this post was submitted on 16 Aug 2023
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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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I understand what you're going for, but they have made a really amazing and powerful contribution with the OpenSPARC project, which supplies the hardware description files and EXTENSIVE documentation of the micro architecture, component layout, etc. of probably the two most powerful free/libre and open-source multi-core processors ever assembled, the UltraSPARC T1 and UltraSPARC T2. And this was released under the GNU General Public License. This is almost unbelievable, as hardware is still almost completely unfree. Sure, there are some PCBs and microcontrollers like those distributed by Arduino or Raspberry Pi, but the chip source for the processors on all of these is mostly proprietary. Regarding microprocessors, there are VERY FEW actual hardware designs available that are free/libre and open-source, and OpenSPARC is one of them. Granted, the UltraSPARC T1 and UltraSPARC T2 were released to the public when Sun Microsystems was still an independent company and before they were acquired by Oracle, but Oracle is still keeping the webpages of the OpenSPARC project up! For hardware designers that aspire to make free/libre and open-source hardware, this is an invaluable resource!