Microsoft Open-Sources WSL Sample To Let More Linux Distributions Run On Windows

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Microsoft Open-Sources WSL Sample To Let More Linux Distributions Run On Windows

The process is now more clear how Linux distributions can be adapted to run on Microsoft's Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) with the company now having open-sourced a "WSL Sample" to build WSL distribution packages for the Microsoft Store and for allowing custom Linux distribution packages to be sideloaded onto systems...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Microsoft-Opens-WSL-Sample

[tildearrow]

I'm kind of worried this might be EEE...

[Azrael5]

Soon, Windows will be based on Linux.

[geearf]

The WSL-DistroLauncher is what is now open-source

Little issue there I think.

[Danielsan]

I believe it is the worst thing that might happen to GNU and Linux.
.
Already the old Microsoft used to train Best Buy Sales People to speak against Linux to their customers and now it will be even worst. People who want buy a free-dos computer because curiosity (and Linux) will be induced to buy more computers with Win 10 because you can install Linux inside it.

This will have many bad side effects, small and big computer manufacturers will stop to sell computer with just Linux because the market; people who will try for the first time any Linux distros through Win 10 will have a poor experience respect a real installation, and this will spread again the wrong myths about GNU/Linux. What that many of us have been fighting for at least ten 10 years and almost defeated will be reinstated through, what apparently seems, a very nice and harmless initiative that hides dangerous and unpleasant outcomes.

[anarki2]

Linux gets easier to obtain - linux zealots are worried. You make a whole lot of sense. Yes, people will have even less incentive to install this garbage on their desktop. Because it does not belong there. OTOH it's great to use Ansible, or cross-compile using mingw, via WSL. Without messing around with a VM, let alone multi-boot.

If you're afraid of this, you have minority complex, or some other child hood trauma.

[FireBurn]

I wonder how long until Gentoo pops up on Windows

[oiaohm]

I believe it is the worst thing that might happen to GNU and Linux.
.
Already the old Microsoft used to train Best Buy Sales People to speak against Linux to their customers and now it will be even worst. People who want buy a free-dos computer because curiosity (and Linux) will be induced to buy more computers with Win 10 because you can install Linux inside it.

This will have many bad side effects, small and big computer manufacturers will stop to sell computer with just Linux because the market; people who will try for the first time any Linux distros through Win 10 will have a poor experience respect a real installation, and this will spread again the wrong myths about GNU/Linux. What that many of us have been fighting for at least ten 10 years and almost defeated will be reinstated through, what apparently seems, a very nice and harmless initiative that hides dangerous and unpleasant outcomes.

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. Mahatma Gandhi

Linux has passed the ignore and has passed the laugh at stage. We are now in the serous fight stage with Microsoft.. Yes fight stage will make things harder.

Might sound kind of stupid to push for WSL. We need to push for WSL to support graphical applications.

Think about it Microsoft Store application is not allowed using win32/win64 or .net to use opengl or vulkan. There is a problem since wine runs on OS X, Linux and its win32/win64 there are many parties who release a single binary that is win32/win64 and says you can work out how to run that in wine. What would be useful is if Linux binaries started to come a universal standard.

WSL bring the bad like you say Danielsan but if the open source can EEE ourselves to reduce the number of applications that are Windows only that will have beneficial long term effects for Linux.

[Danielsan]

If you're afraid of this, you have minority complex, or some other child hood trauma.

You are in minority if you believe if devs are the only people behind a computer. I am glad that wsl solves your daily task, and I am glad if this will help any other devs every 10K computers, but the other 9999 people every one dev, when will try any distro with wsl will think that Linux is a crap, fortunately your work still continues to be fine!

[M@yeulC]

Linux gets easier to obtain - linux zealots are worried. You make a whole lot of sense. Yes, people will have even less incentive to install this garbage on their desktop. Because it does not belong there. OTOH it's great to use Ansible, or cross-compile using mingw, via WSL. Without messing around with a VM, let alone multi-boot.

If you're afraid of this, you have minority complex, or some other child hood trauma.

Uh? That was unexpected. Are you sure you don't want to sit and talk about this?

Well, first of all, I must say that while this could have its uses, it is NOT Linux. As in, the Linux kernel. At all, since it is a reimplementation of the Linux kernel API inside* the windows kernel (AKA NT) via WSL.

*well, not literally inside, this is a microkernel we're talking about. Plus it's fairly modular, and the NT kernel supports different userland APIs. That is, AFAIK, I am not a specialist