[email protected] wrote:
ReactOS is designed to use proprietary drivers made for Windows, so I don't know if it's possible to use it as a completely libre system in practice. Besides, most Windows applications are built with proprietary software (e.g. Visual C++), so even if you do get libre drivers for your hardware, you would have to compile most of the software you use by yourself; not convenient at all.
As long as the OS is Free Software that OS is worthy of consideration for development, use, and recommendation to others.
It's unfortunate that GNU/Linux systems allow proprietary drivers too, but I wouldn't rule out using a GNU/Linux system on the basis that the system's design allows the use of proprietary software such as drivers (and I don't think the FSF does either in their Free System Distribution Guidelines[1]). I also don't recall anything about software freedom that would favor convenience, or favor one set of APIs over another set of APIs (as might affect building programs with a Free C++ compiler versus some non-free C++ compiler) without some clear adverse effect on a user's freedoms to run, study, share, and modify the software. Those concerns all strike me to be developmental details.
Could one build software with Free Software compilers such as MinGW using https://www.reactos.org/wiki/Building_MINGW-w64 as build instructions?
[1] But that's not to say ReactOS would qualify to be listed among the Free Systems that meet the guidelines listed on https://www.gnu.org/distros/free-system-distribution-guidelines.html. Assessing ReactOS's qualifications for listing will require more investigation.
