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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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What's the difference between package manager and why are there so many? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 10 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Are they so different that it's justified to have so many different distributions? So far I guess that different package manager are the reason that divides the linux community. One may be on KDE and one on GNOME but they can use each other's packages but usually you are bound to one manager

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[–] [email protected] 23 points 10 months ago (2 children)

The package manager is really only a small part of the story.

A distro at the end of the day is a API/ABI platform. What makes Debian what it is, is that it has a specific set of old unmoving packages. What makes Arch is that it has the latest APIs always. And everything in between like Fedora.

So even if Fedora used dpkg it wouldn’t change anything, you can’t use its packages on Debian.

As to why so many exist… well a lot of them suck in their own unique way.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 10 months ago

As to why so many exist… well a lot of them suck in their own unique way.

lmao, true

[–] [email protected] 6 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Except in NixOS, it's literally a distro built around a package manager. But it doesn't force you to choose, you can have both unstable and stable packages

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Yeah modern usage in general involves silo’d ABIs, be it Flatpak, Nix, Docker/Podman. Modern languages even try to move away from any ABI.

Of course there are upsides and downsides to the traditional approach.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Modern languages even try to move away from any ABI.

I wouldn't put it that way. In the case of Rust, it seems everyone wants to have a stable ABI for a number of reasons (e.g. making dynamic linking possible without FFI), but the core developers feel like the ABI is still too unstable to commit to anything.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

In my experience a lot of Rust developers love the lack of shared libraries and bundling everything, viewing it as a huge win. Maybe someday it will support it but I feel it will be less commonly relied on.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

I've seen that sentiment but I think it's more a matter of people making excuses for Rust and not wanting to admit that it has any shortcomings compared to C++.

It's the same mentality that leads C++ developers to defend things like header files.