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Minix from Scratch Project Established

Posted by timothy on from the but-that's-unpossible dept.

decuser writes "The MFS - Minix from Scratch project was established in the wake of the Brown-Tannenbaum controversy. MFS aims to be to the Minix community what LFS is to the Linux community, a recipe for building an alternative OS from 'scratch.'" See the project's website at mfs.sunsite.dk or minixfromscratch.org.

1 of 229 comments (clear)

  1. Re:This is for real, folks. by srussell · · Score: 0, Redundant
    I predict this will be the Next Big Thing.
    According to Tannenbaum, Minix -- being a microkernel -- has several advantages over a monolithic kernel. Speed isn't one of them, but he says that there are many cases where speed isn't the most important issue; for example, if you could get increased reliability, or an improved kernel development process, etc.

    In any case, let's pretend he's right, for the sake of an argument, and that a microkernel is better than a monolithic kernel. In that case, here's what I predict: somebody in the Minix community will figure out how to leverage the existing Linux drivers and modules, and will produce Minux(tm)... a Linux with the kernel replaced by a Minix microkernel, using the vast number of existing Linux drivers and software. Since we already said that a microkernel is better than a monolithic kernel, this new Minux will rapidly surpass Linux in popularity.

    Not. Because we all know that technical superiority doesn't guarantee success (betamax vs. VHS, Linux vs. Windows). However, it is an interesting possibility to think about.

    Caveat: I am not a kernel hacker, and it has been a loooong time since my OS theory classes, so I have no idea how feasible something like this would be. I wish I did, because then I'd do it myself, and I'd become the next Linus Torvalds, and then I'd rule the world!!! Bwahahahahaha!!!!