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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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Gentoo Linux Becomes a Software in the Public Interest Project Because…Bookkeeping and Taxes (fossforce.com)

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

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

Great article, but 2 things stood out for me.

First,

The distro has been around since 2002, so it’s not that old even though it predates Ubuntu by a couple of years.

I don't know, to me, a distro that's nearly 22 years old is pretty old.

I mean, I'd say Arch is an old distro, having started in 2001. I'd also say Ubuntu and Mint are quite old distros at this point, having begun in 2005 and 2006 respectively.

I'd say something like Garuda, which started 4 years ago in 2020 can be considered new.

And second,

There is a mention that donations will now be tax-exempt in the US, as they are in the EU, but what about other nations, specifically the UK?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago

isn't Garuda an arch based distro? technically it's not a standalone distro,but a customized arch,so I can't see them as Gentoo,arch,fedora(rhel), debian. same is Ubuntu for example.

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

So the flip side of 501(c)(3) is that all the donors information is shared with the IRS instead of remaining private.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (2 children)

Maybe I am tired(its2:00am)but why are they ‘going away from being a 501c3? This article does not explain it well.

I would like to know the reason why along with Danial’s opinion even though he has been doing his on thing with Funtoo for 10 years or so

[–] RvTV95XBeo 29 points 8 months ago (1 children)

why are they ‘going away from being a 501c3?

You've got it backwards. They're dissolving their old non-501(c)(3) Foundation that they use to manage their finances currently, and becoming a part of an existing 501(c)(3) called Software in the Public Interest (SPI)

TL;DR from the article, they're doing this to:

Offload the overhead expense of independently managing their finances/accounting, by merging with someone who already has a robust system in place
Save money by becoming tax exempt
Allow themselves to accept matching gifts from donors whose employers support such things

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

So, since I live in Australia, it means no changes. Got it.

[–] RvTV95XBeo 2 points 8 months ago

I think, regardless of where you're donating from, this means less overhead and your money goes a little bit farther on the charity's side, which is a win for everyone.

You're right though that it's not tax deductible for you, so the amount you can donate does not change, just the effectiveness of those dollars.

[–] nyan 3 points 8 months ago

Reading between the lines on the gentoo-dev mailing list, I gather that the old system just was not working very well, with friction between the Foundation and the technical side of the distro.

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

Cleaned link with 12ft.io