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- LINUX INFO
-
- Subject: Linux INFO-SHEET
- Reply-To: johnsonm@sunsite.unc.edu
- Summary: This posting contains a quick summary of the features and
- abilities of the Linux operating system. It is a supplement
- to the comp.os.linux.announce FAQ and META-FAQ, and should
- be read by those wishing to learn about and/or install Linux.
-
- Archive-name: linux/info-sheet
- Last-modified: 14 Mar 94
- Version: 3.06
-
- Linux Information Sheet
-
- Version 3.06
-
-
- 0.1 Introduction to Linux
-
- Linux is a completely free reimplementation of the POSIX spec,
- with SYSV and BSD extensions (which means, it looks like unix,
- but does not come from the same source code base), which is
- available in both source code and binary form. It is copyrighted
- by Linus B. Torvalds (torvalds@kruuna.helsinki.fi) and other
- contributors and is freely redistributable under the terms of
- the GNU Public License. Linux runs only on 386/486 machines with
- an ISA or EISA bus. MCA (IBM's proprietary bus) is not currently
- supported because there is little available documentation. VLB
- and PCI local busses are both supported, although the NCR SCSI
- chip that is used in many PCI machines is not yet supported, but
- is currently in development.
-
- Porting to other CPU's is likely to be difficult, as the kernel
- makes extensive use of 386 memory management and task
- primitives. However, this is becoming easier as the kernel
- becomes more general, and there is a port in progress for
- multiple Motorola 680x0 platforms, and ports are being
- considered to other platforms as well. Don't hold your breath,
- but if you are interested and able to contribute, you may find
- other developers who wish to work with you.
-
- Linux is no longer considered to be in beta testing, as version
- 1.0 was released on March 14, 1994. There are still bugs in the
- system, and new bugs will creep up and be fixed as time goes on.
- Because Linux follows the ``open development model'', all new
- versions will be released to the public, whether or not they are
- considered ``production quality''.
-
- Linux is still free as of version 1.0, and will continue to be.
- Because of the nature of the GNU copyright which Linux is
- subject to, it would be illegal for it to be made not free.
-
- If you wish to make sure that you have a stable version of
- Linux, you may get version 1.0, or may wait a few weeks from the
- release of a version which has attained the reputation of being
- stable among the bleeding edge who already use it, or may wait
- for another version which is officially released as a stable
- release, like version 1.0.
-
- Most versions of Linux, beta or not, are quite stable, and you
- can keep using those if they do what you need and you don't want
- to be on the bleeding edge. One site had a computer running
- version 0.97 patchlevel 1 (dating from last summer) for over 136
- days without an error or crash. (It would have been longer if
- the backhoe operator hadn't mistaken a main power transformer
- for a dumpster...)
-
- One thing to be aware of is that Linux is developed using an
- open and distributed model, instead of a closed and centralized
- model like much other software. This means that the current
- development version is always public (with up to a week or two's
- delay) so that anybody can use it. The result is that whenever a
- version with new functionality is released, it almost always
- contains bugs, but it also results in a very rapid development
- so that the bugs are found and corrected quickly, often in
- hours, as many people work to fix them. Furthermore, the bugs
- are generally discovered within hours of a kernel release,
- especially those which might endanger a user's data, so it is
- easy for an end-user to avoid these bugs.
-
- In contrast, the closed and centralized model means that there
- is only one person or team working on the project, and they only
- release software that they think is working well. Often this
- leads to long intervals between releases, long waiting for bug
- fixes, and slower development. Of course, the latest release of
- such software to the public is often of higher quality, but the
- development speed is generally much slower.
-
- As of March 14, 1994, the current version of Linux is 1.0!
-
-
- 0.2 Linux Features
-
-
- * multitasking: several programs running at once.
-
- * multiuser: several users on the same machine at once (and NO
- two-user licenses!).
-
- * runs in 386 protected mode.
-
- * has memory protection between processes, so that one program
- can't bring the whole system down.
-
- * demand loads executables: Linux only reads from disk those
- parts of a program that are actually used.
-
- * shared copy-on-write pages among executables. This means that
- multiple process can use the same memory to run in. When one
- tries to write to that memory, that page (4KB piece of
- memory) is copied somewhere else. Copy-on-write has two
- benefits: increasing speed and decreasing memory use.
-
- * virtual memory using paging (not swapping whole processes) to
- disk: to a separate partition or a file in the filesystem, or
- both, with the possibility of adding more swapping areas
- during runtime (yes, they're still called swapping areas). A
- total of 16 of these 128 MB swapping areas can be used at
- once, for a theoretical total 2 GB of useable swap space.
-
- * a unified memory pool for user programs and disk cache (so
- that all free memory can be used for caching, and the cache
- can be reduced when running large programs).
