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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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How do you, or do you vet if a software will paywall features or "enshittify"? (lemmy.world)

submitted 3 days ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

46 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Obviously we all want to avoid enshittified (aggressively monetized) software or at least get our money's worth. I'm looking at self-hosting software right now and one I'm looking has a pricing page but only for cloud (no other paywalled features) and is open source. I tried looking up future plans and didn't find much, so it doesn't seem like it will enshittify. (not related) I had thought about switching to Omnivore for a long time but then they merged with ElevenLabs and the rest is history.

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[–] [email protected] -1 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I don't get it... What is Ubuntu doing to enshittify their operating system that you can't mitigate through source modifications or switching to another free OS?

Unlike Windows and Mac users, if my Linux distro does something that I disagree with, I feel that I have plenty of power to do things about it on multiple levels. I left Ubuntu years ago, but there are plenty of things the community can do to make things better without relying on Canonical to do anything at all.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Just because you can work around it doesn't mean it's not enshittification.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

You're avoiding the point: when you have the source code, the ability to build it yourself, and the right to continue community development in any direction you want, there is nothing that a company or any other entity can do to make your experience worse.

If I don't like the direction of Lemmy, for example, there's nothing that stops me from forking the last known good version and continuing to use/develop that myself for the rest of time. It's fundamentally different than if you're someone who uses Reddit, for example, and you're 100% beholden to the whims of what the developers decide. That's the point I'm making.

Call me a true believer, but I think FOSS is at least extremely resilient to enshittification. I say this as a long time FOSS user and current professional FOSS developer.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 days ago

Yes, but that's no longer Ubuntu, and it takes a lot more time and effort on your part to maintain your fork. That's not sustainable, especially if it happens to multiple products.