Linux Now Runs On M1 Based Macs
In early November of 2020, Apple announced that their computers would be running Apple silicon in the form of a new ARM based processor, the M1. There was a lot of excitement about the new processor and it’s capabilities, because…. well…. Apple. Two months later, Linux has been ported to this new processor. My thoughts? Meh.
So, before everybody gets the wrong idea about this development, it’s great that Linux is now running natively on the M1. There are people that are going to own M1 based Macs that are going to be able to run Linux outside of emulation because of this. It’s always good to have more hardware support.
So why the meh?
It’s not even remotely surprising. I think anybody that knows anything about Linux saw this coming. Everybody knew it was only a matter of time. Frankly I’m more surprised that it’s taken this long than I am that it happened.
I also think, while it’s important the support be there, the crossover of Mac users and people who want to try Linux isn’t super large. It’s larger than zero, for sure, but not super large. Also, the percentage of those people that currently own an M1 based Mac is tiny.
It’s great that the developers have gotten this out there before the M1 is available in most of Apple’s hardware. It’s not surprising that Linux developers have done this. It’s not exciting to gain compatibility for hardware that virtually no one is using years before they are.
Maybe this will be the precursor to ARM based PCs that will also run Linux? Maybe. Those already exist though, and Linux already runs on them. I expect that Linux will easily be ported over to any new ARM processors that get developed as a response to the M1.
Day 7 of the #100DaysToOffload 2021 Series.
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