Re: When can we expect a version 1.0 of the GNU Operating System?

[Bruno Félix Rezende Ribeiro]

Em Sat, 22 Nov 2014 18:36:30 -0500
Richard Stallman <address@hidden> escreveu:

> 1. The GNU system, properly speaking, should contain the GNU Hurd.  In
> practical terms, I am not sure we want to make a distro with the GNU
> Hurd -- it may not be usable enough for that to be worth while.  But
> at the same time I hesitate to officially discard the GNU Hurd by
> saying that Linux is the kernel of the GNU system.

Why would you need to discard the GNU Hurd if you declare GNU
Linux-libre one of the kernels of the GNU system?  Why you can't
officially acknowledge GNU as an operating system of multiple kernels?

Once I heard that 

  There is no system but GNU and Linux is one of its kernels.

And since then I've believed it.  ;-)  I always thought, however, that
it was unfortunate that the whole/holy free GNU operating system had to
rely on such not entirely free component.  Fortunately, the GNU
project gave rise to a Linux-variant totally pure, rooted in the GNU
true path to freedom: GNU Linux-libre.

GNU Linux-libre is a GNU package.  Aren't GNU packages components of
the GNU system?  In principle, doesn't that imply that GNU Linux-libre
is one of GNU's kernels already?

> 2. I don't want to downplay the existing free GNU/Linux distros than
> we now give them.  They are important.

We don't have to downplay them in the sense of stopping promoting
them.  There could be two buttons on GNU website's front page, close
to each other: "Download GNU now" and "Download FSF certified
GNU-variants now".  We can promote GNU-variants as practical examples
of the exercise of free software freedoms applied to the GNU system
itself.  We can also promote them as viable alternatives to the GNU
system.  I'm sure people will still have interest in using and
developing FSF endorsed distributions besides GNU, because often
people *do* like non-fully free distribution because of particular
technical matters, but they might not be willing to sacrifice their
freedom for that.

Said that, may I ask what are you worried about when you say that
distributions of GNU-variants are so important?  Why would be bad if we
unintentionally downplayed them, for example?


-- 
 ,= ,-_-. =.  Bruno Félix Rezende Ribeiro (oitofelix) [0x28D618AF]
((_/)o o(\_)) There is no system but GNU;
 `-'(. .)`-'  GNU Linux-libre is one of its official kernels;
     \_/      All software must be free as in freedom;