this post was submitted on 20 Feb 2025
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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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...That's where I stopped reading this.
Those must have been really helpful in 1999.
Doubt it, they were more likely using md5sum files in 1999.
True! My original point though is that just providing a hash for a downloaded file is generally not required. It doesn't provide anything that other layers haven't already (a hash only guarantees integrity, while downloading over HTTPS provides authenticity). Personally, I see them as a relic of the past that made more sense when transmission was less robust (though even back then, a lot of layers provided some sort of error detection and correction), and modern filesystems can detect errors as well.