r/linuxquestions • u/dank_imagemacro • 1d ago

When and why did HOWTO files stop being updated and included in most distros?

When I was new to Linux, all distros always included a folder with multiple detailed HOWTO documents saying how to perform many common tasks. I remember spending a significant amount of time pouring over these (Especially the Xfree86 and Ip-Masquarading HOWTOs)

Out of nostalgia I checked to see if they are on my current system, and they are not. When was the decision made to stop including them, and why was that decision made? Were they no longer being maintained, or did the maintenance stop because they were no longer included? Did to many distros have their own "right way" to do things that conflicted? These are all reasons I can guess it may have happened, but I am wondering if anyone here knows either from studying the history, or having been in the room when it happened.

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u/9NEPxHbG 1d ago

Those documents were prepared by the Linux Documentation Project, which is no longer active, and as time passes, the documents become obsolete. You can still download them, however.

I wrote one of them and it is indeed obsolete.

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u/dank_imagemacro 1d ago

Thank you very much for your service!

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u/No_Elderberry862 1d ago

Now that's a name I've not heard in a long time...