-
- * dynamically linked shared libraries (DLL's)(static libraries
- too, of course).
-
- * does core dumps for post-mortem analysis, allowing the use of
- a debugger on a program not only while it is running but also
- after it has crashed.
-
- * mostly compatible with POSIX, System V, and BSD at the source
- level.
-
- * all source code is available, including the whole kernel and
- all drivers, the development tools and all user programs;
- also, all of it is freely distributable. There are some
- commercial programs being provided for Linux now without
- source, but everything that has been free is still free.
-
- * POSIX job control.
-
- * pseudoterminals (pty's).
-
- * 387-emulation in the kernel so that programs don't need to do
- their own math emulation. Every computer running Linux
- appears to have a math coprocessor. Of course, if your
- computer already contains an FPU, it will be used instead of
- the emulation, and you can even compile your own kernel with
- math emulation removed, for a small memory gain.
-
- * support for many national or customized keyboards, and it is
- fairly easy to add new ones.
-
- * multiple virtual consoles: several independent login sessions
- through the console, you switch by pressing a hot-key
- combination (not dependent on video hardware).
-
- * Supports several common filesystems, including minix-1,
- Xenix, and all the system V filesystems, and has an advanced
- filesystem of its own, which offers filesystems of up to 4
- TB, and names up to 255 characters long.
-
- * transparent access to MS-DOS partitions (or OS/2 FAT
- partitions) via a special filesystem: you don't need any
- special commands to use the MS-DOS partition, it looks just
- like a normal Unix filesystem (except for funny restrictions
- on filenames, permissions, and so on). MS-DOS 6 compressed
- partitions do not work at this time.
-
- * read-only HPFS-2 support for OS/2 2.1
-
- * CD-ROM filesystem which reads all standard formats of
- CD-ROMs.
-
- * TCP/IP networking, including ftp, telnet, NFS, etc.
-
-
- 0.3 Hardware Issues
-
-
- 0.3.1 Minimal configuration
-
- The following is probably the smallest possible configuration
- that Linux will work on: 386SX/16, 2 MB RAM, 1.44 MB or 1.2 MB
- floppy, any supported video card (+ keyboards, monitors, and so
- on of course). This should allow you to boot and test whether it
- works at all on the machine, but you won't be able to do
- anything useful.
-
- In order to do something, you will want some hard disk space as
- well, 5 to 10 MB should suffice for a very minimal setup (with
- only the most important commands and perhaps one or two small
- applications installed, like, say, a terminal program). This is
- still very, very limited, and very uncomfortable, as it doesn't
- leave enough room to do just about anything, unless your
- applications are quite limited. It's generally not recommended
- for anything but testing if things work, and of course to be
- able to brag about small resource requirements.
-
-
- 0.3.2 Usable configuration
-
- If you are going to run computationally intensive programs, such
- as gcc, X, and TeX, you will probably want a faster processor
- than a 386SX/16, but even that should suffice if you are
- patient.
-
- In practice, you need at least 4 MB of RAM if you don't use X,
- and 8 MB if you do. Also, if you want to have several users at a
- time, or run several large programs (compilations for example)
- at a time, you may want more than 4 MB of memory. It will still
- work with a smaller amount of memory (should work even with 2
- MB), but it will use virtual memory (using the hard drive as
- slow memory) and that will be so slow as to be unusable.
-
- The amount of hard disk you need depends on what software you
- want to install. The normal basic set of Unix utilities, shells,
- and administrative programs should be comfortable in less than
- 10 MB, with a bit of room to spare for user files. For a more
- complete system, get Slackware, MCC, TAMU, or (soon) Debian or
- Linux/PRO, and assume that you will need 60 to 200 MB, depending
- on what you choose to install and what distribution you get. Add
- whatever space you want to reserve for user files to these
- totals. With today's prices on hard drives, if you are buying a
- new system, it makes no sense to buy a drive that is too small.
- Get at least 200 MB, and you will not regret it.
-
- Add more memory, more hard disk, a faster processor and other
- stuff depending on your needs, wishes and budget to go beyond
- the merely usable. In general, one big difference from DOS is
- that with Linux, adding memory makes a large difference, whereas
- with dos, extra memory doesn't make that much difference. This
- of course has something to do with DOS's 640KB limit.
-
-
- 0.3.3 Supported hardware
-
- CPU: Anything that runs 386 protected mode programs (all models
- of 386s and 486s should work; 286s don't work, and never will).
-
- Architecture: ISA or EISA bus. MCA (mostly true blue PS/2's)
- does not work. Local busses (VLB and PCI) work.
