June 2025
Beginner to intermediate
1180 pages
37h 48m
English
Content preview from LinuxBecome an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
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1 What Is Linux?
To answer the question in this chapter’s title, I will first explain some important terms that are used repeatedly throughout the book, such as operating system, Unix, distribution, kernel, and so on. A brief overview of the features of Linux and the available programs then will help clarify how wide the range of options for using Linux is.
I want to start with a brief excursion into the history of Linux. Of central importance here is, of course, the GNU General Public License (GPL for short), which specifies the conditions under which Linux may be distributed. Only the GPL makes Linux a free system, whereby free means more than simply free of charge.
1.1 Introduction
Linux is a Unix-like operating system. The most important ...
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O’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.Julian F.
I wanted to learn C and C++, but it didn't click for me until I picked up an O'Reilly book. When I went on the O’Reilly platform, I was astonished to find all the books there, plus live events and sandboxes so you could play around with the technology.Addison B.
I’ve been on the O’Reilly platform for more than eight years. I use a couple of learning platforms, but I'm on O'Reilly more than anybody else. When you're there, you start learning. I'm never disappointed.Amir M.
I'm always learning. So when I got on to O'Reilly, I was like a kid in a candy store. There are playlists. There are answers. There's on-demand training. It's worth its weight in gold, in terms of what it allows me to do.