> I think the AUR certainly started as the second thing, but it's often viewed as the first, and maybe it even should be the first thing. But if you assume it came from the second option then all its design choices make sense.
People who cite the AUR as a major reason to use or prefer Arch (which seems to be a lot) definitely see it and use it as the former. If it's not that, pretty much all of the package availability arguments in favor of Arch disappear.
(Which is fine— I don't think package availability arguments are very good when it comes to distro selection in general, except for non-technical people and absolute noobs.)
People who cite the AUR as a major reason to use or prefer Arch (which seems to be a lot) definitely see it and use it as the former. If it's not that, pretty much all of the package availability arguments in favor of Arch disappear.
(Which is fine— I don't think package availability arguments are very good when it comes to distro selection in general, except for non-technical people and absolute noobs.)