 What
is Linux? I am sure that any of you that have spent a little time surfing
the net have occasionally come upon the name "Linux," and maybe you have
wondered to yourself what it was.
The first thing you see when reading a description of Linux is "full-blown UNIX operating system." That is exactly what Linux is: UNIX for your Intel-based PC. To me, however, Linux is a lot more than that. Mostly, it is just plain fun. Linux started out as a hacker's OS, pieced together by many voluteer programmers on the Internet. Today, Linux stands as a very powerful and very stable OS capable of doing anything you can do with any of the other flavors of UNIX that are out there today. Nonetheless, this born-of-hackers OS still retains the free-spirit and fun of a major hacking project, something that I had lost somewhere along the way between the Apple computers of the late 70's and Windows95. That is one of the beautiful things about Linux: you can have a powerful, stable, easy-to-use UNIX for your desktop, and at the same time you have access to the source code for the system itself that you can hack to your hearts content. Enough said about programming your own OS. I am sure that most
of you out there would not care to have an operating system that you can
hack, so let's talk about some of the basics of getting and using Linux.
If I sound like a Linux cheerleader, it is because I am! I have spent over
a year now hacking and using Linux, and now use it for about 75% of my
computer-related tasks. If ya' don't like Bill Gates, and don't want to
go the MacIntrash route, or need some UNIX muscle, take a look at Linux!
A BRIEF HISTORY OF LINUXFrom the Linux home page, http://www.linux.org:PARTS IS PARTSAs a result of his developing the Linux kernel, Linus Torvalds has become somewhat of a god on the Internet. But, what exactly is the "kernel?"The kernel is the actual heart of Linux (or most any OS). It is the actual program code that does all of the processing. It talks to the CPU, the storage devices, the I/O devices, to the users (via shells), and generally is what we mean when we say 'the Linux OS.' On many Linux systems, the kernel exists as a compressed file called 'vmlinuz' in the root directory of your boot partition. At boot time, it is uncompressed into memory and runs from there. When installing a new Linux system, one of the steps that you go through is to actually configure the kernel. You tell the configuration program what hardware you have on your system, and a kernel specifically for your system is compiled, linked and installed. Unfortuntely (or fortunately, if you are a hacker), the creation of a Linux kernel for your system can sometimes be a real hassle. Several distributions of Linux (more on this below) make it easier by providing more user-friendly configuration utilities than the stock ones that come with using the Linux source code and C compilers. However, at present, Linux does not support Plug 'n' Pray, so you have to know exactly what hardware is present on your system before you go plunging in to the process of installing Linux on your system. The Linux kernel is continually updated by Linus himself, as well as other folks. In fact, if you want to upgrade your kernel to the latest, bleeding-edge version that is available, you can ftp to ftp.funet.fi, go to /pub/Linux/PEOPLE/Linus/kernels/2.1, and there you will find the latest kernel, possibly uploaded by Linus himself before he went home for the day! Like most other software, Linux kernels get upgraded all the time to add new features, fix bugs, etc. As of this writing, the latest kernel is version 2.1.17, which I am running as I write! The kernel alone is pretty useless, as it needs all sorts of supporting software for it to run. Just having a Linux kernel is analogous to having a really nice, souped-up engine, but no car. Nowadays, the Linux 'car' (engine and all), is supplied to end-users in the form of a Linux distribution. The distributions contain not only the kernel, but all of the software needed to set up a complete UNIX workstation and server, right down to all of the documentation. Just like cars, Linux distributions come in many makes. Among the most famous Linux distributions are Red Hat, Slackware, and Debian. As you might guess, there are religious wars about which is the best Linux distribution, and there are significant differences between each of them. In general, the Red Hat release of Linux is the easiest to install and use, and is designed for todays point and click generation. Slackware is the release I use. It is pretty easy to install as well, but does not insulate the user as much from the basic core system as does Red Hat. I have never used the Debian release of Linux, so I can't say too much about it, except that there are some devoted Debian users out there. The basics of all the distributions are the same. Of course, you get the kernel, usually anything from 2.1 on down. You also get a program that walks you through the installation process. Just over the last year, these installation programs have gotten much better and easier to use. Linux releases also come with all of the standard utilities used by all Unices, and a complete X Windows system. X Windows is a graphical environment in use primarily on Unix machines all over the world, and it provides a nice graphical user interface. You also get typsetting and printing software (e.g. TeX), network drivers and software, Internet software, text editors, graphics programs, comm programs, and literally hundreds and hundreds of other software packages. Together, all of the programs of a Linux distribution will make up a complete UNIX workstation or server package. Virtually all of the software in a Linux distribution is free of charge. Most of it is 'copylefted.' meaning that it is written by voluteer programmers for no charge, provided that all of the documentation and copyleft material remains intact. Companies like Red Hat and Caldera (http://www.caldera.com) also publish high quality software for the Linux platform, but you have to pay for that. The fact that the software is free troubles some people. 'How good can it be if it is free?' Well, I can personally tell you that a Linux server or workstation can do everything a WindowsNT, Sun, or SGI workstation can do. This is another of the really cool things about Linux. With all the interest nowadays in the Web and the Internet, I
should mention this: Linux comes with networking features that allow you
to connect to your dial-up ISP from home. Additionally, Linux comes with
all of the Internet software you need to get started, including a few web
browsers. Once you are on the net, you can go to Netscape's site and download
their copy of Navigator 3.01 for Linux. Since the Internet is basically
UNIX-based, and Linux was born on the net, you can't help but really feel
that you are a living, breathing part of the net when surfing on your Linux
workstation.
