Operating System
Linux is not only an operating system. It is a philosophy. It is a symbol of openness, cooperation and continuous innovation. From robust servers powering the internet, through supercomputers solving the most difficult scientific tasks, to smartphones in your pocket, Linux is everywhere around us: often hidden, but always incredibly powerful.
The Linux operating system uses a Unix-like kernel based on Unix ideas and respects related standards such as POSIX and the Single UNIX Specification. The name is derived from the first name of its creator, Linus Torvalds, while the final letter “x” refers to Unix, similarly to XENIX, Ultrix, IRIX, AIX and other UN*X systems.
In the free-software world, the term GNU/Linux is often used because a complete usable system is built not only from the Linux kernel, but also from GNU tools, system libraries, compilers, shells, text utilities and many core user-space components. The Linux-libre variant represents a strict free-software approach by removing proprietary binary parts from the kernel.
In 1983 the GNU project was founded with the goal of creating a new Unix-like operating system composed only of free software. The father and founder of the project is Richard Matthew Stallman. For this purpose Stallman wrote the GNU GPL license, under which the parts of the GNU system were distributed.
In less than ten years GNU became a usable system compatible with commercial Unix systems. Important applications, system libraries, the GCC compiler, text editors and many other tools were available. What was missing was the kernel that would provide the actual runtime of the system and communication with hardware. Therefore, in 1990, development of the Hurd kernel began.
On the other side of the world, in 1991, Linus Benedict Torvalds started working on an operating-system kernel that could run on ordinary workstations and personal computers. This fascinated the technical world and quickly became a global collaborative project.
Linus Benedict Torvalds was born in Helsinki, Finland, to Anna and Nils Torvalds. His family comes from the Swedish-speaking minority of the Finnish population. He was named after Linus Pauling, the American Nobel Prize winner in chemistry. A great influence on Linus was his grandfather Leo Törnqvist, who lectured in statistics at the University of Helsinki and bought a Commodore VIC-20 in the early 1980s.
Linus learned to program in BASIC and also wrote machine code for the MOS Technology 6502 processor. In 1987 he bought a Sinclair QL. For the QL he programmed an assembler, a text editor, a floppy-disk driver and several computer games, including a Pac-Man clone called Cool Man.
Linux OS development gained strength because many people joined and continue to cooperate on development, testing and the work necessary for compatibility and distribution. It is an open source project that gradually branched into many subtypes and distributions.
Thanks to the professionalism of people participating in such projects, the practical use of this operating system expanded into almost every sector of industry and households. Today the Linux kernel can be found in routers, multimedia centers in cars, industrial control systems, systems for musicians, graphic workstations, web-hosting servers and industrial camera systems.
Developers, users, companies and communities can inspect, improve, test and adapt the system.
Linux is a major foundation for web hosting, network infrastructure and server operation.
Linux runs from embedded boards and routers to workstations, clusters and supercomputers.
It is used by musicians, designers, administrators, engineers, researchers and industrial systems.
Basic Linux distributions can be divided according to the package system they use. The following overview keeps the original content structure: APT-based systems, RPM-based systems, other package models and special-purpose Linux distributions.
Debian GNU/Linux: Debian is developed by a community-based non-commercial model with a broad volunteer base. It contains a huge number of packages and is strongly conservative. The APT package system originated here.
Ubuntu: Derived from Debian and sponsored by Canonical Ltd. It is one of the most popular desktop distributions worldwide.
Ubuntu Server: A robust Linux server distribution intended for enterprise server deployment and cloud infrastructure.
Linux Mint: A distribution based on Ubuntu focused on extreme user friendliness and elegance right out of the box.
LMDE (Linux Mint Debian Edition): A Debian-based edition that ensures Mint’s development continues independently of Ubuntu.
Pop!_OS: A modern distribution by System76 aimed at creators, developers, and gamers, featuring excellent GPU support and the custom COSMIC desktop.
Fedora: Developed by a large community with support from Red Hat. It serves as an upstream testing ground for cutting-edge technologies before they enter Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
Mageia: Created as a fork of Mandriva Linux. It is a highly stable, secure system suitable for beginners and standard desktop users.
openSUSE: Sponsored by SUSE. Available as ‘Leap’ (stable release model) and ‘Tumbleweed’ (a rolling release with continuously current packages and kernels).
Rocky Linux: A community enterprise operating system designed to be 100% bug-for-bug compatible with Red Hat Enterprise Linux, acting as a direct CentOS replacement.
AlmaLinux: Another robust, free, and open-source enterprise alternative to RHEL, heavily adopted for server infrastructure and cloud hosting.
