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A Brief History of Linux
Separating Linux from the legend, one realizes that its origins go back thirty
years. The strength and stability of Linux evolved from time-tested concepts
that provided a solid foundation. Here are a few of the key events that
led to its development.
1971 - The first edition of the Unix server operating system emerges from Bell Labs.
Although Linux does not include any Unix code, it is a Unix clone, which means it
shares a number of technical features with Unix, which might be considered the
forerunner of the open-source operating system. During the 1970s, Unix code was
distributed to people at various universities and companies, and they created their
own Unix varieties, which ultimately evolved into Sun (SUNW) Microsystems' Solaris,
Berkeley's FreeBSD and Silicon Graphics (SGI) ' IRIX.
1985 - Richard Stallman publishes his famous "GNU Manifesto", one of the first documents
of the open-source revolution. Stallman began working on the GNU operating system in
1983, largely because he wanted to create an open-source version of Unix. (GNU stands
for "GNU is Not Unix.") Stallman's Free Software Foundation later created the GNU
General Public License, the widely adopted, fully legal treatise
that today allows Linux and other software to remain completely free.
1987 - Professor Andrew S. Tanenbaum invents Minix, an open-source operating system
that's a clone of Unix. Young Linus Torvalds, at the time a computer science student
in Finland, is introduced to Minix, and bases his plans for Linux on the Minix
example.
1991 - In August, Torvalds announces his plans to create a free operating system on the
Minix users newsgroup. He modestly notes in his posting that his OS is "just a hobby.
[It] won't be big and professional like GNU." In October, Linux 0.01 is released on
the Internet under a GNU public license. The first release of Linux was only 71k (compressed).
In the Minix newsgroup, Torvalds asks his fellow programmers to lend a hand in
making the system more workable. He gets enough help to release version 0.1 by
December. Over the next several years, Linux developers swell into the hundreds
of thousands and work to make Linux compatible with GNU programs. Vendors like
Red Hat, Caldera and Debian create popular distributions of Linux that bundle
the operating system with useful programs and a graphical interface.
1997 - Torvalds moves to Silicon Valley and goes to work at Transmeta.
1999 - In August, Red Hat completes its initial public offering, making it the first
Linux-oriented company to successfully go public. In December, Andover.net, a
consortium of Web site resources largely devoted to Linux, and VA Linux, a
manufacturer of Linux hardware, have wildly successful IPOs. Linuxcare, a leading
Linux service provider, announces alliances with such industry giants as IBM, Dell,
Motorola, and Informix.
Resources:
History of Linux By Annallee Newitz (The Standard)
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