This page entails some research that I have completed regarding Linux, as well as my own personal take on the operating system. Because this page contains information I have found elsewhere, I have provided a bibliography at the bottom of the page; the links may also be found under Links:Linux of the Help section.

Linux, a child of Bell Lab's UNIX, began as a pet project of Linus Benedict Torvalds in 1991 while Linus was a student at the University of Helsinki. The name is pretty clear--Linus+UNIX=Linux, but what is not so clear is how a student's pet project has become a highly recommended alternative to Windows. In the beginning, Linus began working on Linux in order to learn specifics of the 386 architecture, and he continued to develop releases of the operating system in order to provide other software/hardware enthusiasts with the opportunity to share his learning experience and develop an open-source operating system. With a primarily Minix background, Linus and other Linux-supporters took the simple operating system and turned it into a robust, freely-distributed, and fully functional and customizable operating system. This system has been tweaked and customized into many major distros, each with a unique twist on the original Linux design.

Many web sites are served out to web surfers via Linux-driven machines. This is because one of the primary advantages of Linux is stability. It is not uncommon to see a Linux system that has gone weeks, months, even years without needing a reboot. Linux is constantly updated with support for new hardware, although software compatibility is a bit rugged; because Linux can be used with a diverse group of hardware and is highly reliable, it is recommended for computers where intense computations or heavy system load may occur.

Linus released Linux as free software, or open source. Nik Reiman, my Rose colleague who introduced me to Linux, pointed out to me that "free software" did not mean software for free; actually, many companies charge for their open source software. What is "free" about the software is the source code. Linux's popularity is due partly because the source code is freely available for modification, and these modifications provide unique distros.

Linux enables the user to customize every detail of the computer system, including programs used on the system, core files used by the system, and the structure of the system. This customization paves a road for a completely unique system, as well as a completely dead system when the user exerts customization ignorantly. I view Linux as the "manual" or the "stick" of operating systems, because it is more difficult to learn than Windows (which I view was the "automatic"); however, just as drivers of manual vehicles exert more control over their vehicles, Linux users are able to exert more control over their systems than Windows allows. Once a user takes the time to learn the Linux structure, he will appreciate the wide range of options and features available to a Linux user. If the user feels a particular option or feature is missing, he also has the power to add it in!

If you haven't experienced Linux, now you know what you're missing or at least what all the hype is about. Now you may be asking, what's the deal with Windows?

Bibliography:
Linux Torvald's Emails at Linux International
The History of Linux, by Ragib Hasan