Wow, this simply would never have happened under Ballmer. It is really great to see what Microsoft is able to do under Satya Nadella. I like what I'm seeing and it will keep Linux honest.
I'm fairly certain all of 2016 is a mass-hallucination. Or something.
In all seriousness though, I don't think this is surprising. Visual Studio on macOS is more surprising to me. Azure runs on Linux and that's a really, really big business for Microsoft. And they've also built a Linux Subsystem into Windows.
They didn't build an Ubuntu userland. They did build a subsystem that pretends to be Linux (the kernel) and takes and processes Linux syscalls.
It's just that Ubuntu itself runs on Linux, so they can run Ubuntu on this subsystem. Nothing technical stopping other userspaces to be run on it.
So it is quite appropriately named "Windows Subsystem for Linux". What you are talking about may be called "Ubuntu on Windows", "Ubuntu on Windows Subsystem for Linux", or "Ubuntu on WSL". (pardon the long names, not my choice. Bad/long naming is an old Microsoft trope.)
Definitely agree. It's not very surprising at this day and age, but if you told me this would happen 10 years ago I would have laughed and discounted the idea completely.
We're really committed to doing our best on being good members of the global developer community, just watch Connect(); // 2016 where this was announced and is streaming live right now. We've got a few more announcements coming :).
Awesome!
Way back when, I was a huge Microsoft fanboy, until Mac OS X came out, then I hated Microsoft...then I used a Windows Phone from day one until just before Microsoft bought Nokia. And I own a Surface. Definitely come full circle.
The lesson that everyone should take here is that corporations change in ways that we could never imagine. (For those that are younger they may not remember Microsoft calling Linux a virus and setting its entire salesforce in motion to spread FUD against Linux).
So, we need to reflect on whether giving corporations our personal data makes sense over the long term rather than just giving it to them because its easy today.
I think this is great news. Also Shows Microsoft big cow is no longer Windows but Azure. This means software is a commodity, they're really in the infrastructure rental business
Well, the hell just frozen. Satya Nadella seems to have really changed MS. Great for them, especially, that I believe Windows to be their worst product.
The Linux Foundation may have just accepted a Trojan Horse (or rather, a Redmond Horse). I hope it turns out for good for all.
I'd love to see better contributions to Linux. If Microsoft can help make Wine better, then the playing field could be level. But it is scary to think that so many years of open source software available on Linux will eventually be available to Windows users without being ported to Windows, and then Linux suffers more. Hopefully it will be good for all.
Join Ubuntu into windows
add windows-specific hooks and additions for open-source software to build against
destroy the backward compatibility
end linux
this is what they have always done, why should this time be different
Trying to destroy linux from the inside. And they are letting them. So sad. But when Microsoft takes over there will always be beautiful minds creating new systems.
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[ 3.2 ms ] story [ 27.3 ms ] threadHell hath frozen over.
Apple now is going to have to make improvements to the XCode platform.
In all seriousness though, I don't think this is surprising. Visual Studio on macOS is more surprising to me. Azure runs on Linux and that's a really, really big business for Microsoft. And they've also built a Linux Subsystem into Windows.
Rock on Microsoft, rock on.
Ubuntu userland, with no Linux kernel. It could be more appropriately named GNU/Windows, amusingly enough.
It's just that Ubuntu itself runs on Linux, so they can run Ubuntu on this subsystem. Nothing technical stopping other userspaces to be run on it.
So it is quite appropriately named "Windows Subsystem for Linux". What you are talking about may be called "Ubuntu on Windows", "Ubuntu on Windows Subsystem for Linux", or "Ubuntu on WSL". (pardon the long names, not my choice. Bad/long naming is an old Microsoft trope.)
https://connectevent.microsoft.com
Are you sure? I thought I'd read Azure runs on Windows's HyperV.
Or perhaps you meant "Azure runs Linux".
So, we need to reflect on whether giving corporations our personal data makes sense over the long term rather than just giving it to them because its easy today.
Also see: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12967770
Join Ubuntu into windows add windows-specific hooks and additions for open-source software to build against destroy the backward compatibility end linux
this is what they have always done, why should this time be different