-
- RAM: Theoretically up to 1 GB. This has not been tested. Some
- people (including Linus) have noted that adding ram has slowed
- down their machine extremely without adding more cache at the
- same time, so if you add memory and find your machine slower,
- try adding more cache.
-
- Data storage: Generic AT drives (IDE, 16 bit HD controllers with
- MFM or RLL) are supported, as are SCSI hard disks and CD-ROMs,
- with a supported SCSI adaptor. Generic XT controllers (8 bit
- controllers with MFM or RLL) are now also supported. Supported
- SCSI adaptors: Adaptec 1542, 1522, and 1740 in extended (not
- 1542 compatible) mode, Seagate ST-01 and ST-02, Future Domain
- TMC-88x series (or any board based on the TMC950 chip) and
- TMC1660/1680, Ultrastor 14F, 24F and 34F, and Western Digital
- wd7000. SCSI and QIC-02 tapes are also supported. Support for
- QIC-80 tapes is now in ALPHA testing. Several CD-ROM devices are
- also supported, including Matsushita/Panasonic, Mitsumi, Sony,
- Soundblaster, Toshiba, and others. For exact models, check the
- hardware compatability HOWTO.
-
- Video: VGA, EGA, CGA, or Hercules (and compatibles) work in text
- mode. For graphics and X, there is support for (at least) normal
- VGA, some super-VGA cards (most of the cards based on ET3000,
- ET4000, Paradise, and some Trident chipsets), S3 (except for
- Diamond Stealth cards, because the manufacturer won't tell how
- to program it), 8514/A, ATI MACH8, ATI MACH32, and hercules.
- (Linux uses the Xfree86 X server, so that determines what cards
- are supported.)
-
- Networking: Western Digital 80x3, ne1000, ne2000, 3com503,
- 3com509, Allied Telliesis AT1500 (said to be some of the
- fastest, as well as quite cheap), d-link pocket adaptors, SLIP,
- CSLIP, PLIP (Parallel Link IP), and more I have forgotten at the
- moment.
-
- Other hardware: SoundBlaster, ProAudio Spectrum 16, Gravis
- Ultrasound, AST Fourport cards (with 4 serial ports), several
- models of Boca serial boards, the Usenet Serial Card II, several
- flavours of bus mice (Microsoft, Logitech, PS/2).
-
-
- 0.4 An Incomplete List of Ported Programs and Other Software
-
-
- Most of the common Unix tools and programs have been ported to
- Linux, including almost all of the GNU stuff and many X clients
- from various sources. Actually, ported is often too strong a
- word, since many programs compile out of the box without
- modifications, or only small modifications, because Linux tracks
- POSIX quite closely. Unfortunately, there are not very many
- end-user applications at this time. Nevertheless, here is an
- incomplete list of software that is known to work under Linux.
-
- Basic Unix commands: ls, tr, sed, awk and so on (you name it,
- we've probably got it).
-
- Development tools: gcc, gdb, make, bison, flex, perl, rcs, cvs,
- gprof.
-
- Graphical environments: X11R5 (Xfree86), MGR.
-
- Editors: GNU Emacs, Lucid Emacs, MicroEmacs, jove, epoch, elvis
- (GNU vi), vim, vile, joe, pico, jed.
-
- Shells: Bash (POSIX sh-compatible), zsh (include ksh
- compatiblity mode), pdksh, tcsh, csh, rc, ash (mostly
- sh-compatible), and many more.
-
- Telecommunication: Taylor (BNU-compatible) UUCP, kermit, szrz,
- minicom, pcomm, xcomm, term/slap (runs multiple shells over one
- modem line), Seyon (popular X-windows communications program),
- and several fax (using class 2 modems) and voice-mail (using
- ZyXEL modems) packages are available. Of course, remote serial
- logins are supported.
-
- News and mail: C-news, innd, trn, nn, tin, smail, elm, mh.
-
- Textprocessing: TeX, groff, doc.
-
- Games: Nethack, several Muds and X games, and lots of others.
- One of those games is looking through all the games available at
- tsx-11 and sunsite.
-
- All of these programs (and this isn't even a hundredth of what
- is available) are freely available.
-
-
- 0.5 Who uses Linux?
-
-
- Linux is freely available, and no one is required to register
- their copies with any central authority, so it is difficult to
- know how many people use Linux. Several businesses are now
- surviving solely on selling and supporting Linux, and very few
- Linux users use those businesses, relatively speaking, and the
- Linux newsgroups are some of the most heavily read on the
- internet, so the number is likely in the hundreds of thousands,
- but hard numbers are hard to come by. However, one brave soul,
- Harald T. Alvestrand, has decided to try, and asks that if you
- use Linux, you send a message to linux-counter@uninett.no with
- one of the following subjects: ``I use Linux at home'', ``I use
- Linux at work'', or ``I use Linux at home and at work''. He is
- also counting votes of ``I don't use Linux'', for some reason.
