Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

GNU/Hurd Gets POSIX Threads

Posted by Hemos on from the hurding-instincts dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Neal Walfield announced the first release of RMGPT, which is (or rather, aspires to one day be) a complete, portable implementation of IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 threads also known as POSIX threads. With this new pthreads library, it will soon be possible to run complex software packages on the Hurd, including the GNOME and KDE desktops, the OpenOffice suite, and the Mozilla web browser. Find more information here, including the humorous meaning behind RMGPT, and insight into a future Hurd release..."

5 of 382 comments (clear)

  1. Darwin and MkLinux? by Henriok · · Score: 4, Interesting

    What is the relationship between GNU/Hurd, Darwin and MKLinux? All is based around a Mach-kernel. Are there any familiarity between them that have any relevance? Does the continuing work on Darwin and GNU/Hurd benefit from one another, and if so, in what respect?

    --

    - Henrik

    - when the Shadows descend -
  2. acronym by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting
    The site is kinda slashdotted. Here's the explanation of the acronym:



    Regarding the name, RMGPT, Neal explains, "Most new program names are a bunch
    of letters stuck together. Only later does it become an acronym and the words
    become bound. This is boring; each new release of RMGPT will offer a fresh, new and
    exciting expansion of the 'acronym'." For this first release, RMGPT stands for
    "Rubbish, I asked for mine with Minced Garlic, Please Take this back".

  3. Re:The HURT by Lendrick · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Developers! Developers! Developers! Developers! Developers! *gasp, pant, pant* Developers! Developers! Developers!

    The problem, I think, is that people really haven't taken a whole lot of interest in it so far, because in general it doesn't really do anything that Linux doesn't already do better.

    On the other hand, if it's really going to be able to run modern desktop environments now, perhaps people will start taking a bit more interest in it, and then developers will start to show up. I think it's just a matter of reaching critical mass.

  4. Re:My apologies to RMS by Kilobug · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I won't even go into the overhead inherent in a micro kernel message passing architecture.

    That, and rest, means you are not aware of the research done in the last 5 or 10 years in the field of micro-kernel, with what we called the 'second generation micro-kernels', like L4. The cost of "message-passing" (or IPC to use a correct term) can be minimised and reduced by a factor of 10. With fast IPC, a lot things become possible, that are not in monolithic kernels, and even in many micro-kernel based systems. Look at some papers on http://www.l4ka.org/publications/ for more informations.

  5. Re:Easy to separate HURD and Linux by gnu_wolfgang · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Hi! I don't think any of us is working on the Hurd "because RMS says so". The Hurd already provides many things that other systems will never be able to to. I love being able to add root privileges to a running Emacs when I quickly want to edit a system, configuration file. This is possible on GNU/Hurd, as are many other cute thinks. Cheers, GNU/Wolfgang