Linux: History and Characteristics of the Operating System

While Windows is the operating system with the largest presence on computers around the world, more and more users are beginning to give Linux a try. An operating system that despite its great importance in certain areas, is the most unknown at the desktop level. If you are interested in this system, we show below what Linux is , history, main features and distributions.

For starters, it is important to know that Linux is an operating system designed to take full advantage of the capabilities of any computer and that it has very interesting features such as multiprocessing, multitasking and multi-user. To begin to know a little more about the origin of Linux, we will make a general review of its history.

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A little history

Although the history of Linux begins to be written a little later, its origins make us go back to the early 80s, when Richard Stallman started the GNU Project with the purpose of creating a similar and UNIX compatible operating system. In 1985, the Free Software Foundation was created and the GNU General Public License was developed to have a legal framework that would allow this software to be freely disseminated.

Later, in 1991 , it was Linus Torvalds, a 23-year-old computer science student from the University of Helsinki, who proposed making an operating system that behaves like UNIX but also works on any computer. At this time, Torvalds itself established as a minimum requirement that the computer have an i386 processor.

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The main objective of this student was to create the core of the operating system that was fully UNIX-compatible and thus allowed to run all the free UNIX-compliant programs developed by the Free Software Foundation that come with a GNU license. For the development of this kernel, Torvalds was inspired by Minix , a reduced version of UNIX.

A few months later, in late August 1991, Torvalds already had version 0.01 of Linux, but since it was still very basic and with little functionality, he decided to continue developing what would be version 0.02, which was released in the month. October of that same year and that was already able to run two basic GNU tools, the command interpreter (bash) and the C compiler.

The young man continued working on the development of the operating system and after version 0.03, the great support of other people who began to participate with Linus in the development, made him jump quickly to version 0.1. A year and a half later, in December 1993, the version of Linux 1.0 was born and the base of this open source operating system, which over the years has grown to this day with the support of each and every developer. who have contributed their bit.

What is Linux and main features

Linux is a completely free operating system and therefore free . A product that unlike Windows or macOS is not owned by a company, hence its free, but by a large number of companies or people who contribute to its development and create their own distributions.

In short, Linux is a system that was born from the combination of several projects, among which the GNU and the Free Software Foundation stand out, as well as the Linux kernel itself headed by Linus Torvalds. Its development is one of the best examples of free software, where all its source code can be freely used, modified and distributed by anyone under the terms of the GPL or GNU General Public License and other licenses.

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Among the main features of Linux we must highlight:

  • Free: One of the main reasons many users choose Linux or at least give it a try is the fact that it is a free operating system. In addition, there are a lot of distributions so that we can choose the one that we like the best or best suits our needs.
  • Open source: Its creators decided that Linux was an open source system, which caused its source code to be released so that anyone can develop new capabilities or functions and make them available to everyone.
  • Secure: Security is one of the most important features of Linux. Because it is a free system, few are interested in creating viruses for the system. In addition, it contains an architecture for the management of files, processes and memory that does not easily allow the permanence of viruses or malware. Furthermore, once a user detects a threat, it is removed and a simple update fixes the problem.
  • Multitasking: The fact that Linux is a multitasking operating system means that it allows you to run multiple programs simultaneously. Therefore, it allows the use of numerous applications to be able to browse the Internet, process documents, listen to music, watch videos, etc., just as we can do with other systems such as Windows itself or macOS.
  • Multi-user: Another characteristic of Linux is that it is a multi-user system. In other words, multiple users can access Linux resources and applications simultaneously and always securely.
  • Customizable:
  • High control of devices: The Linux operating system, unlike other systems, offers the possibility of having the drivers for each device and of being able to install new drivers the moment we add new elements to the system. This allows for greater independence and the ability to maneuver in the face of any problem or for the simple fact of thoroughly controlling each device.
  • Independent: Another of the great characteristics of Linux is that it is an operating system that can be freely modified and distributed. In other words, anyone can access their code, modify or develop new capabilities without the need for prior permissions or protocols.
  • Stable: Linux is considered one of the most robust and stable systems, which is why it is the most widely used system on servers and computers that have to always stay on without anything going wrong.
  • Scalable: It is an operating system that due largely to many of the features mentioned above has a great capacity to react and adapt to needs. You can easily manage continuous growth and you can grow quickly without losing quality without any problem.

Linux distributions

Surely on more than one occasion we have heard of Linux distributions or distros , well, it is nothing more than software based on the Linux kernel that includes certain software packages that allow you to perform certain functions to meet the needs of users.

These distributions are generally made up of free software and include the GNU Project libraries and tools and the X Windows System window system. In addition, depending on who the distro is aimed at, other types of software are also usually included, such as word processors, spreadsheets, multimedia players, administrative tools, etc.

This means that today we can find Linux distributions for all tastes and needs. Light distros to be able to give life to old computers or computers with few capabilities at the hardware level, distributions with an interface similar to Windows or macOS, etc.