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Linus' First Linux Post, 20 Years Ago Today

Posted by Soulskill on from the know-the-score dept.

jrepin writes "One midsummer's night, a student at the University of Helsinki posted a query to the newsgroup comp.os.minix asking, 'What would you like to see most in minix?' The student's name was Linus Torvalds, and that Usenet post was the beginning of the Linux operating system. The date was 25 August 1991, exactly 20 years ago today. In 1991 Unix had existed for about 20 years, Apple had come out with its Mac OS in 1984, and Microsoft had been flogging Windows since 1985. Torvalds' ambitions for his 'new (free) operating system' were modest. It was to be 'just a hobby, won't be big and professional like gnu' for IBM PC '386(486) AT clones.' He wanted to call his OS kernel 'Freax,' but a friend who ran the FTP server that hosted the software named Torvalds' source code download directory 'linux' and the name stuck."

181 comments

  1. My first post by guruevi · · Score: 1

    Thanks a lot Linus. A lot of the industry's heavyweights are getting older though. Linus, RMS. Jobs, Woz and Gates already semi-retired. Malda is moving on.

    The big question is going to be: who will be as influential in the next 20 years as those guys and is it even possible or necessary?

    --
    Custom electronics and digital signage for your business: www.evcircuits.com
    1. Re:My first post by UnresolvedExternal · · Score: 1, Interesting

      He may have written a decent OS but he sucked at predictions....

    2. Re:My first post by jhoegl · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The influence will most likely come from outside the US, EU, China, India, or other large tech countries.
      Reason being? Restrictive policies that hamper innovation, such as copyright, "method patents", and large companies afraid of competition.

    3. Re:My first post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So... the big influencers in high tech will come from somewhere where they don't have technology and live in primitive third world conditions?

      Yeah... great forecast.

    4. Re:My first post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Or you know, one of the many non-poor areas in places like South America, South Africa, Russia, Japan, Korea...

      Not everyone outside of the US, EU, China and India are currently experiencing a famine, despite your US-centric view of the world as "Us and poor people reliant on Us".

    5. Re:My first post by DarwinSurvivor · · Score: 1

      Nah, Canada (no software patents up here) will just have to take over!

    6. Re:My first post by peter+hoffman · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I don't think anyone will be as influential in the computer world. It was a much smaller community back then and it was easier to stand out. That's not to say there won't be people who do things that are as meaningful but they will now be one of dozens of projects.

      If a person is going to be that sort of stand out today, he will have to be in another field - perhaps nanotechnology or bio-engineering - where the foundations are still being laid.

    7. Re:My first post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ... why was malda included in that list? slashdot is hardly comparable to the achievements of the other people you listed.

    8. Re:My first post by Tsingi · · Score: 1
      We don't have software patents?

      I didn't know that. Can't last long with Harper at the helm.

    9. Re:My first post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      most likely scenario is that at the first sign of money to be made it will be sued to oblivion by a horde of angry lawyers

    10. Re:My first post by Tsingi · · Score: 1

      Sucking up.

    11. Re:My first post by knuthin · · Score: 2

      Bite your tongue!

      --
      Some apps are WYSIWYG. Some others are WYSIWTF.
    12. Re:My first post by X0563511 · · Score: 1

      You do know there's this magical number, "2," that sits between 1 and 3 right?

      --
      For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
    13. Re:My first post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Don't worry, the bill may is still in the freeze, but it is there, and waiting for the appropriate moment to jump and freeze all the innovation.

    14. Re:My first post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >> Linus, RMS. Jobs, Woz and Gates

      One of them is a nerd. Two of them are geeks. One was a manager, and the one left was a salesman.

      Not in order. Go figure.

    15. Re:My first post by davester666 · · Score: 1

      He did just complete his task of forcing Steve Jobs out of Apple...

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
    16. Re:My first post by networkBoy · · Score: 1

      Actually, this is believable.
      Necessity being the mother of invention and all that.

      --
      whois gawk date unzip strip find touch finger mount join nice man top fsck grep eject more yes exit umount sleep dump
    17. Re:My first post by BitZtream · · Score: 1

      If by 'He' you mean cancer, than sure. I don't think Linus can take credit for it.

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    18. Re:My first post by BitZtream · · Score: 1

      Just one question? Are you also a GPL zealot?

      The only people I see get so uptight about this sort of stuff are also GPL zealots, which is ironic considering GPL depends on copyright to exist.

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    19. Re:My first post by Runaway1956 · · Score: 1

      Not a GPL zealot - but the GPL depends on copyright. It does NOT depend on the mutated abortion that we call "copyright law" today.

      --
      "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
    20. Re:My first post by pyrosine · · Score: 1

      I think he was insinuating Linus is in fact a deity

    21. Re:My first post by PopeScott · · Score: 1

      Actually, YES. Just like good new music comes from places outside of large cities. People create stuff, because they're on the outside. Having very little tech will force some of those users to get creative.

    22. Re:My first post by mikael · · Score: 1

      There seems to be several essential ingredients.

      You need to have control over your overheads. I've heard stories of startup companies which were successful enough to survive in the marketplace, ended up being killed off by the landlord upping the rent/lease and sucking out the money intended research funding). One company made the mistake for competing for public research funds while leasing offices from a university landlord. Silicon valley people just used their garage as a workshop.

      Having an education and access to the latest hardware is another requirement, either through savings or sources of funding (wealthy parents). This allows those people to learn the latest technologies and techniques (hardware, software tools, applications).

      Having knowledge of a particular market segment - even partying on a university campus gave some people an idea of what technology would help. Lot of people worked in a large company, saw that their was an urgent need by their company as well as others, and saw that they could move into that niche and use their own savings as venture capital.

      --
      Vintage computer adverts: http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/computers-and-software-ads
    23. Re:My first post by SnarfQuest · · Score: 0

      It's going to be some Canadian who invents a new memory expander for MS-DOS, reviving that as the premier Operating System.

      --
      Who would win this election: Andrew Weiner vs Andrew Weiner's weiner.
    24. Re:My first post by NotBorg · · Score: 1

      Steve Ballmer disagrees.

