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What are the differences between linux distributions?
(sh.itjust.works)
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this post was submitted on 07 Dec 2023
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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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Unpacking a .deb on Fedora, or unpacking an .rpm on Ubuntu isn't a big deal. The files inside are often actually identical.
But would not be useful because the files inside usually rely on shared libraries, which may or may not already be installed. Those shared libraries are installed in different places on each Linux distro. Figuring out which ones to ask for (and making sure the program can find them) is the real work that the .Deb or .RPM installers do.
A fun way to try this out is with Portable Apps. Anything called a "portable app" either doesn't use additional libraries, or carries the libraries it needs with it.
If you find a portable app for Ubunutu, there's a good chance the Fedora version is an identical file, and works fine on Ubuntu. There's lots of reasons it might not work, but it can be fun to try.
For the most part, the only reason any Linux program is unavailable on a different version of Linux is that no one has bothered to build the necessary installer for that combination of program and OS.
.RPM was supposed to solve this by being universal, since any other OS can implement it to match .Deb was supposed to solve this by being universal, since any other OS can implement it to match (about 60% actually do). I think Flatpacks and Snaps might solve this by being universal, at some point...
Source: I've built installer packages for various operating systems.