Motley
I learned a new English word today, thanks to the Cambridge Klett Compact, French–English dictionary online:
motley
adjective [before noun]
consisting of many different types and therefore appearing strange or of low quality:
There’s a motley assortment/collection of old furniture in the house we’re renting at the moment.
The people who turned up to the meeting were a motley crew (= a group consisting of many different types of people).
The analogy (which is likely to make me lose one reader) struck immediately:
Linux
proper noun
operating system programmed by many different developers, merging many different user interface philosophies and available in many different flavours and therefore appearing strange or of low quality.