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Linux :
My Linux History

       I maybe a lame Linux user, I didn't have much programming background and didn't study in Computer Science or Engineer field.
      But I'm really like it and trying to get the best of it. I believe that Linux is not too hard to use like many end-users think.
      At first, I really know nothing about it. I first learned some Unix® commands in my University's Sun® and Solaris®, for a while, I was getting familiar with the commands and the environment.
      And in those early days, the documents were rare and help are only in newsgroup and the very useful real-time helps are on IRC. Firstly, i'd try Slackware 2.2 (which is only distribution I knew then) on my friend's machine, it's quite okay in the 486-DX2 with 8 MB RAM (in those days, most end users were running the slow M$ Win 3.xx with single-tasking environment), I felt that this resource-friendly, multi-tasking, stable OS will have the very bright future. (Even the buggy Win95 still not release then)

      So I'm trying to find more information about it, try to install it in my machine and study it. (Of course, it's free, you can try anything on it with just time and harddisk space are only 2 things that can be wasted).
      As I'd upgrade to Slackware 3.0, many new feature were added, many things changes in the better way, eg., Apache Web server was included, the X-Windows add more VGA card driver with more X-Applications, for example Netscape, xanim, Adobe Acrobat and many multimedia application. Then, it's can be called that Linux is multimedia-literate. Consequencely, the text-based Linux system image was deleted from my memory. Linux is not just free and stable web, mail, ftp, DNS, news, and etc. servers it can be very useful 32-bit multi-user and multi-tasking client/desktop with many supported applications. (Then, M$ WinNT 3.5x didn't have many built-in capabilities of being servers as Linux or the late IBM OS/2 Warp®, and even it eats more resource than Linux and OS/2). It can be said that then Linux was becoming de-facto standard of server, many ISPs were changing there high-end, high-cost Unix® to low-cost, lower hardware requirements Linux, because many useful applications for them were ported to Linux.
      After those periods, Linux got very fast development in every aspects, eg., number of users, kernel development, distributions, supported packages, device drivers, esp. applications.
      After the kernel version 2.0x and 2.1x were released, many features were added into Linux kernel like, Java binary, PnP (in 2.1x), loadable modules support for device drivers, speed up and fix many previous version bugs and inferiors. Make Linux most attractive and fastest growing stable OS of the year. (I didn't count Win95 in because I said STABLE OS).
      There came the time when the shinny M$ marketing plan light can shade over it's programming failures, Win95 is very popular among computer-illiterate end-users. (M$ is really very good marketing company, but not software one, I can be so sure to comment this, because I was graduated in marketing). As many new-to-PC users were fatasize with Wizard Gate's tricks and gimmicks on what's Apple, and the late Next, has been done for almost a decade. Wizard Gate's adding the animated icons, active everything (from D to X) in his OS, which eats up much resource and trying to monopolize the computer market with his cheap tricks as release the new version of the server WinNT 4.0 which will never be stable (What's the wise guy we've got, after loosing many self-standard and self-centric struggles, it got POSIX complaint, it know TCP/IP, it got it's own web server which develop from Apache but less clever and eat more resource, seperately sold mail server, but bundled web browser, i don't have to tell you who M$ wanna kill now, because the US department of justice (DOJ) had announced this already. But the most important is what M$ really announce about NT 5.0 is totally different from 4.0 (maybe because it's easier to create new OS than fix the bug-rich OS), and after a while, the some bug-fix of the hurry previous released Win95 called the OSR2 (IMHO it's the real Win95, if M$ didn't hurrily released the previous version just to kill the late OS/2®, and they really did it), was released with bundled web browser, but the justice can be sleep, but never die, the US department of justice just ordered M$ to take it's web browser off both OSes. But sometimes, when a lies came over the truth, and fools believe it, finally, M$ said that they can't take browser off, and they won!, what's a lovely story? Maybe I can said I can't live without drinking all the time, and federal goverment allows it?
      For Linux usres, the greatest thread is, if M$ can kill the second rival, it'll come to the third, which many sources said that it'll be our lovely little Tux.
      After those M$(WinTel) against the rest of the world issues are being concern by most of programmers, esp. Linux users, some anti-M$ clans were start to group virtually, the most concerning subject is to keep away the lower standard software which full of many major bugs and consume resource like a greedy boy that keep pushing you to unreasonably upgrade your hardware(s).


      When it's come to this year (1998), many things had happened to Linux.
  • Firstly, Redhat released Redhat 5.0, which was voted by many magazines to be software of the year. Many articles about Linux in many magazines which you never saw them write about Linux before. (M$ was suppose to get this from it's magazines if it can released the Win95 brother, Win97-9 on time) it comes with easy-to-configure GUI tools with its new features and bundled application-rich, you can easily install and make it work as your web, email, ftp, DNS server, with just little background. It make many things easy even to newbies (like me, I'm really new to Redhat, I once try v4.2, v5.0 is totally different in a good way). The RPM package system made available the easy to install binary and source applications, but frankly I don't like RPM, it too complicated, maybe for me. :P
  • Secondly, GNOME's GTK and GIMP make a lot of excitement to Unix GUI, as an alternative for Tcl/tk, IMHO this would help much in changing Linux than other OS.
  • Linux uses in the giant companies, which is the proof of Linux as reliable, robust, stable platform as an alternative OS. Many companies and agencies are running Linux eg., Digital Domain Movie's Graphics creator of award winning Terminator, used Linux to render graphics on award winning Titanic. NASA choosed Linux for its Beowulf project. And many more which you will not believe that Linux can do this much.
  • Collaboratives of distribution makers and volutary programmer. LSB is a very good news for Linux, not inter-distribution headache anymore, Linux is Linux.
  • As anti-M$ clan getting tighter, many commercial application is comming to Linux, some company such as Corel and VA Research offered Linux based systems
  • GGI will be in kernel version 2.2x and 2.3x
  • MozillaThe right decision of Netspace to free it's browser, hope it can get market share back.

1999


1998
    Linux is registered to Linus Torvalds.
    Redhat is registered trademark of Red Hat software.
    Sun, Solaris and Java is registered trademark of Sun Microsystem.
    OS/2 Warp is registered trademark of IBM.
    Apple is registered trademark of Apple Computer.
    Next is registered trademark of Next.
    Other registered trademarks is belong to their owners.

© Copyright 2001, Gio. All rights reserved.
All trademarks and registered trademarks are belong to the respective owners. Some or all part of this document cannot be redistribute or re-release without any prior permission.