      --
      I want this account deleted.
    25. Re:My first post by spazdor · · Score: 1

      I'm only a GPL zergling, but that's kind of like saying that non-aggression pacts depend upon war to exist.

      --
      DRM: Terminator crops for your mind!
    26. Re:My first post by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Brin, Page, Zuckerberg.

    27. Re:My first post by Eivind · · Score: 1

      Yeah. The GPL depends on Copyright.

      I don't know anyone who'd like to *completely* eradicate copyright. But I know many, myself included, who thinks that what was supposed to be a balance, has swung much too far in one direction.

      Copyright is absurdly long. There should be exceptions for works who are no longer available ("abandonware") and fair use should be substantially expanded - for example there should be zero question that making a small number of copies for your own personal use is allowed.

      Also, no legal protection whatsoever should be given to products that employ any kind of DRM - if the DRM works, they don't need it, and if the DRM doesn't work, then why is it there ?

    28. Re:My first post by rainofkayos · · Score: 1

      Steve Ballmer disagrees.

      Linus Rules, Steve Ballmer is sweaty. ::fist pump:: for Linux!

      --
      --aps
    29. Re:My first post by treeves · · Score: 1

      I'd say some good music has come out of Paris, Vienna, London, Moscow, New York, Chicago, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Seattle et al.
      Your generalization is not good.

      --
      ...the future crusty old bastards are already drinking the Kool-Aid.
  2. oh yeah... by ak_hepcat · · Score: 2

    Brings back the memories. I remember the usenet post because I was camping on the .minix trying to decide how best to conquer my computer...

    then Linus showed up with his post, and I soon had my answer.

    I've been running Linux non-stop since 1993, and have never looked back.

    --
    Support FSF: Stop thinking with your wallet, and think with your imagination. (cc/non-commercial)
    1. Re:oh yeah... by E+IS+mC(Square) · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Related - post from Lars Wirzenius http://liw.fi/linux20/

    2. Re:oh yeah... by peter+hoffman · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I was running Coherent at the time and looking for something better. I'd looked at Minix but I was looking for something open. I started playing with Linux as soon as code first became available for download and also played with 386BSD which had the lead over Linux for some time. Soon after that, the AT&T lawsuit began to cast a pall over the BSD community and Linux got TCP/IP going. Not wanting to depend on something potentially embroiled in a lawsuit (who might get sued wasn't clear then), I went with Linux as my base OS. Since then, I have continued to dabble with the various BSDs and use OpenBSD when security is a strong concern but Linux has been my first choice. It's interesting to wonder how things might have turned out if the lawsuit hadn't happened.

    3. Re:oh yeah... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Meaning, of course, that you were waiting for someone else to conquer your computer for you because you lacked the talent to do so yourself.

      The modus operandi of Open Source. Some guy works dilligently on his own to write some software, then once he releases it its all 'look how great we are!' 'we don't need stupid proprietary software!'.

    4. Re:oh yeah... by Tsingi · · Score: 1

      I've been running Linux non-stop since 1993, and have never looked back.

      Me too, built an ISP with Linux 1993. Had a Sun box on back order, but eventually we just cancelled it and got everything working for free.

      That was awesome.

    5. Re:oh yeah... by taiwanjohn · · Score: 1

      Thanks for the link. (And thanks to Lars for posting it.)

      I started using Linux in 1995, and have been using it almost exclusively since about 1999. But I never knew so much "deep background" about the early days.

      Congrats and thanks to all who have contributed over the years! Many happy returns.

      --
      XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
    6. Re:oh yeah... by andrewa · · Score: 1

      The joy I experienced on getting X Window running on my Packard Bell 386 in 1994 has never been bettered. :-) I played with xeyes for, must have been, 2 minutes. Ah, Slackware....

      --
      :(){ :|:& };:
    7. Re:oh yeah... by andrewa · · Score: 1

      Purchased install CDs for $9.99 from Powell's Technical store in Portland, OR. Sigh, nostalgia... Convinced my wife that it was a justifiable purchase (times were hard for us then [in a first-world way]) as it would "teach me UNIX and C" and get me a good job. Actually, it did. Thanks Linus! :-)

      --
      :(){ :|:& };:
    8. Re:oh yeah... by Jonathan · · Score: 2

      I was thinking of using Coherent at the time too, but I was an undergrad and even it was too expensive for me :-)

      My favorite moment in early Linux history was asking if X11 was going to be ported, and getting a personal message from Linus saying "maybe, but don't count on it". I still ended up installing Linux in fall of 1991 despite the lack of X.

    9. Re:oh yeah... by Jim420 · · Score: 1

      I was running Coherent too. At the time it was version 3.2.1A running on a 80286. Then I made a microscopic donation to the Free Software Foundation and so they mailed me the June 1992 issue of GNU Bulletin, which had a small blurb about Linux on pages 27-28, the first I ever heard of it. It's postmarked Sep. 9, 1992 so that means I started running Linux on my father's 386 no later than mid-September. Only wiped out his partition table twice. :) I upgraded myself to a 386 shortly thereafter so I could run Linux on my own system. It was a dual-boot system but Linux became my primary OS in a surprisingly short amount of time. I tried 386BSD too (it was mentioned right under the Linux blurb) but it didn't like something about my hardware. Wanted to try Minix but couldn't afford it.

    10. Re:oh yeah... by MightyMartian · · Score: 1

      I ran Coherent for a while, but lack of virtual memory and the GNU userland was more than I could hack. I considered Minix, but even then it seemed more like a toy. A buddy of mine told me somewhere around 1993 about a BBS in a nearby town that had the Slackware 1 floppy images available for download. The BBS had a call-back feature to minimize long distance calls and over a few evenings I downloaded the images, put them on floppies and then I spent a few hours installing my first Linux install on a 25mhz 486-SX with 8mb of RAM and two 80mb hard drives. I can still remember the thrill of seeing the login show up on my monitor, and then throwing the BBS scripts I'd originally written on a Tandy 6000 with Xenix on to the Linux box and, with a bit of kicking of the tires, getting them and the modem running.

      Did try to get X going, but the machine simply didn't have the guts or the RAM to make it useful, but back then I could give a crap, I was, and still am to some degree, a CLI guy.

