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Linus on Linux's 25th Birthday (zdnet.com)

The creator of Linux, Linus Torvalds, posted his famous message announcing Linux on August 25, 1991, claiming that it was "just a hobby, won't be big and professional like gnu." ZDNet's Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols caught up with Linus Torvalds and talked about Linux's origins in a series of interviews: "SJVN: What's Linux real birthday? You're the proud papa, when do you think it was? When you sent out the newsgroup post to the Minix newsgroup on August 25, 1991? When you sent out the 0.01 release to a few friends?

LT: I think both of them are valid birthdays. The first newsgroup post is more public (August 25), and you can find it with headers giving date and time and everything. In contrast, I don't think the 0.01 release was ever announced in any public setting (only in private to a few people who had shown interest, and I don't think any of those emails survived). These days the way to find the 0.01 date (September 17) is to go and look at the dates of the files in the tar-file that still remains. So, both of them work for me. Or either. And, by the way, some people will argue for yet other days. For example, the earliest public semi-mention of Linux was July 3: that was the first time I asked for some POSIX docs publicly on the minix newsgroup and mentioned I was working on a project (but didn't name it). And at the other end, October 5 was the first time I actually publicly announced a Linux version: 'version 0.02 (+1 (very small) patch already).' So you might have to buy four cakes if you want to cover all the eventualities."
Vaughan-Nichols goes on to pick Linus' brain about what he was doing when he created Linux. In honor of Linux's 25th birthday today, let's all sing happy birthday... 1... 2... 3...

6 of 110 comments (clear)

  1. Just wanted to say "thank you" by inode_buddha · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Just wanted to say "thank you" to both Linus and GNU for giving me a system that I can appreciate, grow with, and live with. And slashdot too, for a forum to celebrate it on (I remember when they created the logins, the moderation, and the meta.....)

    --
    C|N>K
  2. Happy Birthday! by chromaexcursion · · Score: 4, Funny

    (sung in a monotone dirge)
    Happy Birthday
    Happy Birthday
    Now you've reached the age you are
    your demise can not be far
    Happy Birthday
    Happy Birthday
    Doom and Gloom and dark despair
    Death and dying everywhere
    Happy Birthday
    Happy Birthday
    cities burning in your wake
    burn like candles on your cake
    Happy Birthday
    Happy Birthday
    ...

  3. None of Linux's choice quotes? by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 5, Insightful

    25 years and they couldn't even include some of the best quotes by Linus over the years?
    https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/...

    * Only wimps use tape backup: real men just upload their important stuff on ftp, and let the rest of the world mirror it ;)
    * If Microsoft ever does applications for Linux it means I've won.
    * In short: just say NO TO DRUGS, and maybe you won't end up like the Hurd people.
    * My name is Linus Torvalds and I am your god.
    * Dijkstra probably hates me.
    * This is why we don't compile with "-W". Gcc is crap
    * GCC 4.9.0 Seems To Be Terminally Broken
    * (the spill is insane, btw, since it's spilling a constant value!)

    No mention of how Linux used to be stuck with gcc 2.7.2 for years until egcs became stable?

    Pfft, kids. :-)

  4. Re: TECHNICALLY, THE COPIER OF MINUX by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    No. He used Minix as a tool and example. Linux is monolithic and Minix is a micro kernel. As such, one cannot be a copy of the other - not even closely related.

    All of this is easily verified, including public discussions between both authors where they debate the design merits. They are not even similar operating systems.

    I suspect you're trolling but the truth needs to be told. I would log in but I am not supposed to be online. But, the facts are out there. Just install both in virtual machines and then compare the two for yourself. I have...

  5. birthdayd by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Birthdays are now handled by birthdayd and candles on celebration cakes must be arranged in binary.

  6. The famous post for those inclined.... by wbr1 · · Score: 4, Informative
    https://groups.google.com/foru...

    For me I didn't start in 1991. I hopped on NeXt in college in 1993, then threw slackware on a couple boxes in 1994/95. I hate being late to the party... almost as much as I hated downloading slack floppy sets of 56k ISDN

    --
    Silence is a state of mime.