this post was submitted on 16 Nov 2025
234 points (94.0% liked)

Linux

59667 readers
604 users here now

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

Rules

Related Communities

Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0

founded 6 years ago
MODERATORS
 

I ask this because I think of the recent switch of Ubuntu to the Rust recode of the GNU core utils, which use an MIT license. There are many Rust recodes of GPL software that re-license it as a pushover MIT or Apache licenses. I worry these relicensing efforts this will significantly harm the FOSS ecosystem. Is this reason to start worrying or is it not that bad?

IMO, if the FOSS world makes something public, with extensive liberties, then the only thing that should be asked in return is that people preserve these liberties, like the GPL successfully enforces. These pushover licenses preserve nothing.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] kjo@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 15 hours ago

I am making an argument that copyleft licenses such as GPL are better than permissive ones because of the extra guarantees, primarily to the benefit to communities instead of corporations.

You on the other hand are making a false equivalence.

This is what i wrote:

If corporations want to release a software based on modified version of my code, I want a guarantee that the modified code to be available to the community too.

This is what you wrote:

What you are saying is, if they extend the Open Source software, you do not want the Open Source version anymore. You only want theirs.

The false equivalence is that because i desire communities to be the primary beneficiary of my code and its modifications, then i must also "... you do not want the Open Source version anymore. You only want theirs."

These are not equivalent. You have begun using a logical fallacy. More elaboration of my arguments will be fruitless. Good bye.