      Now I'm running a Linux KVM host, my routers are all some breed of Linux and I'm looking at getting an Android tablet, so there you go.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    11. Re:oh yeah... by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      > Meaning, of course, that you were waiting for someone else to conquer your computer for you because you lacked the talent to do so yourself.

      That's true generally. It doesn't matter what sort of license or development model is involved.

      Free Software mainly helps ensure the existence of the platform in the absence of someone like Apple or Atari going out of business. It also makes things more democratic and allows more people to contribute. That kind of collaboration builds on itself even if it is a small fraction of the user base.

      That's the fun thing about software. It is infinitely durable and has a marginal production cost of zero.

      Also, the "free" nature of the thing means that even large multi-billion dollar corporations can get in on the action too.

      For me, Linux was just the first Unix that worked on my hardware. $400 copies of Solaris and NextStep were around but they were SCSI only.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    12. Re:oh yeah... by turbidostato · · Score: 1

      CDs??? You say you bought damn Cds??? Back in my day... oh, forget it. Just go off my lawn.

    13. Re:oh yeah... by andrewa · · Score: 1

      Young whippersnapper. Don't be telling me to get off your lawn, I was here before you gurdarmnint!

      --
      :(){ :|:& };:
  3. FIRST POST! by ilsaloving · · Score: 5, Informative

    From: torvalds@klaava.Helsinki.FI (Linus Benedict Torvalds)
    Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
    Subject: What would you like to see most in minix?
    Summary: small poll for my new operating system
    Message-ID:
    Date: 25 Aug 91 20:57:08 GMT
    Organization: University of Helsinki

    Hello everybody out there using minix -

    I’m doing a (free) operating system (just a hobby, won’t be big and
    professional like gnu) for 386(486) AT clones. This has been brewing
    since april, and is starting to get ready. I’d like any feedback on
    things people like/dislike in minix, as my OS resembles it somewhat
    (same physical layout of the file-system (due to practical reasons)
    among other things).

    I’ve currently ported bash(1.08) and gcc(1.40), and things seem to work.
    This implies that I’ll get something practical within a few months, and
    I’d like to know what features most people would want. Any suggestions
    are welcome, but I won’t promise I’ll implement them :-)

    Linus (torvalds@kruuna.helsinki.fi)

    PS. Yes – it’s free of any minix code, and it has a multi-threaded fs.
    It is NOT protable (uses 386 task switching etc), and it probably never
    will support anything other than AT-harddisks, as that’s all I have :-(.

    1. Re:FIRST POST! by cholokoy · · Score: 1

      Oh yeah!

      The memories.

      --
      Return the bells of Balangiga.
    2. Re:FIRST POST! by tlhIngan · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Hrm, and didn't this start out as simply because Linux needed a way to dial in and get his usenet fix? It started out as a terminal emulator (multithreaded for performance), then when he accidentally "dialed" his hard drive, added permissions and other stuff.

      A bit more spit and polish led to Linux 0.1. All because Linux wanted to read his usenet.

    3. Re:FIRST POST! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      From: torvalds@klaava.Helsinki.FI (Linus Benedict Torvalds)

      I’m doing a (free) operating system (just a hobby, won’t be big and
      professional like gnu)

      LIAR!

    4. Re:FIRST POST! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      A multi-threaded fs? Everyone knows that's just a performance hack.

    5. Re:FIRST POST! by cant_get_a_good_nick · · Score: 1

      (just a hobby, won’t be big and professional like gnu)

      Quite a few things have changed since then

    6. Re:FIRST POST! by Coren22 · · Score: 1

      Perhaps you have mistaken his name this 20 years, but his name is Linus, not Linux

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
    7. Re:FIRST POST! by MightyMartian · · Score: 1

      Definitely a "never need more than 640k" moment, that's for sure.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    8. Re:FIRST POST! by TeknoHog · · Score: 1

      Linux is an AI construct who really, really wants to read his Usenet. Linus was just a puppet, a bootloader if you like.

      --
      Escher was the first MC and Giger invented the HR department.
    9. Re:FIRST POST! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hrm, and didn't this start out as simply because Linux needed a way to dial in and get his usenet fix? It started out as a terminal emulator (multithreaded for performance), then when he accidentally "dialed" his hard drive, added permissions and other stuff.

      A bit more spit and polish led to Linux 0.1. All because Linux wanted to read his usenet.

      You're right, and Linus is a liar (as is his professor who gave him the assignment). In breaking news the TCP/IP stack came long before he posted the kernel. Maybe you should try making random shit up - that way you might be right occasionally.

    10. Re:FIRST POST! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think Linux is a pretty cool guy. eh hacks kernals and doesnt afraid of anything.

  4. Twenty years but still awaiting by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    The year of Linux on the Desktop. And no, a display piped in from the server room doesn't count, nor does a handheld netbook or tablet.

    1. Re:Twenty years but still awaiting by Tsingi · · Score: 1

      Said the AC Troll.

  5. Very insteresting day by cholokoy · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Maybe a hundred years from now this day will be a holiday.

    --
    Return the bells of Balangiga.
  6. Freax by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Would it have taken off in the same manner if it had actually been called Freax? Names do matter.

    1. Re:Freax by RDW · · Score: 3, Funny

      "Would it have taken off in the same manner if it had actually been called Freax? Names do matter."

      I think you'll find the correct name is GNU/Freax (a terrific platform for GIMP, git and Iceweasel!).

    2. Re:Freax by interval1066 · · Score: 1

      Why the hell didn't GNU complete the entire GNU system? Saw Linus' kernel and said "Forget it, he's already got one running"?

      --
      Python: 'And then suddenly you have a language which says "we're all stuck with whatever the whiniest coder wants".'
    3. Re:Freax by Monkey-Man2000 · · Score: 1

      Why the hell didn't GNU complete the entire GNU system? Saw Linus' kernel and said "Forget it, he's already got one running"?

      Pretty much, but it's still apparently under "active development".

      --
      This post was generated by a Cadre of Uber Monkeys for Monkey-Man2000 (603495).
    4. Re:Freax by i.r.id10t · · Score: 1

      Hey, they got teh Hurd kernel to boot last year...

      For some insights on this, watch Revolution OS ...

