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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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Systemd wants to expand to include a sudo replacement (outpost.fosspost.org)

submitted 8 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 28 points 8 months ago (5 children)

Wayland monolith

There seems to be misunderstanding about what Wayland is.

Wayland is set of protocols. They are implemented by wayland servers (compositors) and wayland clients (applications) themselves. There is no single "wayland binary" like in the X11 days. Servers or clients may choose to implement or not implement a specific protocol.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 7 months ago

X11 is a protocol too. Xorg is the binary you are talking about

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I think what they meant is that there are people that think: "Wayland is too fragmented, there should be 1 'Wayland Compositor' and the rest should be window managers"

[–] [email protected] 8 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

Nope, I meant that the wayland compositors are inflexible monoliths that are so tightly integrated into a DE that they can't be replaced. Xorg might be bloated, but it follows the UNIX philosophy closely enough that each part of the stack above xorg can be trivially replaced.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago (2 children)

I guess my interpretation was too charitable.

Nothing in the protocol prevents you from splitting the server from the window manager, just everyone implementing the wayland server protocol didn't see any benefit in splitting it out.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

Thanks I didn't know that. Arcan seems to have kept WM's separate.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

Thanks I didn't know that. Arcan seems to have kept WM's separate.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago

Wayland is set of protocols.

Oh my god! It's like hearing the same on hold greeting again and again. WE KNOW!

[–] [email protected] -1 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Sure, but that doesn't change the fact that Wayland compositors are forced to be inflexible monoliths that need to be so tightly integrated into a DE that they can't be replaced.

Edit: I've just learned that it's not forced, but that every compositor used by popular DEs is an inflexible monolith by choice.

In xorg the server, wm, and compositor all do their own thing and can be replaced trivially. It took me like 5 minutes to replace xfwm4 with i3, and that included the research.