Arch Linux: Known for speed, maximum configuration possibilities, and bleeding-edge software. It uses ‘pacman’ and is recommended for experienced users who want full control.
SteamOS: Valve’s operating system based on Arch Linux, powering the Steam Deck and designed for high-performance Linux gaming.
NixOS: An innovative distribution based on the declarative Nix package manager, allowing for reliable atomic upgrades and exact system reproducibility.
Gentoo: A distribution for enthusiasts who prefer compiling from source code. Portage describes how to compile applications tailored to your exact hardware.
Slax: A sleek, modern Live distribution developed in the Czech Republic, capable of booting from tiny USB media.
Slackware: The oldest surviving Linux distribution, known for unmatched Unix-like simplicity, security, and stability.
Ubuntu Studio: The most widely used and officially recognized multimedia distribution. It comes pre-configured with a vast, professional suite of tools for audio production, 3D graphics, photography, and video editing right out of the box.
AV Linux: A powerful Debian-based distribution optimized specifically for audio and video production. It features a low-latency kernel, seamless JACK/PipeWire integration, and pre-installed tools like Ardour and Cinelerra.
Fedora Jam: A specialized Fedora Lab created directly for musicians and audio engineers, fully loaded with open-source audio production software and optimized audio routing.
Kali Linux: The industry standard Debian-based distribution for ethical hacking, network administration, and penetration testing.
Parrot OS: A highly popular distribution designed for penetration testing, computer forensics, reverse engineering, and anonymous web browsing.
Tails: A privacy-focused live system that routes all traffic through the Tor network, leaving absolutely no trace on the local machine.
OpenWrt: A highly customizable Linux operating system primarily targeting network routers and embedded devices, completely replacing factory firmware.
SystemRescue: A premier rescue toolkit (Live CD/USB) for administrators to repair systems, manage partitions, and recover data after critical crashes.
Puppy Linux: An incredibly minimalist and fast distribution designed to revive very old computers, running entirely in RAM.
Tiny Core Linux: A modular and extremely small system (starting around 15 MB) offering absolute minimalism.
Oracle Linux: A Red-Hat-based enterprise distribution engineered primarily for stable and secure Oracle database operation and cloud environments.
The ultimate open-source virtualization platform. Based on Debian, Proxmox VE combines KVM for full virtualization and LXC for lightweight containers, all managed through a powerful web interface. It allows for advanced hardware passthrough and high-availability clusters.
LXC provides OS-level virtualization. Unlike traditional VMs, containers share the host kernel, offering near-native performance and extreme efficiency. This is ideal for isolated Linux instances without the overhead of a full hypervisor emulation.
The standard for application isolation. Docker and Podman allow developers to package apps into immutable containers. This architectural shift enables seamless deployment across diverse environments, from local development to massive cloud clusters.
Desktop environments are not only visual decoration. They define workflow, panels, menus, window behavior, configuration tools, resource usage, default applications and the practical feeling of everyday work.
MATE is a desktop environment for Unix-like operating systems. It began as a fork of GNOME 2.32 to preserve a traditional desktop concept. While deeply rooted in classic paradigms, it is actively modernizing and adopting support for the modern Wayland protocol.
Built on GTK, Cinnamon started as a fork of GNOME Shell. Developed by and for Linux Mint, it spread to other distributions. It is known for its elegant, familiar layout and its successful transition to the modern Wayland display server.
Xfce is a lightweight desktop environment following a philosophy of simplicity. Its great advantage is low resource usage, making it extremely fast. It is currently undergoing a massive architectural shift from legacy X11 to Wayland.
The modern successor to LXDE, LXQt is a fast, low-resource open-source desktop environment built on modern Qt libraries. It is perfect for mobile devices, netbooks, and older computers with very limited RAM.
KDE Plasma is one of the most powerful graphical environments. Known for extreme flexibility and deep customization, it defaults to the modern Wayland protocol, delivering buttery-smooth performance and advanced graphical features.
GNOME is a modern desktop environment focused on consistency, simplicity, and a distraction-free user experience. As a pioneer of the Wayland display server, it is heavily utilized as the default in Ubuntu and Fedora.
Developed by System76 for Pop!_OS, COSMIC is a revolutionary desktop environment written entirely from scratch in the safe and fast Rust programming language. It offers a highly modular, lightning-fast, and modern Wayland-native experience.
Moving away from traditional floating windows, tiling Wayland compositors automatically arrange windows in a grid. They are heavily favored by developers and power users for their keyboard-centric workflow and extreme efficiency.
Originally developed for Solus, Budgie is an elegant, modern, and user-friendly desktop environment. It focuses on simplicity and clean aesthetics while providing powerful features through its unique Raven sidebar integration.