Linux (operating system)

Linux

The GNOME desktop on Ubuntu Linux 6.10

Website: http://www.linux.org

Developer: The Open Source community

OS family: Unix-like

Source model: Open source

Latest stable release: Ubuntu 6.10, Mandriva Linux 2007.1, openSUSE 10.2,

Supported platforms: x86, x86-64, ia64, DEC Alpha, Motorola 68k, SUN Sparc, ARM, PowerPC

Kernel type: Monolithic kernel

Default user interface (most distros): GUI

License: GNU General Public License

Working state: Current

Tux the penguin, the Linux mascot

Linux by simplest definition is an operating system, remarkable not for the role it fills as an OS, but for the community-driven effort which led to its creation and popularity.

It is also notable for running on the same Intel x86 hardware platform as the Windows and Mac operating system families, for being a very low-cost alternative to Windows, and for having a user experience and featureset that is nearly identical both to the previously very popular Unix operating system and to the commercial offerings from Microsoft and Apple it competes against.

Since its advent in the early 1990's, the rapid growth in popularity of Linux has been a disruptive force within the computer industry. Linux has subsequently become a poster boy of the Open source movement, and its success and popularity represents a paradigm shift in traditional closed-door software development.

Linux is open source software, which means it is written and improved upon through a community effort, and it can be obtained and used for free by anyone. Furthermore, numerous companies are able to earn money by offering "supported distributions" of Linux which have certain guarantees in terms of reliability and expected bug fixes, so customers who pay for one of the "supported" versions of Linux (such as Red Hat, or others) can rest assured that someone will help them if a serious problem arises. These specially packaged versions of Linux are called Linux distributions.

The origins of Linux are remarkable. The first Linux kernel was written by an upstart college student from Norway in 1991 in defiance of a competing, commercial effort by a renowned professor of computer architecture. The ensuing debate about what is practical and implementable versus academic theory between Linux' original creator, Linus Torvalds, and Dr. Andrew S. Tanenbaum of Vrije Universiteit, The Netherlands, has been retold repeatedly with amusement and amazement (please see the Monolithic versus Microkernel article for more information).

Although first developed for the the Intel i386 architecture, Linux has since been ported to numerous hardware platforms, including Intel i686, AMD64, SPARC, and Xbox systems. Although it has been very successful in a server environment, Linux has also attained status as a viable desktop platform.

Naming

The original name 'Linux' came from the author's name, Linus, along with the "x" in Unix, to show that it is Unix-like. Linus originally intended to call the project "Freax", for Free and Freak, with the "x" denoting that it is Unix-like, but after one of his colleagues named the system's FTP directory after him, the name stuck.

GNU/Linux naming controversy

In 1984, The Free Software Foundation, founded by Richard M Stallman, made an attempt to create a free Unix-like operating system, which they called the GNU system.

They began with the necessary tools for the system, such as a compiler, debugger, and a text editor. Their plan was to then create a kernel to place beneath the tools that they had created. Unfortunately, the foundation was very late in producing a stable release, and even to this day development of the HURD (the GNU kernel) continues without a stable first release.

It was during this time that Torvalds first introduced his kernel. Before Linux, hackers had no choice but to use non-free kernels, most notably Minix. While the GNU kernel began to look more and more like vaporware every day, the community received Linux with open arms and many began to contribute.

From gnu.org: "Variants of the GNU operating system, which use the kernel called Linux, are now widely used; though these systems are often referred to as “Linux”, they are more accurately called GNU/Linux systems."

The GNU Project members decided to call 'Linux' GNU/Linux, in order to attribute credit to those who worked hard at creating the tools that the Linux kernel runs. Torvalds, however, has made no effort to hide his thoughts towards this naming convention, saying that "calling Linux in general just 'GNU/Linux' I think is ridiculous."

Pronunciation

Linux is pronounced like 'Minix' - that is, "'li' is pronounced with a short [ee] sound: compare prInt, mInImal etc.'nux' is also short, non-diphtong, like in pUt."

Distributions

Linux is typically found as a package of software known as a Linux distribution, also commonly referred to as a "distro". A Linux distribution provides an easy method of installing a Linux system. Distributions come in many forms, from LiveCDs, which extract the system onto a mounted sector of memory, to full installation DVDs. Among the most notable are Ubuntu, RedHat, and SUSE.

Software

The KDE desktop on SUSE Linux 10.1

Aside from the GNU project's applications, Linux is capable of running many applications of all natures, from games and graphic editors to Integrated Development Environments and web servers. Among the most commonly used applications are The GIMP photo editing tool, which is commonly referred to as a free alternative to Photoshop, Firefox, a feature-complete, tabbed web browser, and OpenOffice, which is a free, full-featured alternative to the Microsoft Office suite. The GIMP, Firefox and OpenOffice are all cross-platform as well, meaning they run on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X.

Unlike Microsoft Windows NT, Linux itself is not a graphical system. Instead, Linux relies on a graphical layer to output bitmap images. The most common application for this is called X.org, commonly referred to as just X. X.org is a very minimal program that purposely does as little as possible. Users do not normally see it, but the results of its work. X.org serves as a layer between the kernel and the desktop environment or window manager. Window managers, like Openbox or wmii, are only able to manage windows and desktops, while desktop environments, such as GNOME, KDE and Xfce, provide advanced graphical functionality, such as the ability to process text, organize photos or chat online.

See also

• Linux kernel
• Linux distributions
• Linux history

External Links

Linus' first post presenting Linux The Linux Foundation