this post was submitted on 20 Sep 2023
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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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Yeah, I remember when Linux was first becoming cool, in the mid-to-late 90s. There was a lot of folk wisdom going around, and one of them was "make an
alias rm='rm -i'
so you don't accidentally delete anything!"And then there was the (correct, IMHO) counter-wisdom of "no, that actually makes it more likely to accidentally delete something, because one day you're going to be on a machine where that alias doesn't exist, but you've become dependent on it existing".
I don't mind creating aliases to add colour or change formatting a little bit or something, but don't make an alias to keep yourself safe, because it'll probably backfire on you.