Hi,

In thread http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...um-4175522985/ post #9 I suggested that a new thread be opened for open general Slackware discussions.

Since <Linux-General> I will open with a quote from PV;
Underlined text above signifies my reasoning for using Slackware GNU/Linux. I have been using Slackware since PV's first release and no regrets. I feel comfortable using 'cli' and great tools to support my installation(s) of Slackware. The Slackware community at the Slackware forum are friendly and helpful to all Slackware GNU/Linux users when possible.

Slackware has really been misunderstood by many GNU/Linux users as a difficult distribution to implement. Not really, we do a have good documentation project that does have many contributors at Slackware Doc Project that can be useful configuration/installation information along with many other Slackware related topics.

I originally started Slackware®-Links to help provide links to information that would help everyone, not just Slackware links. My intent was to have a central resource of links for all, not just a links bucket.
I also use Slackware®-Links to help me whenever helping others;
Plus;Have fun & enjoy!

Well, OK I'll lob the ball back over the net.

I rather like the quote from volkerdi above, not just the underlined part.

It is interesting that Slackware over the years has generally followed wherever the upstream sources take it with minimal modification; it is one of the closest things there is to a plain "vanilla" Linux. However, whenever new things eg. udev, HAL and now systemd, start becoming part of mainstream Linux, there is an outcry and a countering desire to be conservative and resist, or desire to fork Slackware into some sort of fossilized OS.

In the long run historically I would presume that if everyone adopts something, especially something that Mr Torvalds uses on his development machine, it will end up in Slackware when it becomes unavoidable or stable enough or both.

There are exceptions, notably, package managers, but in some ways, the whole repository/package paradigm flies in the face of being able to use source code not in the repository without messing things up beyond repair... though that isn't always true.

Hi,

Yes, PV does have a steady hand with good judgement skills when it comes to additions to Slackware. Personally, the Slackware init system has met my needs to date. Sure we have added HAL that soon was replaced by udev. I really wish this thread to remain a general Slackware discussion so I won't reveal my thoughts on 'systemd'. Slackers have many options available for system/package management today. Not just pkgtool utilities which I still rely on. You can use slackpkg which is very useful;Another good tool would be 'sbopkg';Slackware stability is important to me. I want to have my Gnu/Linux to remain stable without hangups. If I introduce something and have poor results then I know how to revert or crawl back to original stable state. It's nice not having to worry day to day with issues that I know won't crop up unless introduced by my actions or by someone else. I can rely on several members that maintain the repositories.
Slackers have a great support group!

I trust PV & the Slackware team to provide a stable GNU/Linux without worry. I do not always move to new stable releases immediately, I have Laptops that are still using 13.37 & some with 14.0. Sure I maintain security updates to keep things secure & stable. At one point in time I would run '-current' but not doing much with it lately or currently. Pun intended! On my bench systems is where I will utilize stable releases for work & experimentation.

Just to many things on my platter at this time. Selling my farm, remodeling our new home in town. Building a new workshop and developing a whole new LAB for my electronics bench equipment. Being retired, I do not see how everything was getting done before retirement. My task list seems to keep growing, mutating into a monster list. One reason to start hiring other people to do some of the tasks that I would normally have done in the past.

Back on topic! Slackware has been a blessing for me since coming from academia and using UNIX. I am comfortable with Slackware as a UNIX-like GNU/Linux. KISS principle still works for me.

Slack on!
Have fun & enjoy!

Change is not always good. The general trend is to label people opposed to a change as being opposed to progress. The underlying assumption being that any change that is popular is progress. Some changes are good (progress), some are bad and some have neither benefits nor drawbacks (useless). I doubt most Slack users would oppose a change that would improve the system. They probably would oppose a change that is simply meant to make the system more appealing to the masses.

Following a different course of developement than everyone else does not make a distribution fossilised. It makes it different. Making improvements to a tried and tested system by modifying a solid foundation is not ossification. No more than following every latest trend is progress.

Dependence on the desires (or whims) of one person is a potentially fatal flaw for all Linux systems.

1 members found this post helpful.

Hi,
I believe depending on PV for a stable Slackware is not fatal nor is it failure since his maintenance of the distribution has a good track record..

As to changes, that would depend on what is in reference instead of a general statement topic. Slackware has evolved from it's first release. Some missteps but changes to the good occurred after some experimentation. Really did not care for hot plugging let alone HAL.
Evolution is good for Slackware and has been since it's inception.

What have you contributed to the community?

I was referring to Torvalds, not Volkerding. The latter is more trustworthy than the former. Hence, why I stated it is a potential danger to Linux, not just Slackware.

Other than answering a few questions and providing suggestions and opinions on several fora, nothing.

Hi,

That's fair, I realized that after reading my own response that there had been a misunderstanding.

I was not being smart with the request to 'What have you contributed to the community?'. Open discussions are beneficial and do contribute. Everyone needs to be challenged or things can get dull.

But I am very sensitive. The thought of missing a meal almost makes me cry.

Hi, and thanks for a place to go off-topic.

Anyone remember the "KDE Everywhere" campaign? My friend worked that summer 2006 at McMurdo Station, Antarctica. She took a Zareason laptop and the KDE logo (Ice breakers in the background). What a relief it was to get the PC specs from Raytheon and see Linux on their list of supported OSes. In fact Tux was the logo on all their luggage tags. That was cool.

But way cool were the balloons! http://science.slashdot.org/story/06/12/21/1328206/ Those were days.
Cheers to future Slackware and KDE.

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