What is Linux?
Short answer:
- Linux is a freely distributable UNIX clone for 386/486/Pentium based PCs.
A little bit longer answer:
- Linux is an independent implementation of the POSIX operating system specification with System V and BSD extensions.
- Linux was first developed for 386/486/Pentium based PCs but currently it also runs on DEC Alphas, SUN Sparcs, M68000 machines (like Atari and Amiga), MIPS and PowerPC.
- Linux has been written entirely from scratch, it has no proprietary code in it.
- Linux is available in both source and object form.
- Linux is freely distributable under the GNU General Public License.
- The Linux kernel has been written by Linus Torvalds from the Department of Computer Science, University of Helsinki, Finland with assistance from a loosely-knit team of volunteers across the Net.
- Linux has all the features you would expect in a modern fully-fledged
UNIX, including
- true multitasking
- virtual memory
- shared libraries
- demand loading
- shared copy-on-write executables
- proper memory management
- TCP/IP networking
- Most of the programs running under Linux are generic UNIX freeware, many of them from the GNU project.
Petri Kutvonen