From: Humm <hummsmith42@gmail.com>
To: 9fans <9fans@9fans.net>
Subject: Re: [9fans] Despite being called a fork, is 9front similar to how Linux distros work?
Date: Mon, 17 Jan 2022 22:41:57 +0000 [thread overview]
Message-ID: <YeXwtU4fRckZITTx@beryllium.local> (raw)
In-Reply-To: <16424570840.4902C04.457895@composer.9fans.topicbox.com>
Quoth matthpmoreira@gmail.com:
>Hello. I just found out about Plan 9 and I'm trying to understand more.
>I see that 9front is often called a fork of Plan 9. However, reading
>the FAQ and the 9front wiki, the authors seem to often "conflate" both.
>I mean, I don't really understand what's written, but it's like the
>instructions for some stuff isn't really meant specifically for 9front,
>but rather Plan 9.
Much stuff works the same in both.
>Besides that, reading what's different in 9front from Plan 9, it
>mentions drivers and programs. That makes me think that while 9front is
>called a fork, it doesn't really differ from Plan 9 in how it works and
>is structured,
Both have sources in /sys/src. On top of that, much of the 9front
source descents from Plan 9. And indeed, 9front is close to Plan 9 in
how it can be used.
>much like a Linux distro may change some things about the Linux kernel,
>but in essence they're the same and easily interoperable. Is that
>right?
A Linux distro seldom changes “some things” about the kernel. A custom
configuration maybe, but little major and nothing that stops you from
using a custom kernel or a kernel compiled on and for a different
operating system (distro, if you will). That’s the one piece of
software they all share: Linux.
An operating system using Linux just uses upstream Linux or at least
keeps up with upstream, if it has its own /fork/. 9front doesn’t have
an upstream with which it could keep up. Plan 9 is dead and 9front is
alive.
>I know it's subjective, but a fork implies to me that the goals and
>methods of the forking developers are different from the original
>software, maybe eventually leading to a completely contrasted software,
>with different environment, tools and inner workings, like Android is
>to Linux. That's why I wanted to clarify this question.
You keep mixing things up. Android is not a fork of Linux. A fork of
Linux by the Android project might be. And that fork, albeit heavily
patched, still /has/ an upstream.
9front is a fork of Plan 9. Plan 9 is an operating system; 9front is an
operating system. 9front will feel quite similar to Plan 9 in a lot of
ways. Many tools and inner workings are the same (with bugfixes and
working on more hardware and also otherwise better). You could argue
that the goals and methods of 9front are different from Plan 9, but that
has little to do with what constitutes a fork.
9front was forked off Plan 9, so it’s a fork. Little about that is
subjective.
--
Humm
------------------------------------------
9fans: 9fans
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next prev parent reply other threads:[~2022-01-17 22:42 UTC|newest]
Thread overview: 18+ messages / expand[flat|nested] mbox.gz Atom feed top
2022-01-17 22:04 matthpmoreira
2022-01-17 22:41 ` Humm [this message]
2022-01-17 23:04 ` ori
2022-01-17 23:18 ` Matt
2022-01-17 23:22 ` ori
2022-01-17 23:31 ` Matt
2022-01-17 23:36 ` Sigrid Solveig Haflínudóttir
2022-01-18 0:29 ` Matt
2022-01-18 0:33 ` hiro
2022-01-18 16:22 ` Humm
2022-01-18 18:54 ` Antonio Barrones
2022-01-18 19:55 ` Humm
2022-01-18 20:48 ` Kurt H Maier via 9fans
2022-01-18 22:16 ` vic.thacker
2022-01-18 22:59 ` Duke Normandin
2022-01-18 0:47 ` Kurt H Maier via 9fans
2022-01-18 4:38 ` Andrew Back
2022-01-18 0:20 ` Thaddeus Woskowiak
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