I think it's because WSL refers to the Windows subsystem that allows you to run ... | Hacker News

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HankStallone on May 19, 2025 | parent | context | favorite | on: The Windows Subsystem for Linux is now open source

I think it's because WSL refers to the Windows subsystem that allows you to run Linux, not to the Linux system itself. You still have to download and install Linux on top of it, or at least you did the last time I used it a few years ago.

transpostmeta on May 19, 2025 [–]

I always assumed it was because it was a Subsystem for Linux that allowed it to be run as a guest on a Windows host. But your version works too.

Microsoft ist really terrible at naming things, that's for sure.

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