![Spotted in the wild: Chimera – a Linux that isn’t GNU/Linux Spotted in the wild: Chimera – a Linux that isn’t GNU/Linux](https://regmedia.co.uk/2023/02/10/shutterstpck_chimera_linux.jpg)
It’s not yet reached alpha, but it’s already breaking new ground
Chimera Linux is a new distro under construction that is not only systemd-free, it’s GNU-free as well. Its creator hopes to reach alpha testing this spring.
Chimera Linux is a new project which began in mid-2021, but has already made considerable progress. Its solo developer is Czech programmer Daniel “q66” Kolesa, who gave a talk about his project at FOSDEM last weekend.
His talk was part of the FOSDEM’s BSD program stream, which itself is a hint that this is not a typical Linux distribution. This is reflected in its name: the original chimera was a mythical creature whose body was made up of parts of different animals. There’s a certain kind of Unix geek who insists that Linux should properly be called GNU/Linux, because the kernel is built with the GNU C Compiler, everything is linked against the GNU C library, uses the GNU coreutils, and usually multiple other components from the GNU Project.