System76 Moves Ahead With Writing Their Own OS Installer

[phoronix]

Phoronix: System76 Moves Ahead With Writing Their Own OS Installer

Earlier this summer we heard how System76 might make their own distribution installer. They indeed are moving forward in this effort to construct their own installer from scratch and it's written in Rust...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=System76-Own-OS-Installer

[onicsis]

If Ballmer was the head of Microsoft Standard Linux Desktop, he would go out to the Balcony of MS Headquarter and start screaming

Applications, Applications, Applications, ...!!!

[M@GOid]

Looks like they were hit by the NIH syndrome. Or that they look at Apple as a model to be followed, you know, our hardware our software. Either way I wish then well, we need more Linux friendly companies.

[bug77]

Looks like they were hit by the NIH syndrome. Or that they look at Apple as a model to be followed, you know, our hardware our software. Either way I wish then well, we need more Linux friendly companies.

I don't think it's NIH as much as them needing to provide timely support for everything they offer. Because we all know that if you can't upstream your patches fast, the work you end up doing maintaining them separately, rivals writing from scratch anyway.
Just like you, I have no stake in this, but I wish them the best.

[Deavir]

Looks like they were hit by the NIH syndrome. Or that they look at Apple as a model to be followed, you know, our hardware our software. Either way I wish then well, we need more Linux friendly companies.

With the OS I think that as fair. The installer is right in their wheelhouse though. Their job is to get many different OS's working on their hardware.

[valeriodean]

I don't think it's NIH as much as them needing to provide timely support for everything they offer. Because we all know that if you can't upstream your patches fast, the work you end up doing maintaining them separately, rivals writing from scratch anyway.

Really? So you don't wrote nothing from the kernel to the user space but the installer? In case your users have problems, you could say "ok, your system is broken, but I wrote the installer, what do you think about install everything again? In case of troubles during the installation I can help you because, you know, we wrote the installer."

NIH.

[Shnatsel]

It is ironic that a company whose only differentiating feature is having Linux already installed would invest in the OS installer.

OS installer is the program you've paid them not to have to interact with. If they still expect users to encounter it, they're not doing a very good job.

[M@GOid]

It is ironic that a company whose only differentiating feature is having Linux already installed would invest in the OS installer.

OS installer is the program you've paid them not to have to interact with. If they still expect users to encounter it, they're not doing a very good job.

While I agree with your sentiment, I don't think its entirely right. My guess is people go after them, mostly because they sell a guaranteed Linux compatible laptop. No keyboard shortcut shenanigans, no incompatible wifi card, no problem with ACPI features, just power and go.

[bug77]

Really? So you don't wrote nothing from the kernel to the user space but the installer? In case your users have problems, you could say "ok, your system is broken, but I wrote the installer, what do you think about install everything again? In case of troubles during the installation I can help you because, you know, we wrote the installer."

NIH.

I was obviously talking about the installer, not sure what the kernel has to do with it.

[DanL]

My guess is people go after them, mostly because they sell a guaranteed Linux compatible laptop. No keyboard shortcut shenanigans, no incompatible wifi card, no problem with ACPI features, just power and go.

Yes, and maybe they want to offer different distro options so the the installer is more for their benefit than the customers.