Linux (pronounced "lynn-icks") is an open-source operating system, which runs on more hardware platforms than any other operating system.  Linux runs on x86, Alpha, Sparc, Amiga, Macintosh, and some other less known hardware platforms.  It is not only free, but also includes the complete source code.  In the last few years, Linux has proven itself to be the most stable, versatile and scalable network operating system.

Come and see how you can use LINUX at home or at the office to increase your productivity, and at the same time have the time of your life hacking the system.  Also, learn why the big companies like IBM, ORACLE, DELL, etc. are all jumping onto the LINUX band wagon.

Nazmul Ula is an Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Loyola Marymount University.  He has been using the Linux operating system for more than seven years, and has done system administration for a number of UNIX operating systems including AIX, Ultrix, SunOS, Solaris and Linux.  He is also doing the system administration for a number of NT servers.  Professor Ula has installed Linux on more that 300 computers and has installed Linux based networks in both SOHO and academic environments.  He is also the Technical Advisor for IQube - a commercial Linux based network solution provider.  Linux is a hobby for Professor Ula.

Linux was started in the 1990's and caught on in the hacker community. It is exploding in popularity today. Basically Linux is a form of UNIX. It is designed to be multi-user and multitasking and because if its UNIX base is a very mature design. There are thousands of applications that will run on Linux. Linux is open-source, that is its source code is publicly available. The code has been released under the GNU Public License. It is written in the C language, is widely available, and is supported by a voluntary cast of thousands. Linux is robust and stable and has fewer bugs than any other operating system. Linux is powerful, high performance and will network with almost anything. It is the hacker's dream. Linux is flexible, well supported, and is stunningly inexpensive with no license fees and powerful software bundled with the system. There are some limitations. Linux can have problems with some personal computer hardware. There is limited support for some types of proprietary software. 

Linus Torvald, a Finnish student, started Linux in 1991. He wanted a better alternative to DOS and tried Minix, a small version of Unix. He wanted to write a better version and decided to continue to follow the design of Unix. The existence of the GNU open software project helped out a great deal as it provided a set of programs written for UNIX that had freely available source code. Linux provided its source code and licenses from the start. As it became more useful, it became more interesting to new programmers and attracted developers quickly. Unix applications were easily ported to Linux. Linux popularity kept growing and particularly skyrocketed after 1994. There are about 10 million users today and Linux is the only non-Microsoft OS that is currently gaining market share. Linux is used by many business companies, the US Postal Service and by NASA. Many companies are using Linux, but many of the people in those companies don't realize it. 

Professor Ula said he doesn't believe Linux should be your desktop operating system. People have complained that it doesn't have a good user interface, but if user interface is so important why isn't everyone using the MacIntosh? Professor Ula said that Linux is really important when it comes to networking. Windows NT is all right for small networks, but is not a good choice for large-scale enterprise networking. Linux can run multiple applications without hampering stability and easily handles a large number of multiple simultaneous users. Applications can be run on one machine and displays on another. It provides true, stable multi-tasking. Most people use X-Windows as the user display system. One problem with Window's systems is they don't keep track of the versions of Dynamic Link Libraries (DLLs). Linux uses DLLs (shared objects) but keeps track of versions. Linux is outstanding at memory management and uses a smaller and more efficient kernel than does Windows NT. Linux can usually recover its UNIX based filing system after a power failure and reboots are normally required only after system upgrades and hardware changes. 

Are there disadvantages? Some oddball or proprietary hardware has limited support and some modems are not supported. ISA plug and play can be complicated. Some video cards are not supported, but there are alternatives available. Some proprietary protocols and formats such as AOL, MSN, and Compuserve are not supported. There is a learning curve, but after expending some effort you will become more productive. There are a number of commercial organizations that provide Linux materials and documentation and the cost can be worth it to a new user. 

The text of this presentation is available at: http://www.tir.com/~sorceror/mdlug/preso.html 

This was the tenth meeting of the year, and was attended by 33 people. 

Mike Walsh LA ACM Secretary