      --
      Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos
    5. Re:Freax by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      This is the year of Hurd in the desktop!!

    6. Re:Freax by dbIII · · Score: 1

      For years when RMS was asked an interview question about linux he would say "never hurd of it, haha" - possibly funny the first time but after several interviews and several years it got a bit old. Overnight he went from such contempt to insisting it be renamed LiGnuX and then the implied ownership of Gnu/Linux. I think the attitude shows why the gnu tools remained a small project and why newbies that were interested in hurd were chased away forever.

  7. Midsummer? by Mindjiver · · Score: 2

    Midsummer is in June, not in August.

    --
    I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!
    1. Re:Midsummer? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Is not - summer starts on June 21

    2. Re:Midsummer? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Midsummer refers to the period around the summer solstice, which is around June 21.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsummer

    3. Re:Midsummer? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The middle of summer may be some time in July, but the term 'midsummer' specifically refers to the solstice.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsummer

    4. Re:Midsummer? by taiwanjohn · · Score: 2

      No, that's mid-summer. The word midsummer refers specifically to the solstice.

      --
      XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
    5. Re:Midsummer? by julesh · · Score: 1

      summer starts on June 21

      Maybe in your f*ed up world, but for most of us, summer runs from may to august.

    6. Re:Midsummer? by andrewa · · Score: 1

      Who needs facts? They just confuse things. Yeah.. summer starts in May. definitely.

      --
      :(){ :|:& };:
    7. Re:Midsummer? by dingen · · Score: 1

      And on which 16 month/year planet would that be, then?

      --
      Pretty good is actually pretty bad.
  8. Geez .. talk about slow news day by OzPeter · · Score: 1

    This story is 20 years old. How about something new and fresh?

    --
    I am Slashdot. Are you Slashdot as well?
    1. Re:Geez .. talk about slow news day by froggymana · · Score: 1

      Give them a break, CmdrTaco did just retire.

      --
      "To prevent this day from getting any worse, I'll just read ERROR as GOOD THING" 1GJU8xLuDKDxEs4KLf8fAGyptoDsqvEsBT
  9. 20 years ago today? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Well, Linux has been going in and out of style, but it's still guaranteed to raise a smile.

    1. Re:20 years ago today? by Pricetx · · Score: 1

      Hah, nice reference. I wonder how much of the modern Slashdot community will get it though

    2. Re:20 years ago today? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Of course many of us are familiar with Nickelback; they have been around for a while.

  10. So was that a typo or what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    If some guy named the ftp directory "linux", was that a typo for "linus"? "X" and "S" are diagonally adjacent on a QWERTY keyboard.

    1. Re:So was that a typo or what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Watch any cartoon from that age, you will understand why the x was put there.

    2. Re:So was that a typo or what? by X0563511 · · Score: 1

      Linus + Minix = Linus' Minix = Linux

      It should be obvious, but not everyone seems to have a functioning brain.

      --
      For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
    3. Re:So was that a typo or what? by BitZtream · · Score: 1

      Without a statement from the guy who created the directory on the server, its not obvious, its just pure speculation.

      While it may seem logical to name it Linux, that isn't what Linus called it, so unless they guy is just a dick (which would be weird considering he was letting him host his source on his ftp site back in the day) he wouldn't have intentionally renamed it I would think. So that makes a mistake seem far more likely to me than what is at first glance the obvious answer.

      In short, you don't have any more of a clue where the name came from than the person you're responding to, just get over yourself.

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    4. Re:So was that a typo or what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm aware that the standard explanation for the name is in fact Linus + Minix = Linus' Minix = Linux; however the article said the intended name was "Freax" and linux was a result of what someone named the ftp directory, hence the question.

  11. It was 20 years ago today... by TeknoHog · · Score: 5, Interesting

    It was twenty years ago today
    Col. Torvalds gave the source away.
    We've been going in and out of drives
    but we guarantee to raise uptimes.
    So may I introduce to you
    the hack you've known for all these years
    Col. Torvalds' Linux slash GNU Band!

    We're Col. Torvalds' Linux slash GNU Band,
    we hope you will enjoy the code.
    Col. Torvalds' Linux slash GNU Band,
    just hack and let the evening go!

    Col. Torvalds' Linux
    Col. Torvalds' Linux
    Col. Torvalds' Linux slash GNU Band!

    It's wonderful to post here,
    it's certainly no troll.
    You're such a loyal userbase,
    we'd like to merge your code with ours,
    we'd love to grep your /home.

    I don't really want to freeze the code,
    but I thought you might like to know
    this release is going to fix the root
    and we want you all to patch for good.
    So let me introduce to you
    the one and only Billy's fear
    Col. Torvalds' Linux slash GNU Band!

    --
    Escher was the first MC and Giger invented the HR department.
    1. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by MagikSlinger · · Score: 2

      EPIC!!!

      --
      The bitter lessons of a veteran coder: http://bitterprogrammer.blogspot.com
    2. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Which Nickelback song should I hum this along to?

    3. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by TeknoHog · · Score: 4, Informative

      I have no idea what Nickelback is, but check my sig or journal for the finished song.

      --
      Escher was the first MC and Giger invented the HR department.
    4. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by NJRoadfan · · Score: 2

      Does it really matter? They all sound the same anyway.

    5. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by frenchbedroom · · Score: 1

      Cool stuff ! Gave me a smile :) I appreciate that you pronounce "Torvalds" and "Linux" properly ;)

    6. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by claar · · Score: 2

      Bug fix in the lyrics for you.. "Col. Torvalds' Linux" in the first two lines of the chorus should be "Col. Torvalds' Linux kernel".

      Open source forever!

      --
      I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous...
    7. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by EvilJoker · · Score: 1

      Yeah, but then he went and mispronounced GNU.

      Still, good effort.

    8. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by MightyMartian · · Score: 2

      Post of the year, man, post of the year!

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    9. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by TeknoHog · · Score: 1

      It may be hard to hear with my thick Finnish accent, but I think I know how to pronounce GNU, with the initial hard G.

