1. /lee'nuhks/ or /li'nuks/, not /li:'nuhks/ n. The free Unix workalike created by Linus Torvalds and friends starting about 1991. The pronunciation /lee'nuhks/ is preferred because the name `Linus' has an /ee/ sound in Swedish (Linus's family is part of Finland's 6% ethnic-Swedish minority). This may be the most remarkable hacker project in history -- an entire clone of Unix for 386, 486 and Pentium micros, distributed for free with sources over the net (ports to Alpha and Sparc and many other machines are also in use). Linux is what GNU aimed to be, and it relies on the GNU toolset. But the Free Software Foundation didn't produce the kernel to go with that toolset until 1999, which was too late. Other, similar efforts like FreeBSD and NetBSD have been technically successful but never caught fire the way Linux has; as this is written in 2000, Linux is seriously challenging Microsoft's OS dominance. It has already captured 31% of the Internet-server market and 25% of general business servers. An earlier version of this entry opined "The secret of Linux's success seems to be that Linus worked much harder early on to keep the development process open and recruit other hackers, creating a snowball effect." Truer than we knew. See bazaar. (Some people object that the name `Linux' should be used to refer only to the kernel, not the entire operating system. This claim is a proxy for an underlying territorial dispute; people who insist on the term `GNU/Linux' want the the FSF to get most of the credit for Linux because RMS and friends wrote many of its user-level tools. Neither this theory nor the term `GNU/Linux' has gained more than minority acceptance). From Jargon Dictionary

2. <operating system> ("Linus Unix") /li'nuks/ (but see below) An implementation of the {Unix} {kernel} originally written from scratch with no proprietary code. The kernel runs on {Intel} and {Alpha} hardware in the general release, with {SPARC}, {PowerPC}, {MIPS}, {ARM}, {Amiga}, {Atari}, and {SGI} in active development. The SPARC, PowerPC, ARM, {PowerMAC} - {OSF}, and 68k ports all support {shells}, {X} and {networking}. The Intel and SPARC versions have reliable {symmetric multiprocessing}. Work on the kernel is coordinated by Linus Torvalds, who holds the copyright on a large part of it. The rest of the copyright is held by a large number of other contributors (or their employers). Regardless of the copyright ownerships, the kernel as a whole is available under the {GNU} {General Public License}. The GNU project supports Linux as its kernel until the research {Hurd} kernel is completed. This kernel would be no use without {application programs}. The GNU project has provided large numbers of quality tools, and together with other {public domain} software it is a rich Unix environment. A compilation of the Linux kernel and these tools is known as a Linux distribution. Compatibility modules and/or {emulators} exist for dozens of other computing environments. The kernel version numbers are significant: the odd numbered series (e.g. 1.3.xx) is the development (or beta) kernel which evolves very quickly. Stable (or release) kernels have even major version numbers (e.g. 1.2.xx). There is a lot of commercial support for and use of Linux, both by hardware companies such as {Digital}, {IBM}, and {Apple} and numerous smaller network and integration specialists. There are many commercially supported distributions which are generally entirely under the GPL. At least one distribution vendor guarantees {Posix} compliance. Linux is particularly popular for {Internet Service Providers}, and there are ports to both parallel supercomputers and {embedded} {microcontrollers}. {Debian} is one popular {open source} distribution. The pronunciation of "Linux" has been a matter of much debate. Many, including Torvalds, insist on the short I pronunciation /li'nuks/ because "Linus" has an /ee/ sound in Swedish (Linus's family is part of Finland's 6% ethnic-Swedish minority) and Linus considers English short /i/ to be closer to /ee/ than English long /i:/ dipthong. This is consistent with the short I in words like "linen". This doesn't stop others demanding a long I /li:'nuks/ following the english pronunciation of "Linus" and "minus". Others say /li'niks/ following {Minix}, which Torvalds was working on before Linux. From Hyperdictionary From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (09 FEB 02) [foldoc]

3. A widely used Open Source Unix-like operating system. Linux was first released by its inventor Linus Torvalds in 1991. There are versions of Linux for almost every available type of computer hardware from desktop machines to IBM mainframes. The inner workings of Linux are open and available for anyone to examine and change as long as they make their changes available to the public. This has resulted in thousands of people working on various aspects of Linux and adaptation of Linux for a huge variety of purposes, from servers to TV-recording boxes. From Matisse