WHAT'S IT TO YA'?Well, if you haven't guessed it by now, Linux turns your Intel-based PC into a very powerful UNIX workstation. For those of us that know and love UNIX, this statement needs no further clarification, for this brings us closer to Nerdvana. For normal people, you may be asking, 'So what?' If you happen to need a fast file server, network server, or Internet server at your place of business, then look no further than Linux. If you thought that you had to spend megabucks on Windows NT for your server or workstation, then think again.Another of the many nice things about Linux is that it can co-exist
on the same system with Windows95 or NT, meaning that you can boot up whatever
OS you need at any given time via a handy little Linux utility called LILO.
Linux can also write to DOS and Win95 partitions, so making the 2 OSs communicate
with each other is not at all difficult. What this means for you is that
you don't have to give up use of your Windows OS to take advantage of Linux.
WHERE FOR ART THOU, LINUX?OK, you are really jazzed up now. You're saying to yourself, 'Self, we really need this! Where can I get it?!?' Linux was born on the Internet, and it still lives there to this day. If you have an embarrassingly huge amount of time to kill and/or a blazingly fast Internet connection, you can download many megabytes worth of your favorite Linux distribution right off the net. The Red Hat distribution can be gotten from ftp://ftp.redhat.com, and you can get the Slackware dist from ftp://ftp.cdrom.com. Keep in mind that this is a lot of downloading, and not the best way to obtain a copy of Linux. The best way is to purchase a Linux distribution from any of a
number of different vendors out on the net. Several companies market the
various Linux distributions, all for the cost of packaging and printing
of instructions. If you want to buy a copy of Slackware Linux directly
from the company that makes it, point your browser to http://www.cdrom.com
for purchasing info, or drop me an email. For Redhat Linux, go to http://www.redhat.com.
Each of these releases comes with a complete Linux system on CD ROM, and
you also get 3 or 4 more CDs chock full of more software than you will
ever need, with everything from games to device drivers. These distributions
will run you anywhere from $30 to $50, definitely not bad for what you're
getting.
PARTING SHOTSAs wonderful as I think that Linux is, and as powerful as it is, one thing is clear: Linux ain't for everybody. Although it has reached a remarkable level of stability in a relatively short period of time, using Linux still requires a user to get his/her hands dirty by digging into the guts of the OS, particularly if you plan to do a lot of hardware upgrading, or run the system on non-standard hardware. Many of the software packages that are available for free on the Internet come in source form only, meaning that you have to actually compile it yourself. For some, this can be just a little too much trouble, especially if you have no idea what the previous sentence meant.In my opinion, another more serious problem with using Linux is the lack of high quality software for home and office use. While there are some nice office suites available for Linux (e.g. Applixware from Applix), they fail to reach the sophistication of a Microsoft Office. However, I think that if Linux continues on its current growth curve, we will soon see some better and more powerful offerings in the area of productivity software. Keep in mind that the Linux OS is only 5 years old! Still, if you need a high end workstation or server running on
your present hardware, or if you need access to all of the powerful tools
available for UNIX, or if you just want to have some fun configuring an
OS, then I would highly recommend Linux to anyone. Since Linux is an offshoot
of UNIX, it was born Internet-ready, and so all of the most powerful tools
for using the net are built right into the system.
FOR MORE INFORMATIONThe best place to get more info on Linux is of course the Web. I list here just a small sample of web sites you might want to look at in order to learn more about Linux. There are also many excellent books on the topic, some of which are listed here. They are available locally at Barnes & Noble store. Barnes & Noble also carries the Linux Journal, a monthly magazine devoted to Linux.Internet Sites
Books
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