History of Computers - Linux

Introduction

Linux is a UNIX-like, low-cost, open-source operating system written in C language. The Linux kernel (core of the operating system that carries out system functions) was created by a Swedish computer science student, Linus Torvalds, in 1991. Linux was originally designed for PCs based on Intel x-86 architecture, but it has been adapted for more computer hardware platforms than any other operating system.

Overview

Linux supports multitasking, memory protection (so that one program can’t bring the whole system down), multiuser usage, multithreading (many independent threads of control), virtual memory, and demand loading (it only reads from disk the parts of the program that are actually used).

Linux runs on many different CPUs (not just Intel's) and is used on a wide range of devices: servers, mainframes and supercomputers, desktops, electric keyboards, readers, etc. In fact, more than 90% of today's fastest supercomputers run some form of Linux. Linux even runs on embedded systems, in which the operating system is built into non-volatile memory (such as ROM); for example, it is used on mobile phones (the Android system is built upon the Linux kernel), tablet computers, network routers, televisions, and video game consoles.

Linux has over 300 distributions, with about a dozen for general-purpose use; popular distributions include Debian, Fedora, Mandriva/Mageia, openSUSE, and Arch Linux.

Linux was released under the GNU General Public License and is still being developed and managed by the open source community.

Significance

Linux is significant to computer history because of its versatility (with regards to being able to run on such a wide range of devices) and because it is one of the most widely distributed open-source operating systems.