4. An open source UNIX-like operating system, originally begun by Linus Torvalds. "Linux" really refers to only the operating system kernel, or core. More than 200 people have contributed to the development of the Linux kernel. The rest of a Linux distribution consists of various utilities, device drivers, applications, a user interface and other tools that generally can be compiled and run on other UNIX operating systems as well. From I-gloss

5. Linux is a completely free reimplementation of the POSIX specification, with SYSV and BSD extensions (which means it looks like Unix, but does not come from the same source code base), which is available in both source code and binary form. Its copyright is owned by Linus Torvalds <torvalds@transmeta.com> and other contributors, and is freely redistributable under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). A copy of the GPL is included with the Linux source; you can also get a copy from ftp://prep.ai.mit.edu/pub/gnu/COPYING Linux, per se, is only the kernel of the operating system, the part that controls hardware, manages files, separates processes, and so forth. There are several combinations of Linux with sets of utilities and applications to form a complete operating system. Each of these combinations is called a distribution of Linux. The word Linux, though it in its strictest form refers specifically to the kernel, is also widely and correctly to refer to an entire operating system built around the Linux kernel. For a list and brief discription of various distributions, see http://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/HOWTO/Distribution-HOWTO.html None of these distributions is ``the official Linux''. Linux is not public domain, nor is it `shareware'. It is `free' software, commonly called freeware or Open Source Software[tm] (see http://www.opensource.org), and you may give away or sell copies, but you must include the source code or make it available in the same way as any binaries you give or sell. If you distribute any modifications, you are legally bound to distribute the source for those modifications. See the GNU General Public License for details. Linux is still free as of version 2.0, and will continue to be free. Because of the nature of the GPL to which Linux is subject, it would be illegal for it to be made not free. Note carefully: the `free' part involves access to the source code rather than money; it is perfectly legal to charge money for distributing Linux, so long as you also distribute the source code. This is a generalization; if you want the fine points, read the GPL. Linux runs on 386/486/Pentium machines with ISA, EISA, PCI and VLB busses. MCA (IBM's proprietary bus) is not well-supported in 2.0.x and earlier versions, but support has been added to the current development tree, 2.1.x. If you are interested, see http://glycerine.itsmm.uni.edu/mca There is a port to multiple Motorola 680x0 platforms (currently running on some Amigas, Ataris, and VME machines), which now works quite well. It requires a 68020 with an MMU, a 68030, 68040, or a 68060, and also requires an FPU. Networking and X now work. See news:comp.os.linux.m68k Linux runs well on DEC's Alpha CPU, currently supporting the "Jensen", "NoName", "Cabriolet", "Universal Desktop Box" (better known as the Multia), and many other platforms. For more information, see http://www.azstarnet.com/~axplinux/FAQ.html Linux runs well on Sun SPARCs; most sun4c, sun4m, and sun4u machines now run Linux, with support for sun4 in development. Red Hat Linux is (as of this writing) the only Linux distribution available for SPARCs; see http://www.redhat.com/support/docs/rhl-sparc/ Linux is being actively ported to the PowerPC architecture, including PowerMac (Nubus and PCI), Motorola, IBM, and Be machines. See http://www.cs.nmt.edu/~linuxppc/ and http://www.linuxppc.org/ Ports to other machines, including MIPS (see http://linus.linux.sgi.com and http://lena.fnet.fr/) and ARM, are under way and showing various amounts of progress. Don't hold your breath, but if you are interested and able to contribute, you may well find other developers who wish to work with you. Linux is no longer considered to be in beta testing, as version 1.0 was released on March 14, 1994. There are still bugs in the system, and new bugs will creep up and be fixed as time goes on. Because Linux follows the ``open development model'', all new versions will be released to the public, whether or not they are considered ``production quality''. However, in order to help people tell whether they are getting a stable version or not, the following scheme has been implemented: Versions n.x.y, where x is an even number, are stable versions, and only bug fixes will be applied as y is incremented. So from version 1.2.2 to 1.2.3, there were only bug fixes, and no new features. Versions n.x.y, where x is an odd number, are beta-quality releases for developers only, and may be unstable and may crash, and are having new features added to them all the time. >From time to time, as the currect development kernel stabilizes, it will be frozen as the new ``stable'' kernel, and development will continue on a new development version of the kernel. Note that most releases of the Linux kernel, beta or not, are relatively robust; ``stable'' in this context means ``slow to change'' in addition to ``robust''. The current stable version is 2.0.35 (this will continue to change as new device drivers get added and bugs fixed), and development has also started on the experimental 2.1.x kernels. The Linux kernel source code contains a file, Documentation/Changes, which explains changes that you should be aware of when upgrading from one kernel version to another. However, the great majority of Linux users simply update their Linux distribution occasionally to get a new kernel version. Most versions of Linux, beta or not, are quite robust, and you can keep using those if they do what you need and you don't want to be on the bleeding edge. One site had a computer running version 0.97p1 (dating from the summer of 1992) for over 136 days without an error or crash. (It would have been longer if the backhoe operator hadn't mistaken a main power transformer for a dumpster...) Others have posted uptimes in excess of a year. One site still had a computer running Linux 0.99p15s over 600 days at last report. One thing to be aware of is that Linux is developed using an open and distributed model, instead of a closed and centralized model like much other software. This means that the current development version is always public (with up to a week or two of delay) so that anybody can use it. The result is that whenever a version with new functionality is released, it almost always contains bugs, but it also results in a very rapid development so that the bugs are found and corrected quickly, often in hours, as many people work to fix them. In contrast, the closed and centralized model means that there is only one person or team working on the project, and they only release software that they think is working well. Often this leads to long intervals between releases, long waiting for bug fixes, and slower development. The latest release of such software to the public is sometimes of higher quality, but the development speed is generally much slower. For a discussion of these two models, read ``The Cathedral and the Bazaar'' at http://sagan.earthspace.net/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/ by Eric Raymond. As of September 1, 1998, the current stable version of Linux is 2.0.35, and the latest development version is 2.1.119. From Linux-Intro-HOWTO