      --
      Escher was the first MC and Giger invented the HR department.
    10. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's an appropriate accent you've got there :)

    11. Re:It was 20 years ago today... by budr · · Score: 1

      +10
      at least

  12. Freax? Really? by null+etc. · · Score: 1

    What is it with geeks choosing really horrible, horrible names for software products? I can't count the number of directors at public companies that I've spoken with in the past who refuse to go anywhere even near GIMP based on its name alone.

  13. So THAT's why Steve Jobs resigned... by SomeoneGotMyNick · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...to redirect the news focus AWAY from this historical anniversary.

    1. Re:So THAT's why Steve Jobs resigned... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A good day to bury bad GNUs / Linuxes.

    2. Re:So THAT's why Steve Jobs resigned... by drfreak · · Score: 1

      Funny, for sure. But you bring up a good point: Where's the anniversary of BSD and NeXT? Sure, NeXT's Mach was more of a kernel like Linux, but it used BSD's user land instead of GNU. Mac users need to respect their OS elders, not just the founders! Being a Mac user myself now, I think it is important because I never touched a mac for personal purchase or use until OSX was good and stable. If I wanted unstable and fun back then, my Amiga was more than adequate.

  14. Just a few months later by Alioth · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Just a few months later, I was really wanting a Unixy like OS for my 16 MHz 386 PC with a whopping 2.5 Mb of RAM and 40MB hard disc. In the cold wet January of 1992, I think it was Linux (kernel 0.12, or perhaps 0.11) which we started with.

    Two of us made a few of the PCs in the university's PC lab dual boot Linux and DOS. In those days there were no distros, you had a root disc and boot disc, and had to use cp -r to copy the root disc to the hard disc, then use a hex editor to change the kernel binary to use the hard disc for the root filesystem instead of the floppy.

    I started learning C on this system. All the stuff I needed to learn C on a partition of a 40MB IDE disc. (Later I had a 486 with an 80MB IDE disc, partitioned 50/50 DOS and Linux, on the Linux side I had the X Window System, a C compiler and all the development libraries and enough space to write programs in C for X11. By then there was an early TCP stack too, so a friend and I networked our computers and shared files with NFS).

    --
    Oolite: Elite-like game. For Mac, Linux and Windows
    1. Re:Just a few months later by jmorris42 · · Score: 2

      Yea, and nowadays the networkmanager applet sucks up 20MB of resident set. Somehow I managed to have a graphical desktop with Netscape run on a machine with 8MB of RAM total and run well with 16MB. Granted it was Netscape 0.9 on an 8bit display but still. Then I ran RedHat 4.x on an old clunker laptop with a 486SX and 40MB ram and ran Netscape 4.x with 16bit color. Now Fedora has trouble installing if you don't have a GB of ram. And we wonder why we got left out of the embedded world. Yes it all 'runs linux' but doesn't run any of the modern graphical stacks because they are more bloated than even Windows. Had we worried more about keeping our apps lean and mean Android wouldn't have been required. The GNOMES are hellbent on making a tablet interface without realizing that none of the existing hardware can run GNOME because it is too bloated.

      --
      Democrat delenda est
    2. Re:Just a few months later by taiwanjohn · · Score: 1

      Jeebus! You had a 40MB hard drive in 1992?!?! I remember spending about $300 for an 8MB "Bigfoot" in the mid-90's... that computer must have cost you the price of a new car at the time.

      --
      XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
    3. Re:Just a few months later by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Don't see anything wrong with that. My parents gave me a i386DX (can't remember if it was 25 or 33Mhz) for Christmas in 91 or 92 (again, can't be sure, it's been 20 years!), and it came with a 40Mb HD. A year later that same said HD was upgraded to a 105Mb unit, and as I recall it, it cost the equivalent of 500 EUR, give or take, plus the old 40Mb drive as a trade in. Of course, accounting for inflation and whatnot it's probably close to 1000 of todays euros.

    4. Re:Just a few months later by jmorris42 · · Score: 1

      > Jeebus! You had a 40MB hard drive in 1992?!?!

      Methinks you are misremembering and have misplaced the decimal point. I had a 10MB hard drive on my Tandy Color Computer 3 in 1988. It was a surplused out MIniscribe and a seperate Adaptec MFM to SCSI interface.

      By 1990 I had a PC with an 85MB drive. I suspect that 'Bigfoot' drive you mention was 800MB.

      --
      Democrat delenda est
    5. Re:Just a few months later by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      8Mb in the mid 90's? Are you serious? I remember having a 540Mb Quantum Maverick in 94 or so, and a 5.25" Quantum Fireball with a whooping 1.2Gb in 95 or 96.

      Just a couple weeks ago I recycled an old computer I had around for years, unused. It was a P166MMX with 64Mb RAM and an old 540 Gb Conner drive. That box last served as a firewall and it booted fine at first try, I spent over an hour rummaging around looking for a non-USB keyboard to dig around a bit into that old treasure trove :-) it was running Slackware 3.0. According to finger I had last logged in in 2000, and the oldest file I could find in /root was from January 1996.

    6. Re:Just a few months later by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Then you got raped. Mid 1980s is the time frame for your hard drive. I didn't even know there were 8MB drives. In 1992 I had an Amiga 3000 with 12M of RAM and 120M of SCSI hard drive. No car.

    7. Re:Just a few months later by mingot · · Score: 1

      Er, we're talking about megabytes.

    8. Re:Just a few months later by taiwanjohn · · Score: 1

      Yeah, now that you mention it, that must have been an 8GB drive. Never mind. ;-)

      --
      XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
    9. Re:Just a few months later by ricosalomar · · Score: 1

      I bought a 540Mb in '95, too. Figured I might as well buy one that would never, ever get full.

    10. Re:Just a few months later by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think I remember getting a used 386DX in 1994 that had 200 MB of diskspace, and all that for about $300.

    11. Re:Just a few months later by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 1

      In '92, I bought an Amiga 2000HD with a 120MB drive, with monitor, for under $1200.

      --
      Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
    12. Re:Just a few months later by Coren22 · · Score: 1

      Perhaps you shouldn't buy Apple equipment then :)

      I had a 40MB back then, the whole computer cost $3k, 386SX. I fondly remember watching over my dad's shoulder as he inserted more RAM chips (they were chips back then, not cards) and added the Co-processor.

