Linux

Everyone has some familiarity with PC’s and Mac’s, and, by extension, Windows and OS X which are the main operating systems for these respective machines.  What you may or may not be aware of is another operating system that can be used and has gotten some traction in the PC world – Linux.

What is an operating system?

There are many definitions out there on what an operating system is but I think the most basic definition is:

An operating system is the stuff that allows users to use the hardware on their computer (i.e. CD’s, keyboards, mice, etc) and also run programs.

Note, the operating system isn’t a program, it is the communication between a software program and you.  It’s job is to make things easier for you, it will allow you to do “stuff” without having to deal with the details of the computer.  For example:

• You want to add a printer and print a document.  The operating system takes care of the details so you can say “Add Printer”, or “Print Document” without having to deal with all of the intricacies that is involved with that (for example, having one document wait while another one is printing).
• You are running multiple programs on your computer at once, the operating system takes care of giving each program enough memory to run when it needs to.
• The file system on the computer (i.e. files and directories) is controlled by the operating system, as is the file permissions.

Without an operating system, you would have a much harder time making a computer do useful things for you.

So what’s Linux?

Linux is probably most famously known for being a free and open source operating system.  What does that mean for you and me? – it legitimately will not cost you anything to download it and install it.

The other advantage that Linux has over other operating systems is that it isn’t proprietary, anyone can see what the operating system is doing and can make modifications to it.

Linux has its roots in an operating system called Unix, which used to be used on a lot of workstations.

Here’s a quick definition from Linux Online

Linux is a free Unix-type operating system originally created by Linus Torvalds with the assistance of developers around the world. Developed under the GNU General Public License , the source code for Linux is freely available to everyone.

What is a distro?

Distro is shorthand for a distribution.  Basically it is a complete package of software and applications that you can install on your machine in one sitting.

There is no one universal standard Linux distribution.  Instead there are many different distros, you need to research them to decide which is best for you.

Where do I do to get it?

There are many distributions out there.  I’m just going to list a couple.

• Ubuntu – one of the most popular distributions.  It has concentrated on making the desktop experience good for the average user.
• Knoppix – maker of a Linux version that goes on a Live CD – perfect if you just want to see what Linux is without having to install it on your machine.

And here are lists of other Linux distributions:

• Linux.Org distribution List
• DistroWatch

Live CD

Live CD’s are great, they let you try out a distribution without installing it. This allows you to run your favorite distribution on any computer without having to install it.  In addition, they can very handy if you need to recover data from an unbootable disk – if you can’t reboot your system, you can put a Live CD in and possibly access the hard disk – and your data – via the Live CD operating system.

Why isn’t it popular?

This depends on who you talk to.  On servers, Linux is indeed very popular.  If you are, for example, using a machine to host websites (i.e. a web server), Linux does a very good job with its LAMP stack (Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP).  It runs well and there is no licensing cost.

On the desktop, it is a different matter however.

In the early days of Linux, you really needed to invest the time to get a computer up and running.  You had to do a lot of command line things, you needed to get the proper hardware drivers, etc.  Now, a lot of the distros have done a good job at packaging up the basics that you need to simply install the CD and have a working system.  It is still not as easy as Windows or a Mac but it is getting better.

What should I be worried about if I want to run Linux?

Here is a basic list of issues as I see it.

• There is no automatic help line, yes there are support forums and you can potentially get paid support but it won’t be as easy as from one of the main computer companies.
• It may be more difficult to get your hardware up and running.  You need to check to make sure that there is a Linux driver for your hardware components.
• No matter what, expect to spend some time tweaking the system to make it the way you want it.  If you aren’t comfortable around a computer, then I don’t think Linux is for you.
• The software you are used to using most likely won’t be available on Linux – but there is, in just about every case, an alternative open source program that can do the same thing.  Unless you have a very specialized software program, this shouldn’t be a major issue.

Given all of this, why should I try Linux?

Linux has its strengths, you just need to be aware of the whole picture, warts and all.  Among the strengths of Linux are:

• It is free to download and run it.
• You can run Linux on an older machine and one that has less memory than a machine that would run Windows or OS X.
• If you like tinkering and/or learning how computers work, Linux is perfect for you.