this post was submitted on 04 Nov 2022
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Linux
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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.
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i don't see why the concept of building immutable images using existing distro packages and tools shouldn't apply equally well to nixos and guix as it does to deb and rpm distros.
Nix and Guix are already reproducible and have immutable store; no need for images in that case, and they more flexible. I'd need to read the article more throughfully for the deployment argument
My problem with this idea is that I generally do not like the defaults most distros use, I like experimenting and I often switch desktop environment or uninstall / clean up stuff I don't need.
I'd be ok if the image is just kernel + init system + shell, and maybe some small core components / tools.. but if the OS comes preloaded with huge software libraries, like typical KDE / GNOME distros do, then it's gonna be a lot of dead weight that I'd have to keep updated even if I do not use it.
Immutable images are great for devices with specific purposes meant for a particular software stack (like Chrome Books, the Steam Deck or so) but for a more general purpose computer where I actually want to deeply customize the UI for my workflow, I don't want to carry around whatever popular software the maintainers of the popular distro might have decided to include.