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
    13. Re:Just a few months later by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Apple was selling their Performa line with 250MB harddrives standard in 1994, for less than the price of a new car...

    14. Re:Just a few months later by MightyMartian · · Score: 1

      Funniest story I ever had was my first IT job (well, actually I was bookkeeper/IT guy) around 1991 or 1992. There were a bunch of PC-XTs, but my boss had a 286 with an IDE drive (everything else was MFMs). She was bitching about how she'd run out of room on her 20mb hard drive so I went in to clean up the endless amount of accounting and Lotus files on the thing, only to discover that the idiot who had installed the drive had used some of that old disk management software at the time and there was 20mb of unused hard drive space. Needless to say she was very happy to have another 20mb partition to fill.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    15. Re:Just a few months later by aardwolf64 · · Score: 1

      1995 or so was when the first 1GB drives were coming out. There's no way you bought a new 8MB drive then. I remember telling my dad about the Western Digital Caviar hard drive... it was 1GB and cost $500. He said: "No one could ever fill up all of that space". Like most of us, he has lived to eat his words.

    16. Re:Just a few months later by aardwolf64 · · Score: 1

      Hex editor to change the kernel binary, huh? And people said Linux was too hard to use... :-P

    17. Re:Just a few months later by Dishevel · · Score: 1

      It was a P166MMX with 64Mb RAM and an old 540 Gb Conner drive

      You sure about that?

      --
      Why is it so hard to only have politicians for a few years, then have them go away?
    18. Re:Just a few months later by Sique · · Score: 1

      The Quantum Bigfoot was a 2GB-drive, if I remember correctly.

      --
      .sig: Sique *sigh*
    19. Re:Just a few months later by lars_stefan_axelsson · · Score: 1

      then use a hex editor to change the kernel binary to use the hard disc for the root filesystem instead of the floppy.

      No, no, no. You didn't need no stinking hex editor. I distinctly remember pressing Emacs into service to change offsets 142 and 143 to ^A and ^B (my memory is dim on the exact offsets). :-)

      And you didn't have to log in (there wasn't an init yet to run "login") you were just dumped straight into a root shell. The release notes (readme) were two sheets of A4. Simpler times.

      This was on 0.12 (I downloaded 0.11 but when I was ready to run it, 0.12 had already been released.

      --
      Stefan Axelsson
    20. Re:Just a few months later by Alioth · · Score: 1

      You must mis-remember: 40MB was pretty cheap by 1992 (perhaps not cheap but certainly affordable), I was a student and it was the best I could afford. It was a half-height 5.25in device so already a bit "old tech" in those days since most drives were 3.5in by then. (In 1993/1994 when I was working as a student for IBM at the hard disc plant - I wasn't anything to do with the disc drive manufacturing, we were just in the same building - they were manufacturing 2GB 3.5in drives which were in 1993 the high end).

      --
      Oolite: Elite-like game. For Mac, Linux and Windows
    21. Re:Just a few months later by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I take the general point (I don't like bloat either), but lets not go overboard. The Win7 machine I use at work uses 3GB of RAM after a clean boot. Each visual studio instance takes another 300MB a piece. Why? It's a slightly fancy text editor! It's one thing to call Gnome bloated when you compare it to LXDE, but it still leaves Win7 lying on the couch in a pile of potato-chip fragments, scratching its exposed beer gut.

  15. Does This Mean... by FurtiveGlancer · · Score: 1

    That we're Linux Freax?

    - Thanks Linus!

    --
    Invenio via vel creo
    1. Re:Does This Mean... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You should wear the label proudly

  16. Let me know if you find this post: by Y-Crate · · Score: 1

    "1992 will be the year of the Linux desktop!"

    1. Re:Let me know if you find this post: by pe1chl · · Score: 1

      I had a Linux desktop system in 1992 (ok, I installed it in december of that year) and it actually was quite impressive what you could already do back then.

      It had a working X11 system with many interesting applications.
      Even the networking already worked. I took it to work and connected it to the ethernet, and I could use it as an X client and server with the DEC VAX and X terminals we had there. Except that I had color and those X terminals were b/w :-)
      Everyone was really impressed...

      Remember that Windows 95 did not appear until 3 years later!

    2. Re:Let me know if you find this post: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ...and it actually was quite impressive what you could already do back then.

      Which is about the same which you can still do today, that's why there will never be a year of the Linux on the desktop.

  17. Found the post on Google Groups by jeek · · Score: 1

    http://groups.google.com/group/comp.os.minix/browse_thread/thread/76536d1fb451ac60/b813d52cbc5a044b?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=%22Torvalds%22+group:comp.os.minix#b813d52cbc5a044b

    --
    If you want to be seen, stand up. If you want to be heard, speak up. If you want to be respected, sit down and shut up.
  18. Re:Freax? Really? by TeknoHog · · Score: 1

    What is it with geeks choosing really horrible, horrible names for software products?

    Maybe because it was "just a hobby, won’t be big and professional like gnu". I think being a geek is all about having fun in your own way, and that means not succumbing to boring corporate ideals. "Freax" was short for "free freak unix" or something like that -- perhaps not the most creative name for an OS, but nevertheless reflects the verbally playful side that many geeks seem to have.

    --
    Escher was the first MC and Giger invented the HR department.
  19. DUPE :FIRST POST! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Dupe! Seriously, this was on USENET like 20 years ago. Come on already!

  20. And two years later... by SwedishChef · · Score: 2

    I downloaded and installed Linux onto a 386 PC that had been running Coherent (not very well, I might add). I think it was Slackware but it might have been Ygdrasil. I was pretty happy to get a version of Unix that I could afford. I have since run Red Hat, Suse, Centos, Debian and Ubuntu plus a couple BSDs. I have always thought of Linux as the "Swiss army knife" of operating systems because I've set up email servers, web servers, database servers, VPN routers, Vyatta routers, remote backup servers and desktops with LInux. I have one server with over 656 days of uptime.

    I have made a comfortable living from understanding Unix and applying that to Linux over the past 18 years.

    And it was way better than Coherent!!!

    Thanks, Linux. :)

    --
    No one ever had to evacuate a city because the solar panels broke!
    1. Re:And two years later... by gl4ss · · Score: 1

      one of the great things about early linux distros was that they came with lots of software.

      so a cd set of couple of distros was a real treasure trove.

