[JCWasmx86]

Just the kernel is Linux, but with the "Linux" that is meant here, it has basically nothing in common, be it e.g. in the userland or "the spirit".

The Linux from "Linux Smartphones" e.g. fosters an open, user-first ecosystem, as opposed to the often very closed and locked Android Smartphones. Another examples are e.g. Safetynet or the Google Play Integrity API. Those primarily don't server the users. Or apps that either complain or even stop working on rooted phones. We have admin/root on normal PCs and nobody is complaining there.

[mulmen]

Linux is only a kernel. What most people mean when they say “Linux” is actually “Linux distribution” which is the Linux kernel plus some userland like GNU or Android.

[3836293648]

Just the kernel is linux, but isn't basically all of the hardware support we need in the kernel?

Sure, we're still out of luck with trying to run mainline kernels, but what's stopping us from running normal GNU userland on top of a working Android kernel?

[yjftsjthsd-h]

Not all the hardware support is internal for Android devices, but yes you're basically asking for https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hybris_(software)

[mmsnberbar66]

> We have admin/root on normal PCs and nobody is complaining there.

That's true.

[charcircuit]

>Those primarily don't server the users.

Not having your images and messages scraped or getting tons of spam is in the interest of users. Those API allow developers to offer a better experience to users by being able to know if people are running a trusted version of the software.