Debian GNU/Hurd 2017 released

Re:Debian GNU/Hurd 2017 released by qubex on Sunday June 18, 2017 @11:03AM (#14580933)

I keep hoping GNU/HURD will eventually morph into something usable and compelling... but I've been hoping that for nigh on a dozen years already. Certainly progress is being made and this release is an impressive advance in several quarters, but unless it gets traction in some manner that compels corporate sponsors to contribute to a supersonic spurt in development, it seems destined to lag increasingly far behind other open source OSes such as Linux and the *BSDs. And that's a real pity, because a usable, well-implemented micro-kernel architecture widely deployed and supported would be something very much worth everybody's while.

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Re:Debian GNU/Hurd 2017 released by hiram112 on Sunday June 18, 2017 @07:42PM (#14583641)

I don't think the kernel itself, especially a micro kernel, is all that big of deal these days.

There are already plenty of decent Unix-style and other kernels out there, mostly relegated to academia and research.

Any of these would be decent enough to lay the foundations of a free stack.

The real problem is the APIs, services, and the hardware drivers.

The locked garden style of hardware and subscription models are becoming more and more prevalent.

And even using Debian or some other Linux doesn't amount to squat if you're using a back-doored Intel chip with its 'management engine', running a browser which is making it easy for 200 trackers to follow you on every site, and a smart phone, designed by an ad company, has turned you into a broadcasting station.

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Re:Debian GNU/Hurd 2017 released by rekado on Monday June 19, 2017 @08:57AM (#14586534)

> There are already plenty of decent Unix-style and other kernels out there, mostly relegated to academia and research.

The Hurd is the only multi-server microkernel system with a POSIX persona, though. The Hurd is a very flexible system, it just needs all those Linux developers to make progress more quickly.

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Re:Debian GNU/Hurd 2017 released by ArneBab on Monday June 19, 2017 @01:53AM (#14584832)

The Hurd needs someone to actually use its tools. For example to use subhurds to build the next great virtual hosting facility.

Or to harden your own system by running your browser with minimized rights, only granting it the capability to access the filesystem outside its cache if and while the user actually wants to access it, and only for the right directories. The Hurd already provides that option.

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