Linux

The creation of the Linux kernel

In 1991, Torvalds began to work on a non-commercial replacement for MINIX while he was attending the University of Helsinki,[5] which would eventually become the Linux kernel.

Contributions from GNU

Linux was originally dependent on the MINIX user space which, due to license issues, complicated distribution. With the user space from GNU freely available, it was in both in the Linux hobbyists and the GNU Project's interest if both could be distributed together. However, at the time Linux had a license that prohibited commercial distribution making it incompatible with the GNU General Public License. In 1992, with version 0.12 of the Linux kernel, Torvalds initiated a switch from his original license to the GPL.[6] Various Linux distributions (Slackware, Debian, Red Hat, and others) combined Linux and GNU code to make a fully functional and free operating system.[7]

Commercial and popular uptake
Main article: Linux adoption

Today Linux is used in numerous domains, from embedded systems[8] to supercomputers,[9] and has secured a place in server installations with the popular LAMP application stack.[10] Linux use in home desktop and enterprise desktop has been rapidly expanding and now claims a significant share of the desktop market.[11][12][13][14]

Linux has also become popular with the newly founded netbook market, with many devices such as the ASUS Eee PC and Acer Aspire One shipping with customized Linux distributions pre-installed.

Current Development

Torvalds continues to direct the development of the kernel. Stallman heads the Free Software Foundation, which in turn supports the GNU components. Finally, individuals and corporations develop third-party non-GNU components. These third-party components comprise a vast body of work including kernel modules, libraries, and user applications. Linux vendors and communities combine and distribute the kernel, GNU components, and other components in the form of Linux distributions.