      --
      world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
    2. Re:And two years later... by Tsingi · · Score: 1

      ditto. And I'm grateful too.

  21. Re:Freax? Really? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You must be fun at parties.

    "Hey, nice to meet you. Have you heard about this image manipulation program? It's made by these geeks and it's got a horrible name, GIMP! Can you believe that? So, um, would your company use an application called GIMP, huh?"
    (repeat until you can't remember how many times you've done it)

  22. Re:Freax? Really? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Or you could say: "Hey bros, want to buy these program called Photoshop." *get handed tons of cash* KA-CHING!

  23. Thanks for the memories.... by farrellj · · Score: 1

    Wow, such memories...I was playing with Minix back then, and I didn't really start playing around with Linux until kernel v0.12...I would take the boot and root disks to people's places with a 386, and then boot it and type "ls"...and the list of files would show up, and everyone who was in the know would go "Wow....". Now, I have made a living using Linux, an I am typing this message on my main workstation, a Linux box using Salix (Slackware variant). Thanks to Linus, RMS, ESR and everyone from Multics on for some wonderful and fun technology over the years!

    ttyl
              Farrell

    --
    CAN-CON 2019 - Ottawa's only book oriented Science Fiction Convention! October 18-20, Sheraton Hotel, Ottawa, Canada h
  24. GNU/Linux by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Does anyone happen to know when the campaign to add the GNU prefix to Linux began? Was that also a Usenet campaign?

    1. Re:GNU/Linux by Tsingi · · Score: 1

      Do not feed the troll.

    2. Re:GNU/Linux by jmorris42 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      No, that is RMS being bitter.

      Had he been willing to see the opportunity he would have adopted the Linux kernel (Linus wasn't willing to make Linux an official GNU project with copyright assignment) as an interium solution and completed GNU. Had the FSF got its act together and put out a complete bootable distribution of Linux + GNU + X with their official seal of approval it would almost certainly become (had it not sucked, been updated, etc) the primary distribution and we wouldn't have had most of the others because they wouldn't have had a reason to exist. And if they ever finished HURD they could have, like Debian is doing now, began offering a distro with that as the kernel and the users would have decided which they liked.

      A GNU with only FSF copyrighted code was and is never going to happen (no attempt is even being made at things like X for example) so what was the objection to putting Linux in to get to a complete bootable GNU system? Once Linus adopted GPL2 as the license all the parts were in place to produce GNU 1.0 but they waited for HURD. Their fault.

      --
      Democrat delenda est
  25. Re:Ahh, so that's why Malda picked today. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What a coincidence! We all hope you die in a fire!

  26. Second world by tepples · · Score: 4, Funny

    the big influencers in high tech will come from somewhere where they don't have technology and live in primitive third world conditions?

    You do know there's this magical number, "2," that sits between 1 and 3 right?

    "Second world" traditionally means Warsaw Pact countries like former Soviet Russia, where 1 and 3 sit on YOU.

  27. Taking credit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2

    My company is one of those that pays very well, treats its people very well, and therefore has tons of talented people working there. The one thing that kills me about the place, though, is the propensity of "we," as in "We did this" or "We made that," when none of the people saying "we" were even involved. Truth is, one guy pulled a year of all-nighters and weekends, made something great, and then "we" took credit for it.

    The problem isn't that I don't think that work is a team sport, and I don't think that everyone should go around tooting their own horn and proclaiming how awesome they are. I *DO* think that people should individually get credit for their work, and I *do* believe that everyone should name names for accomplishments and give credit where credit is due.

    It especially pisses me off when someone says "Can we get this done?" meaning "Can YOU get this done?" I've started responding to that by saying "Sure - go ahead! Let me know if you need any help!" The look on their face is priceless. :)

    Anyway, yeah. Just a rant to go along with what the GP was saying. I've seen it too much myself.

    1. Re:Taking credit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You sound like a real rebel living life with such an unconventional point of view and all. I'll bet you sit in quiet reflection on your disdain for the norm all the time. If only we could all be as cool as you. Oh and the GGP.

    2. Re:Taking credit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You work in a brothel?

  28. Resume by bogidu · · Score: 1

    So those guys who put that they have 25 years experience with Linux on their resumes are lying?? *gasp*

    1. Re:Resume by garyebickford · · Score: 1

      They're including overtime. :D

      --
      It's easier to be a result of the past, but more fun to be a cause of the future! http://www.spacefinancegroup.com/
  29. I'm feeling a bit old today. by scumdamn · · Score: 1

    I think I read the Slashdot article when it was ten years.

    1. Re:I'm feeling a bit old today. by Jaro · · Score: 1

      Here it is: http://linux.slashdot.org/story/01/08/24/152259/Linux-Is-10-Today

  30. And for the next 15 years... by gatkinso · · Score: 1

    Americans pronounced it "Line-icks."

    --
    I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
    1. Re:And for the next 15 years... by ricosalomar · · Score: 2
      If by Americans you mean people from the U.S., then don't think that's true.

      With a very few exceptions, I've heard "lin-ucks" over here.

      Though, I would guess that it would be most accurately pronounced "lee-nucks."

    2. Re:And for the next 15 years... by gatkinso · · Score: 1

      I can see you are a relative noob, since you do not recall the horrendous and devastating flame wars over this very topic.

      Linus said "lee-nooks"

      Euros said "lin-ucks" which is now the American standard and has been since about 2001ish.

      Americans said "line-icks"

      --
      I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
    3. Re:And for the next 15 years... by ricosalomar · · Score: 1

      Thank you for educating me. A 'whoosh' would have been in order, I suppose.

  31. Sgt Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band by bobs666 · · Score: 1

    For the young people. It was 20 years ago today...

  32. Wait for Hurd !! by Zoxed · · Score: 4, Funny

    My favourite early Linux quote is v0.02 (I think) (still 1991) "Hurd will be out in a year (or two, or next month, who knows)", and little later "Wait for Hurd if you want something real.".

    1. Re:Wait for Hurd !! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      i am wondering if those quotes, and also the note about gnu in the original post, were meant funny or if he was serious. does anyone know?

