LinuxHouse

Q: What Is Linux?

A: The name "Linux" is used to refer to three similar yet slightly different things, which can be confusing to all but the hardcore geek. The three usages vary by how much of a complete software system the speaker is talking about.

Generally, Linux is classified as a computer operating system. It is probably the best known example of free software and of open-source development.

At a fundamental level, every Linux system is based on the Linux kernel, the very machine-level software that manages your computer hardware, multi-tasks the many programs that are running at any given time, and other such essential things. These machine -level functions are used by other programs, so their authors can focus on the specific functionality they want to provide. Without the kernel, your computer is a very expensive paper-weight/doorstop. It has all of the features of a modern operating system: true multitasking, threads, virtual memory, shared libraries, demand loading, shared, copy-on-write executables, proper memory management, loadable device driver modules, video frame buffering, and TCP/IP networking.

Often the name "Linux" is used to refer to the Linux Operating System. An OS includes the kernel, but also adds various utilities, the kinds of programs you need to get anything done. For example, it includes a shell (the program that provides a command prompt and lets you run programs), a program to copy files, a program to delete files, and many other odds and ends.

Additionally, software companies (and sometimes volunteer groups) add on lots of extra software, like the XFree86 X Window System, Gnome, KDE, games and many other applications. These software compilations which are based on the
Linux OS are called Linux distributions.

So, there are three Linuxes: the Linux kernel, the Linux OS, and the various Linux distributions. Most people, however, refer to the
operating system kernel, system software, and application software, collectively, as "Linux", and that convention is used
in Linux-House as well.

Q: Is Linux Unix?

A: Officially an operating system is not allowed to be called a Unix until it passes the Open Group's certification tests, and supports the
necessary API's. Nobody has yet stepped forward to pay the large fees that certification involves, so we're not allowed to call it Unix.
Certification really doesn't mean very much anyway. Very few of the commercial operating systems have passed the Open Group tests.

A: Unofficially, Linux is very similar to the operating systems which are known as Unix, and for many purposes they are equivalent.
Linux the kernel is an operating system kernel that behaves and performs similarly to the famous Unix operating system from AT&T Bell Labs. Linux is often called a "Unix-like" operating system.

Q: Who Wrote Linux?

A: Linus Torvalds and a loosely knit team of volunteer hackers from across the Internet wrote (and still are writing) Linux from scratch.

Note: Article compiled from various sources i.e. over the Internet, magazines, newspapers, books, etc,etc.
Edited and hashed together by LinuxHouse DotNet Sdn.Bhd.