Re: Guix vs GuixSD

[Chris Marusich]

Hi,

I think you're asking "What is the difference between Guix and GuixSD", and you don't feel that the manual is clear enough about this. Is that right? If so, how do you feel the manual could be improved?

I'm not yet a Guix/GuixSD expert, but in a nutshell, it seems to me that the biggest difference between Guix and GuixSD is that by using GuixSD, you gain many of Guix's benefits (reproducibility, easy rollback, etc.) at the system level. If you use a non-GuixSD distribution, you can still enjoy the benefits of using Guix as a package manager, but you'll be using something else to manage the system itself (the installed bootloader, the installed kernel, all the services that launch at system start, etc.). Most likely, you will simply be missing out on all the nice features that GuixSD provides.

For what it's worth, I think the current structure of the manual makes a clear distinction between Guix the package manager and GuixSD the GNU system:

https://www.gnu.org/software/guix/manual/guix.html

Section 7 is all about GuixSD. All other sections apply to GuixSD, too, in the sense that they discuss the Guix package manager, which is used by GuixSD. When necessary, the manual calls out the differences between doing something on GuixSD vs. doing it on a non-GuixSD distribution. Again, if you don't think this is clear enough, how do you think the manual can be improved?

I see that you are hoping to convince others to use Guix/GuixSD instead of alternatives. That's great! You might be interested in the following email thread, in which Malcolm Cook discusses his efforts to make the case for GNU Guix:

http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/guix-devel/2016-02/msg00286.html

Good luck,

Chris

On Sun, Feb 14, 2016 at 4:22 PM myglc2 <address@hidden> wrote:

I hope to switch my home servers from Debian 8 to NixOS or GuixSD.  Once
that is working, I hope to convince the system managers at work to
install Nix or Guix.

I started experimenting with Nix and NixOS 6 weeks ago. 3 weeks ago I
switched my focus to Guix and installed guixSD on one of my servers.

I found it difficult to determine exactly which parts of the volumminous
(and tasty) Guix doc to read and how best to apply GuixSD. FWIW, I
experienced the same difficulty with Nix/NixOS.

To clarify my thoughts, I made a diagram (guix-ov) to illustrate Guix
features that are important to me:

1) Auditable flow of free software from developer site to user
   environment

2) Automated local package builds

3) Pre-built packages from Hydra

4) The potential of an identical Guix user environment everywhere

I intended to show the differences between Guix and GuixSD. But frankly,
looking at diagram guix-ov, they seem more alike than not. I think this
contributed to my difficulty in figuring out GuixSD. So, made a second
diagram (guix-ov2) that I think ...

- shows clearly the difference and relationship between Guix and GuixSD

- is more modular in appearance and easier to understand

- is more descriptive of how the software works

- is better aligned with the doc

- illustrates the distinction between user and system environments

In short, I think diagram guix-ov2 is a more informative way to explain
the Guix-verse.

I know guix-ov2 does not match the way Guix and GuixSD are currently
described. But I believe that if you describe things this way it will be
easier for new users to understand and apply Guix and GuixSD.

Sidebar:

At the moment, the GNU Guix web site focuses mostly on GuixSD. But to
test drive Guix, a user must first decide what to download. Perhaps one
of these diagrams (with suitable prettyfication) could help a user
decide what to download.