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Slackware Linux, the oldest version of Linux (GNU/Linux) still
maintained, marked its 25th anniversary this week.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://fossbytes.com/slackware-birthday-25-oldest-active-linux-distro/">https://fossbytes.com/slackware-birthday-25-oldest-active-linux-distro/</a><br>
<br>
The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slackware"
title="Slackware">Slackware</a> Linux distribution is so named
after the tenet of Slack,<br>
a satirical concept borrowed from the parody SubGenius cult.<br>
The idea was that Slackware ought not be taken too seriously.<br>
The subgenii are said to be anarcholibertarian and <br>
critical and subversive to the concept of the American Dream.<br>
<br>
Slackware is often criticized for being rather tech-y and in the
province of geek-y computer types.<br>
I am a veterinarian not a computer guy but I build my own computers
from <br>
components that I purchase new and scavenge from junked parts.<br>
I use Slackware-64 -current as my "daily driver". <br>
I dont need to spend a couple of days deleting junk and adware off<br>
of my new computers so that they can function optimally.<br>
<br>
My computer belongs to me and I neither need nor want<br>
any gates, or windows hindering nor taunting me, <br>
nor any nut jobs looking over my shoulder<br>
nor telling me what to do or what not to do<br>
for their ultimate profiteering at the expense of<br>
my wherewithal nor my liberty.<br>
<br>
This mailing list spamming your mailbox exists and runs on a
Linux-based machine,<br>
albeit perhaps running Ubuntu Linux rather than Slackware, but FOSS
nonetheless.<br>
<br>
In the olden days, computer companies provided the source code
because it was recognized that it was imperfect<br>
and often needed adjustments and there was a sort of group effort in
keeping things going.<br>
Open source was essential for the day to day operations.<br>
<br>
Today open source software is more part of a community effort.<br>
There are various opinions on what constitutes "free".<br>
For some free is free like free beer.<br>
Others say there aint no such thing as a free lunch and the
community<br>
should contribute something to support those who sacrifice their
time.<br>
At the far end is pseudo-FOSS where there is some quasi-beneficent
corporatism<br>
and the software frequently will "phone home", Microsoft style, and
tracks userland activities<br>
while discouraging tinkering under the hood and<br>
disparaging "3rd party software".<br>
<br>
I might use BSD but I am turned off by their logo.<br>
Slackware has no official logo but sometimes Tux is shown with a
pipe<br>
(ceci ne pa une pipe | ).<br>
<br>
I use NVIDIA's "commercial" but "free" drivers because they just<br>
plain work better than the FOSS -nouveau- drivers. <br>
<br>
I was very much as latecomer to Linux.<br>
I had a programming project on pig growth modeling in the 90's and
got very tired<br>
of being jacked around by problems with MSDOS.<br>
But I stayed with Microsoft software until a few years ago.<br>
Windows 8 and .docx and .pptx files were among the last straws.<br>
<br>
I got an extra computer as part of some used office equipment we
bought<br>
so I decided to install Linux on that machine. <br>
The thing that put me off about Slackware at first was that you have
to create<br>
and format a partition and I was leery about fiddling with the FAT
due to<br>
some horrid past experiences with Winchester drives.<br>
Knowledge dispels fear and I got past that minor point and found<br>
that the installation of Slackware was no big deal.<br>
Admittedly i had some experience with the command line and<br>
actually like the terminal.<br>
<br>
The power of the control of my computer that I have with Slackware
Linux <br>
has allowed me to accomplish some things in our laboratory that<br>
I would not have done otherwise, and we published some abstracts<br>
and got asked to talk at meetings as a indirect result, not to talk
about<br>
computing nor software but to talk about pig disease diagnosis and
control.<br>
<br>
I have not been an effective evangelist for Linux and FOSS.<br>
<br>
But I sure ain't going back to picking corn out of the dirt with the
chickens.<br>
<br>
ewj<br>
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