JSLinux

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Access and Technical Quirks

  • Some users can’t boot the Linux VMs due to CORS errors; using bellard.org instead of www.bellard.org fixes it.
  • Script blockers (e.g., NoScript) can trigger kernel panics or prevent startup.
  • People joke about recursive usage (JSLinux inside JSLinux) and note CORS as the main practical barrier, not the emulator itself.

Performance, Source, and Practical Uses

  • Several comments say JSLinux is “too slow” for serious work, especially full OSes, though Windows 2000 feels surprisingly smooth for some.
  • Others find it “good enough” for things like remote Linux interviews or bootloader demos (e.g., barebox) without hardware.
  • Source is partly via TinyEMU; the disk images are just standard Linux distributions, though packaging scripts are undocumented.

Successors and WASM-based Approaches

  • Multiple links to newer in-browser VM tech: container2wasm, v86, webvm, and a work-in-progress Linux+BusyBox system compiled natively to WASM.
  • That WASM demo currently only supports shell builtins; commands that require exec() crash due to incomplete syscall emulation.
  • A few people dream about a NixOS-in-browser VM; it’s considered possible but technically fiddly to compile NixOS to WASM.

Creator’s Output, Patronage, and Style

  • There is widespread admiration for the creator’s breadth (emulators, compilers, codecs, editors, terminal emulators, LTE, LLM server, etc.).
  • Several argue he deserves something like a MacArthur grant or private patronage; others suggest such obligations might kill the joy of “pure hacking.”
  • His monolithic code style (e.g., a 50k-line C file) sparks debate on dogmatic limits for function/file size vs. individual working memory and team needs.

Ecosystem and Other Browser VMs

  • JSLinux influenced xterm.js, which now powers many web terminals, and inspired commercial/OSS projects like Endor.
  • Users share a long list of alternative in-browser emulators for x86, Mac, Amiga, and others, and compare architectures and bitness.

Windows 2000 Nostalgia and UI Discussion

  • Many enjoy revisiting Windows 2000 in JSLinux, praising its simple, consistent UI versus modern “enshittified” desktops.
  • There’s side discussion on open-source desktops (e.g., Xfce) as a way to preserve stable, user-aligned interfaces.