[GNU-linux-libre] Re: any Free BSD variant?

[Yavor Doganov]

Daniel Clark wrote:
> * Debian/kFreeBSD - Debian (mostly GNU) userland with FreeBSD kernel -
> http://www.debian.org/ports/kfreebsd-gnu/

FreeBSD's kernel is worse than Linux -- it has both blobs and non-free
drivers.  In Debian's kernel the drivers are removed, but the blobs
are there.

BTW, why do you say "mostly GNU"?  It is 100% GNU, AFAICS.  Basically
absolutely the same system as GNU/Linux, with Linux replaced.  (And
you wonder why people still argue the system is "Linux"!)

> I think it would be even easier on a technical level to create and keep
> updated a GNU OS distribution based on OpenBSD than a GNU OS based on
> Debian or Ubuntu

You would need to port glibc for that, and this is a BIG job.  It was
recently done for kOpenSolaris, though.  The GNU/NetBSD port (NetBSD
kernel+libc + GNU toolchain, mostly) was abandoned, and
GNU/OpenSolaris (aka Nexenta) is progressing slowly, going through
terrible porting pains.  At least this is my observation, which might
not be entirely correct.

(Ah, and "make world" isn't compelling at all on my old hardware.  You
just keep compiling the world with zero chance to do any actual
work...)