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Portal:Linux

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The Linux Portal

Tux, the mascot of Linux, created by Larry Ewing

Linux (/ˈlɪnʊks/ LIN-uuks) is a family of free and open-source software Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, which was first released on 17 September 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Some members of the family are typically packaged as a distribution (a.k.a. distro), which includes the kernel alongside supporting system software and libraries developed by third parties—such as GNU, Red Hat, and X.Org—to create a complete operating system; however, not all Linux-based operating systems are considered distros, with Android being an example. Linux was originally designed as a clone of Unix and is distributed under the copyleft GPL license.

Linux is one of the most prominent examples of free and open-source software collaboration. The Linux kernel is considered by many to be the largest free and open source project. While originally developed for x86-based personal computers, it has since been ported to more platforms than any other operating system. When combined with Android, which uses a Linux-based kernel and is designed for smartphones, they have the largest installed base of all general-purpose operating systems. (Full article...)

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Linux API

The Linux API is composed out of the System Call Interface of the Linux kernel, the GNU C Library (by GNU), libcgroup, libdrm, libalsa and libevedv (by freedesktop.org).

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The following are images from various Linux-related articles on Wikipedia.

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