JUSTIN CHEN/YH

Linux: It slices, it dices, it'll even run your computer

Silicon Valley is embracing it with open arms. Tech-heads see it as the future of computing. Wall Street realizes its future. Microsoft cringes in fear at the mere sight of it. And, most importantly, it's not just for computer nerds anymore.

What is this elusive panacea for all our computing problems? Linux (pronounced "LIN-nucks"). "What's Linux?" you may ask. Linux is an operating system available for many types of computers—PCs, Macs, or even computers with more exotic chips such as Alphas. Linux is one of the numerous guises of Unix, a multi-user operating system used most often for servers rather than home computers.

Where would Yale students encounter Linux? Students can count on seeing more Linux machines as the operating system becomes easier to set up and more user-friendly. Yalies may already note the use of Linux in the economics and computer science departments. Shawn Bayern, SM'99, a systems planner in ITS Technology Planning, states that Data Network Operations plans to upgrade its various servers to Linux soon. While moving servers to Linux ideally would be invisible to users, the most obvious change is the appearance of Linux on more desktops. Jacob Brookover, MC `02 articulates, "as soon as I learn Linux and the X Window system, I will switch my computer over entirely and maybe run a windows emulator."

Unfortunately, H. Morrow Long, Director and University Information Security Officer at ITS, has found many instances where students leave gaping security holes in their Unix installations. Long says that students often fully install Red Hat Linux 5.0, for example, including its advanced server features such as Apache, Samba, FTP, and telnet without realizing that they installed them. While these features are very convenient for end-users who know how to use them and how to keep them secure, they cause security problems for ITS in the hands of inexperienced users because these servers can be easily cracked if the Linux users neglect to either install a firewall that restricts access or update Linux with the proper security patches. Furthermore, Dan Updegrove, University Directory of ITS, states that "most [Linux users] are not well-trained enough or disciplined enough" to properly run a Linux machine."

While user error may be a problem, most people would agree that Linux is a very security operating system, if configured correctly. A computer user from an early age, Linus Torvalds began writing Linux as a student at the University of Helsinki in Finland in 1991. The operating system was ready for release in 1994. Most importantly, Torvalds released Linux for free under the GNU General Public License, giving users the right to obtain the source code of the operating system. This means that anyone can modify the program to suit his or her own needs, provided credit is given to anyone who previously modified the program. With open source, companies can create and sell their own distribution of Linux, provided that they provide the source code.

Linux has advantages other than being free, however. While Windows and Mac users are waiting a year for a newer version with fewer bugs, the programming community at large fixes Linux bugs, because users can modify the source code. Brookover stated, "Linux is constantly being kept up-to-date and bug-free by individuals across the world." Linux users rarely deal with system crashes. While other operating systems may require multiple reboots in a day, Linux machines are rarely rebooted, resulting in higher productivity and adequate stability for running servers.

What creates this stability? Linux uses pre-emptive multitasking. Multitasking is the use of more than one program at a time. According to Matthew Hiller, SY '00, a Linux user for two years, pre-emptive means that Linux "decides how much processor time each program gets." In contrast, Mac OS and Windows machines, with the exception of Windows NT machines, use cooperative multitasking. Cooperative means that a "program has to specifically cede control back to the operating system for another program to" receive processing time. Furthermore, Linux uses a protected memory mode for the operating system, which prevents a single program from crashing the whole system. Hiller also says that Linux doesn't require the latest and greatest hardware to run, unlike Windows NT. "Linux chugs along just fine on a `386."

Linux crashes less, runs more efficiently, and is free. So, why don't most of us use Linux instead of Windows or Mac OS if it is so much better? The Linux product base is much smaller than that of Windows or Mac OS. However, users can still run Windows programs on Linux machines, using emulators. While programs such as Netscape have Linux versions, most do not. There are Linux programs available that are similar to existing programs, often with just as much power. Both Brookover and Hiller describe GNU Image Manipulation Program as being "as powerful as Adobe Photoshop." The difference is that Adobe Photoshop is available commercially for almost $600 retail, while GNU IMP is free. End-users looking to play their DVDs on their Linux machines are still out of luck because of DVD encryption.

Linux still has usability concerns. Brookover admits that although he is "impressed with its capabilities," he finds Linux "complex to learn." Unix operating systems still use command line prompts that would look familiar to anyone who used DOS, unlike the graphical environment of Windows or Mac OS. While there are graphical user interfaces available that make Linux much easier to use, the average end-user would find Linux hard to set up.

However, companies are aiming to change this. Red Hat and Caldera, for example, are taking advantage of Linux's popularity by offering their own version of the operating system, for a charge, of course. These program releases allow users who don't have high-speed Internet connections to obtain Linux. These versions of Linux are also easier to install than the general release.

Industry experts proclaim Linux's open source paradigm as the future of software. According to Netcraft, the open-sourced Apache runs almost 55% of the World Wide Web servers on the Internet. Open source has already been adopted by Netscape Communications, which released its flagship Communicator as an open source program more than two years ago to the delight of many developers who can modify the program for their own needs. Apple Computer's Mac OS X is an open source operating system based on BSD, another one of the various facades of Unix. Yale's Academic Media and Technology already uses the Silicon Graphics, Inc.-sponsored, open-sourced Samba to allow mounting of Pantheon directories on desktops, so users can transfer files from computer to computer without using the often unreliable floppy disks.

Silicon Valley gurus see Linux as the operating system of the future. Sun Microsystems and IBM have already jumped aboard the Linux bandwagon. Microsoft showed its fear of Linux in the infamous "Halloween Document," which stated that Microsoft saw Linux as a serious threat to its product. While conspiracy theorists may say that the Halloween Document was a ploy to help their anti-trust case, Wall Street recognizes Linux's future: the value of Durham, North Carolina-based Red Hat's NASDAQ stock grew threefold on its first day of trading.

Linux has a bright future according to Updegrove; "there is no doubt that use of Linux is growing."

Special thanks to Matthew Hiller SY '00, Jacob Brookover MC '02, Shawn Bayern SM '99, Dan Updegrove, and H. Morrow Long.

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