[Gnewsense-dev] Re: Add a gnu to the penguin

[Daniel Clark]

Richard Stallman wrote:
> When my machine boots, it displays a penguin.  Can we please
> have a gnu next to it?

RMS - Alexandre Oliva <address@hidden> is now compiling linux-libre
images for the yeeloong for gNewSense metad mipsel, and one of the
changes he made was to change the boot image from Tux, the mascot of the
kernel, Linux, to the mascot of Linix-Libre, which is also a penguin but
 one that has humorously and appropriately just gotten out of the shower
(named "Freedo" - http://www.fsfla.org/svnwiki/selibre/linux-libre/ ).

Also on current installs on the yeeloong this (the freedo) image is only
shown for a very small time, as the gNewSense boot logo comes up almost
immediately during the boot process.

I'll be able to show these things to you on Tuesday.

Showing a traditional GNU Project Gnu when just starting might not be
good, as I think the penguin image actually pops up at a point when only
the kernel, linux-libre, is running, and actually shows you something
about linux-libre (the number of penguins corresponds to the number of
processors it thinks it sees in your system) that might be confused by
having multiple images (is a penguin and a gnu 1 processor, or 2?).

If we wanted a more prominent traditional GNU Project Gnu image, the
place to do it would probably be integrated into or next to the
gNewSense boot splash screen. It may be better to discuss that
possibility on the gnewsense-art mailing list.

> Perhaps the ideal thing to do is to add the gnu when
> Bash starts being used running.  But if that is hard,
> displaying them both at the start would be fine.

I think the bash idea would annoy some people, and also many people who
use GNU/Linux probably never use bash interactively and so would never
see it. But probably bash developers would be the people to talk to
about that.

There's a related suggest from Alexandre to start using Freedo more
prominently in FSF and GNU project artwork (instead of Tux, the mascot
of the kernel linux) that I'll go cc: you on.

-- 
Daniel JB Clark   | Sys Admin, Free Software Foundation
pobox.com/~dclark | http://www.fsf.org/about/staff#danny