6. The free Unix workalike created by Linus Torvalds and friends starting about 1991. The pronunciation /li'nuhks/ is preferred because the name `Linus' has an /ee/ sound in Swedish (Linus's family is part of Finland's 6% ethnic-Swedish minority) and Linus considers English short /i/ to be closer to /ee/ than English long /i:/. This may be the most remarkable hacker project in history -- an entire clone of Unix for 386, 486 and Pentium micros, distributed for free with sources over the net (ports to Alpha and Sparc and many other machines are also in use). Linux is what {GNU} aimed to be, and it relies on the GNU toolset. But the Free Software Foundation didn't produce the kernel to go with that toolset until 1999, which was too late. Other, similar efforts like FreeBSD and NetBSD have been technically successful but never caught fire the way Linux has; as this is written in 2001, Linux is seriously challenging Microsoft's OS dominance. It has already captured 31% of the Internet-server market and 25% of general business servers. An earlier version of this entry opined "The secret of Linux's success seems to be that Linus worked much harder early on to keep the development process open and recruit other hackers, creating a snowball effect." Truer than we knew. See {bazaar}. (Some people object that the name `Linux' should be used to refer only to the kernel, not the entire operating system. This claim is a proxy for an underlying territorial dispute; people who insist on the term `GNU/Linux' want the {FSF} to get most of the credit for Linux because RMS and friends wrote many of its user-level tools. Neither this theory nor the term `GNU/Linux' has gained more than minority acceptance). From Hyperdictionary From Jargon File (4.3.0, 30 APR 2001) [jargon]

7. The term "Linux" refers to either full the full OS packages provided by many vendors, or specifically the kernel these packages are based upon. The packages are known as distributions or distros. Well-known Linux distros include RedHat, SuSE, TurboLinux, Trinux, etc. Most of these distros rely solely upon open-source software. Point: Linux vies with Solaris and Windows as being the most popular OS for Internet servers. Contrast: Linux is a UNIX-like operating-system, more similar to UNIX System 5 than to BSD UNIX. From Hacking-Lexicon

8. a completely free reimplementation of the POSIX specification, with SYSV and BSD extensions (which means it looks like Unix, but does not come from the same source code base), which is available in both source code and binary form. From Linux Guide @FirstLinux