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2026-10-02.log
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<aggi>the major problem with c++ (among many other dependencies): it has become a mandatory dependency in early system-integration/bootstrapping stages <aggi>nowadays it is impossible in terms of live-bootstrap to make_bootable any *nix without hundreds of millions of lines of code pulled into <aggi>that's why some extraordinary boring bootstrappable linux/fiwix/busybox/tcc type minimal *nix system is worth a little fortune <aggi>because this required a total non-trivial overhaul of the entire compile-time and run-time dependency graph, hundreds of patches and hacks <aggi>backtracking various component versions over 20years of foss development history <matrix_bridge><Jeremiah Orians> aggi: well that is the thing. Fiwix is an entirely usable Unix and one doesn’t have to go full anything. Heck one could use it to bootstrap OpenBSB and stick to a minimal source code stack without having many features <matrix_bridge><cosinusoidally> I spotted this the other day https://hackaday.com/2026/09/13/a-386-pc-for-your-rp2350/ . It's a x86 emulator that runs on microcontrollers with a couple of megs of serial RAM. Pretty much a mid 90s PC (~Pentium 1 100MHz with 8MB of RAM). I wonder how viable bootstrapping would have been back then. tinycc could probably just about do it. Might even be just about possible to build a 2.X version of gcc... <aggi>that's why it is important basic FOSS components should remain portable with different C-toolchains <aggi>while backporting onto linux-2.4/tcc so far i arrived at working TeTeX, ghostscript, gnuplot, mplayer/ffmpeg, etc. etc. <aggi>maybe some of this could help with backporting onto fiwix because it's syscall ABI is closer to the one of linux-2.4 <aggi>i'm slowly recovering from this summer's heat-wave and sleep deprivation, no progress made for 6month already <aggi>although it's menial re-packaging into the configurator steps/ system remaining only <aggi>plus the pnut-patchset re-base for tcc mob/HEAD <aggi>but there's been no progress with inquiries at universities and employers either <aggi>and only little time remaining until february next year for the next round of buraucratic paper-work <aggi>which is a few hours only, but relies upon the "good-will" of government bureaucrats <aggi>that's something i hope to cope with here myself in germany <aggi>strangely labor unions and politics arranged for an excess increase in special defense budget, >100billion <aggi>but there is no way through the bureaucratic HR jungle here <aggi>at best they're merely scraping from my documents <aggi>last time i asked for an appointment i was being told by one of their bureaucrats i've supposedly been absent from any work in tech sector for too long <aggi>yet have to follow any order of theirs anytime without compensation nor salary <matrix_bridge><Jeremiah Orians> As someone who works in a government bureaucracy managing systems that help people get welfare benefits. Honestly, they are just collecting the paperwork required before they can legally click the checkbox and then the payments start flowing. <aggi>i don't want to waste anyone's attention with this <aggi>i wasn't educated for welfare, but interational telco management <aggi>reminds me, i've had a simple (A)X.25 bootstrap on my TODO list for a while <aggi>given networking was some recent topic among fiwix <aggi>on the linux-2.4 side there's two options for this: doing it in userspace with a re-worked direwolf software-modem stack (detangling from cmake etc) <aggi>and there's some pieces on the kernel-side <aggi>plus testing of ppp/modem-dialup (i've scraped, backported and tested most components with linux-2.4/tcc already) <aggi>interestingly some 2400baud type AX.25 would be rather close the the abilities of persistent NATO standards which they seek to replace <aggi>there's just too many standards and protocols anyway