this post was submitted on 01 Apr 2025
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Linux
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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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Doesn't Windows leave program files and data all over the place too?
Well, the configuration and state in both cases is all over the place. I admit that since the move to push program directories to /usr and the XDG share/config directories the problem has been largely solved. I only shared my perception when I was learning Linux, which was right after Mandriva came out
Yes, most people aren't aware of it as they've seen inside Program Files and assumed that was all the program's data.