What kernel file API are you talking about ? Linux ? Windows ? BSD ? MacOS ? iOS ? All these kernels handle file access in different ways . Most of them provide library functions which provide a uniform way to access filesystems e . g . libc ' s fopen etc . . This was not always the case . Once upon a time each OS had a completely different API . In exactly the same way there are many different ways to access the Wayland screen . In the future there will probably be some library function to provide uniform access . Just like there is a fopen instead of a fopenwindowsntfs to open files , no matter what OS or filesystem , there will be a waylandgrab function instead of a muttergrab , kwingrab etc . Think of Wayland as a firewall on your system . Once you turn on the firewall applications on your system can no longer make arbitrary network connections . Instead the user has to approve them . In the same way , with Wayland , applications can ' t take arbitrary control of the screen , . Instead the user has to approve them . Or are you saying that having a firewall installed on your computer is a bad thing ?