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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux Linux As open source

Linux Open source is an approach to the design, development, and distribution of software, offering practical accessibility to software’s source code. Some consider open source as one of various possible design approaches, while others consider it a critical strategic element of their operations.

Linux is a generic term referring to Unix-like computer operating systems based on the Linux kernel. Their development is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software collaboration; typically all the underlying source code can be used, freely modified, and redistributed by anyone under the terms of the GNU GPL] and other free licenses Linux is predominantly known for its use in servers, although it is installed on a wide variety of computer hardware, ranging from embedded devices and mobile phones to supercomputers Linux distributions, installed on both desktop and laptop computers, have become increasingly commonplace in recent years, owing largely to the popular Ubuntu distribution and to the emergence of net books. History The UNIX operating system was conceived and implemented in the 1960s and first released in 1970. Its wide availability and portability meant that it was widely adopted, copied and modified by academic institutions and businesses, with its design being influential on authors of other systems. The GNU Project, started in 1984 by Richard Stallman, had the goal of creating a "complete Unix-compatible software system"[10] composed entirely of free software. The next year Stallman created the Free Software Foundation and wrote the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL) in 1989. By the early 1990s, many of the programs required in an operating system (such as libraries, compilers, text editors, a Unix shell, and a windowing system) were completed, although low-level elements such as device drivers, daemons, and the kernel were stalled and incomplete. Linus Torvalds has said that if the GNU kernel had been available at the time (1991), he would not have decided to write his own.