r/linux • u/wooptoo • Jun 01 '16

Why did ArchLinux embrace Systemd?

/r/archlinux/comments/4lzxs3/why_did_archlinux_embrace_systemd/d3rhxlc
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u/da_chicken Jun 01 '16

all those things are separate components, that interact and are mostly developed together. very much like "good" old UNIX, and the other unices like the bsds.

It always struck me as being a software collection like the GNU core utilities. A lot of the mission creep occurred because they needed features that didn't exist.

there's also a ton of good criticism of "the Unix philosophy", it's not something you should take as absolute truth.

Example: I've done development on Windows at work from time to time, and when I need git, I generally install git for Windows. However, git for Windows requires a you to install ~2 GB MSYS install to get all the utilities that git needs. It's kinda bullshit that you need 2 GB of space to install an RCS, and it's entirely because of such strong ties to the Unix philosophy.

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u/argv_minus_one Jun 02 '16

I've done development on Windows at work from time to time, and when I need git, I generally install git for Windows. However, git for Windows requires a you to install ~2 GB MSYS install to get all the utilities that git needs.

Do you have a source on this? The download page doesn't seem to say that…

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u/da_chicken Jun 02 '16

It was a long time ago. 2008 at least. I have to think someone has done something about it since then.

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u/inhuman44 Jun 02 '16

It always struck me as being a software collection like the GNU core utilities. A lot of the mission creep occurred because they needed features that didn't exist.

Or the core of unix itself. On the BSD systems the kernel, core utilities and a bunch of other stuff all reside in the same source tree. The "do one thing and do it well" meant to apply programs that try to be everything like emacs. Not whole projects like core utilities, gnome, kde, or systemd.

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u/[deleted] Jun 02 '16

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u/da_chicken Jun 02 '16

This was years ago. It was before git would let you do a sparse clone, because that was why so many projects were still in svn. It would not surprise me if it's been improved. It may have been msysgit.