    2. Re:Wait for Hurd !! by zerojoker · · Score: 2

      definitely not. At that time, ppl were really waiting for a usable and affordable Unix system for x86. BSD was sort of blocked due to the legal battle, commercial Unices were not affordable, and the development model of minix didn't allow it to become a "real" OS, it was just a tool for teaching. GNU at that time had an excellent track record - maybe not timewise, but then again, they were producing real results (all the gnu commandline tools, the gnu c compiler, emacs etc.). Back then, it really seemed that it was just a matter of time until we all would see a full GNU system... well... history told another story...

    3. Re:Wait for Hurd !! by drfreak · · Score: 1

      Well, we sorta did end up seeing a full GNU system (minus the OS). GNU became the definitive free source of user land tools back then, and still is now in many areas. Even to the point where most of the GNU software (if not all) were ported to "real" Unices because many of those OSes lacked the features GNU was offering.

      In fact, there were a few exclusive GNU tools at the time which were invaluable and not available anywhere else. "screen" comes to mind of the top of my head. Back in the day, I had a dialup netcom shell account for internet access. Compiling and installing screen (poor people didn't know what they were doing giving shell users compiler access) all of a sudden gave me a way to maximize my usage and do nasty things in the background while I did my regular usenet and mail browsing. By "nasty" i mean IRC bots in the background. My regular IRC usage days are over, but damn those bots were fun!

      But to bring the subject back to GNU, they were they only player in the game if you wanted free powerful Unix tools, and arguably still are although there are plenty of other developers in the game now. The fact that GNU tools were so portable at the time really lends to the fact most of the authors were using commercial Unix to write them at the time.

    4. Re:Wait for Hurd !! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      20 years later.... The GNU Hurd is under active development. Because of that, there is no stable version. We distribute the Hurd sources only through Git at present. :S http://www.gnu.org/s/hurd/hurd.html

  33. Listen to the kernel! by fcbs · · Score: 2

    Is there a more appropriate day to listen to the kernel loudly? I guess not!

    The Linux Radio has been updated, with a new design and easy access to the lyrics : http://www.linux.fm/

    Happy birthday Linux, I'm glad I've been invited, thank you! Tonight is party time : just you, the computer, and me!

    And as heard in mm/mempool.c : "Slash Asterisk we must not sleep!". PERIOD.

  34. Re:Freax? Really? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Within two months I'll be launching a new product with a name that involves the word freak, so I guess I'll find out. Admittedly some people expressed reservations about the name, but it will be interesting to see what happens.

  35. Thanks Linux by unmovablenerd · · Score: 1

    Of all the people I would like to meet, Linus is certainly the one on the top of the list. But just in case that never happens, I say: "THANK YOU LINUS", and thank everybody else that contributed, of course. (My boss hates Linux, any tips on that?)

    1. Re:Thanks Linux by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Get a better boss? Replace him with a shell-script?

      Out of ideas, sorry.

  36. Obligatory XKCD by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    http://xkcd.com/865/

  37. Won't be big and professional like gnu. by flimflammer · · Score: 1

    I'm not even a big Linux guy, but this quote just makes me giggle.

    I’m doing a (free) operating system (just a hobby, won’t be big and professional like gnu) for 386(486) AT clones.

    It's nice to see Linux has come so far from such humble origins! Here's to hoping it becomes even bigger.

  38. Does not mean what you think it means. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Midsummer is in June.

  39. What would you like to see most in minix? by Psicopatico · · Score: 2

    Answer from the crowd: "Pr0n!!!"

    --
    Mastering the English language is fucking easy: all you have to do is to put an f* word in every fucking sentence.
  40. Re:Freax? Really? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And Apple or Windows are such incredible catchy names? Without their fame, Apple would be confused with a grocery store, while Windows for a sky scraper window washing service. Linux, at the very least is a unique name.

    Oh, and the strange names appear because of the American culture who insist on using acronyms for everything. LOL, OMG anyone? Look closely at those "horrible, horrible" geeky names and you'll find out how they're made.

  41. GNU = Car. Linux = Engine by Ranger · · Score: 1

    I think the reason why Linux took of so quickly was because of all the gnu software out there already. Basically it was a car waiting on an engine. And when that engine arrived it took off. Thanks Linus and everyone who contributed to it.

    --
    "You'll get nothing, and you'll like it!"
  42. Mobile and server OS by gilesjuk · · Score: 1

    I bet he didn't see that it would be a popular embedded and server OS either.

    Many seem to think Linux will grow on the desktop but that's unlikely to happen. It's easier to move into new markets.

  43. Freax indeed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ironically half of the linux zealots I know could be described as freax...

  44. From Linus's posting by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...
    it probably never
    will support anything other than AT-harddisks ...

    Belongs with

    640K ought be enough for everybody

    but in an amusingly positive way.

  45. Astonishing Stories by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Truely every word takes my breath away.

    --

    ++//--

  46. Nobel Peace Prize? by madhi19 · · Score: 1

    Is it time to make a real push for Linus and or Stallman to get the Nobel?

  47. Is there a Lawyer in the Free software community ? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Hi,

    Yet someone in Mauritius is saying that "LINUX" is his Ownership and violating the GNU GPL License !!! in total impunity

    See there > http://laforge.gnumonks.org/weblog/2011/06/27/

    I really need a Lawyer and an Attorney

    Alain Bastien

  48. Linux is a kernel, not an operating system by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    http://www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html

  49. Thanks for Linux by apexwm · · Score: 1

    I don't even want to imagine what things would be like now, if Linus hadn't developed the kernel to complete the GNU operating system. Back then, I was a total Windows user and was sour at Apple for dropping their Apple II line and leaving customers in the dark. But when I started using GNU/Linux in 1997 I realized that it is great stuff, and soon after started using it over Windows because of GNU/Linux's amazing stability and cost of ZERO. And look at how it has grown and matured. Today, GNU/Linux is more than capable of running on the desktop and competing with other operating systems like Windows. The problem is use awareness, Microsoft lobbying, and other obstacles that keep it from flourishing in the desktop. But, for those that have the patience to make a change, migrating away from proprietary software and using GNU/Linux is worth it.

  50. Cheap Air Max by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

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