https://mirror.download.it/lfs/pub/lfs/lfs-packages/11.3/lfs-bootscripts-20230101.tar.xz
>
> Put them together and become the master of your own destiny.
>
> The tin-pot distro maintainers, especially RedHat, want to take GNU/Linux
> down the Micro$oft highway. The sooner that every user tells them to
> "kiss off" the better.
>
> To conclude, I will express my profound gratitude and admiration to all
> the folks who maintain Gentoo and LFS. Without their selfless commitment
> there could be no true independence and freedom in the GNU/Linux universe.
> We would all be, as many are, RedHat/Ubuntu lackeys.

To each their own. I like and use Mint because it works. And I do more on my
computer than just maintain Linux. If I was younger I might enjoy exploring
Linux's guts a little more.

--
"Evil preaches tolerance until it is dominant, then it tries to silence good."
-- Archbishop Charles J. Chaput

On 3/31/23 16:22, Little Lester wrote:
....
> The tin-pot distro maintainers, especially RedHat, want to take GNU/Linux
> down the Micro$oft highway. The sooner that every user tells them to
> "kiss off" the better.
>
> To conclude, I will express my profound gratitude and admiration to all
> the folks who maintain Gentoo and LFS. Without their selfless commitment
> there could be no true independence and freedom in the GNU/Linux universe.
> We would all be, as many are, RedHat/Ubuntu lackeys.

Something for everyone, if microcancer hadn't done everything it could
to keep users in the dark then I seriously wonder if Linux would have
become the success it did.