it's a unix system on top of a windows system; i know this!
this post was submitted on 20 May 2025
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I still don't know what WSL is for.
Serious answer,
Windows subsystem for Linux.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Subsystem_for_Linux
Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is a component of Microsoft Windows that allows the use of a GNU/Linux environment from within Windows, foregoing the overhead of a virtual machine and being an alternative to dual booting.
Them tryna suck us back into their dysfunctional os, not gonna work on me Mr Micro
Windows Stolen Linux
To keep developers on the platform, because their own ecosystem is shit.
Look what they have to do to mimic a fraction of our power
Look what they have to do to mimic a fraction of our power
I think that sounds more like Cygwin.
Born to Gentoo+i3, forced (by work) to WSL
What if... WSL is a gateway drug to Arch?
Don't do drugs, kids!
WSL is just a chroot running under Windows.
"WSL"?
Windows/Sex/Location
Windows subsystem for linux.
Its basically a microsoft linux kernel, running in a hypervisor, with a linux distro built on top. The subsystem also supports xserver and wayland too
Windows Subsystem for Linux
When someone ask for help with a Linux issue: π€©
It's a wsl bug: π€
Open source now tho
What's the benefit for that? Can you fork it and run a copy in windows (or is it too integrated in wondows) or is it just Microsoft wanting your free labour (bugfixes etc)?
Mom! Windows is doing EEE again.
Oh yeah, that is true !
Me looking disgusted at myself in the mirror, for I am doomed towards eternal Microsoft-dependency at work.
Still better than cygwin
And msys
God I remember suffering through cygwin at a VB shop back in '17β¦ literal hell
When using WSL, be sure to not mention anything about that when reporting bugs because that'll just confuse the issue for the maintainers. They like having that casually mentioned about 20 messages into the troubleshooting process.
Pff, issue reports should ask for the output of 'uname -ar'. It clearly shows its wsl as wsl runs a special kernel
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Small blessings. Seeing a WSL user means that some dev out there didn't have to implement Windows support.
WSL is cool when you first use it then you realize it actually kind of sucks
Apt username
Yum username.
Yay username
I don't think anyone is a "wsl user" so much as they've found themselves in a position where the lowest friction solution is utilizing wsl for a given situation.
Around 2019, even up until like 2022 if you wanted to run docker in windows, that was how to do it.
I learned the shell in wsl before I switched to Linux full time. I wasn't trying to learn it intentionally. Just didn't want to develop software on windows. It's a great gateway drug that reduces friction by a lot.
The terminal is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural.
Itβs not a story the Vibe Coders would tell you
Pretty much my situation. Work stuff, Windows machine, but Linux/Docker workflow and I refuse to let go of my POSIX shell.
All the good stuff available and you choose a POSIX shell? To each their own I guess.
Granted, I still prefer it to PowerShell, but only in how it feels, not conceptually.
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This sort of elitism really hurts adoption
How? WSL is absolutely awful for adoption. Theres no GUI, it bearly runs GUI apps, and you have to manually configure it. If my first experience with Linux was WSL I would never touch Linux again.
On another side it stops people from switching cause as better it's working less reason to switch
This pleb thinks we should listen to them. Frankly, this neighborhood is done for!
I knew, as soon as they installed that damned GUI, that we'd have Windowers coming around with their "Windows key this and WSL that". I'm going to have to move to BSD at this rate, I hear they have a more permissive license. I was telling my friend Margaret just the other day that I was meaning to move to BSD. That and that I wanted to get a shrubbery, for the garden.
Itβs so true though
I even look at myself that way whenever I use wsl on my gaming box to hop onto another system. I disgust myself.
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