- He posts his counts to comp.os.linux.misc.
-
-
- 0.6 Getting Linux
-
-
- 0.6.4 Anonymous FTP
-
- New information: Matt Welsh has released a new version of hiw
- Installation and Getting Started guide. Also, the Linux
- documentation project (the LDP) has put out several other books
- in various states of completion, and these are available at
- sunsite.unc.edu:/pub/Linux/docs/LDP. Stay tuned to
- comp.os.linux.announce.
-
- At least the following anonymous ftp sites carry Linux.
-
- Textual name Numeric address Linux directory
- ============================= =============== ===============
- tsx-11.mit.edu 18.172.1.2 /pub/linux
- sunsite.unc.edu 152.2.22.81 /pub/Linux
- ftp.funet.fi 128.214.248.6 /pub/OS/Linux
- net.tamu.edu 128.194.177.1 /pub/linux
- ftp.mcc.ac.uk 130.88.203.12 /pub/linux
- src.doc.ic.ac.uk 146.169.2.1 /packages/linux
- fgb1.fgb.mw.tu-muenchen.de 129.187.200.1 /pub/linux
- ftp.informatik.tu-muenchen.de 131.159.0.110 /pub/Linux
- ftp.dfv.rwth-aachen.de 137.226.4.111 /pub/linux
- ftp.informatik.rwth-aachen.de 137.226.112.172 /pub/Linux
- ftp.ibp.fr 132.227.60.2 /pub/linux
- kirk.bond.edu.au 131.244.1.1 /pub/OS/Linux
- ftp.uu.net 137.39.1.9 /systems/unix/linux
- wuarchive.wustl.edu 128.252.135.4 mirrors/linux
- ftp.win.tue.nl 131.155.70.100 /pub/linux
- ftp.stack.urc.tue.nl 131.155.2.71 /pub/linux
- srawgw.sra.co.jp /Linux
- cair.kaist.ac.kr /pub/Linux
- ftp.denet.dk 129.142.6.74 /pub/OS/linux
- NCTUCCCA.edu.tw 140.111.1.10 /Operating-Systems/Linux
- nic.switch.ch 130.59.1.40 /mirror/linux/sunsite
- monu1.ccmonash.edu.au 130.194.1.101 /pub/linux
- cnuce_arch.cnr.it 131.114.1.10 /pub/Linux
-
-
- tsx-11.mit.edu and fgb1.fgb.mw.tu-muenchen.de are the official
- sites for Linux' GCC. Some sites mirror other sites. Please use
- the site closest (network-wise) to you whenever possible.
-
- At least SunSite.unc.edu and ftp.informatik.tu-muenchen.de offer
- ftpmail services. Mail ftpmail@sunsite.unc.edu or
- ftp@informatik.tu-muenchen.de for help.
-
- If you are lost, try looking at
- SunSite.unc.edu:/pub/Linux/distributions/, where several
- distributions are offered.
-
- 0.6.5 Other methods of obtaining Linux
-
- There are many BBS's that have Linux files. A list of them is
- occasionally posted to comp.os.linux.announce. Ask friends and
- user groups, or order one of the commmercial distributions. A
- list of these is contained in the Linux distribution HOWTO,
- available as
- sunsite.unc.edu:/pub/Linux/docs/HOWTO/distribution-HOWTO, and
- posted regularily to the comp.os.linux.announce newsgroup.
-
- 0.6.6 Getting started
-
- As mentioned at the beginning, Linux is not centrally
- administered. Because of this, there is no ``official'' release
- that one could point at, and say ``That's Linux.'' Instead,
- there are various ``distributions,'' which are more or less
- complete collections of software configured and packaged so that
- they can be used to install a Linux system.
-
- The first thing you should do is to get and read the list of
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) from one of the FTP sites, or
- by using the normal Usenet FAQ archives (e.g. rtfm.mit.edu).
- This document has plenty of instructions on what to do to get
- started, what files you need, and how to solve most of the
- common problems (during installation or otherwise).
-
-
- 0.7 Legal Status of Linux
-
- Although Linux is supplied with the complete source code, it is
- copyrighted software, not public domain. However, it is
- available for free under the GNU Public License. See the GPL for
- more information. The programs that run under Linux each have
- their own copyright, although many of them use the GPL as well.
- X uses the MIT X copyright, and some utilities are under the BSD
- copyright. In any case, all of the software on the FTP site is
- freely distributable (or else it shouldn't be there).
-
-
- 0.8 News About Linux
-
- A new magazine called Linux Journal was recently launched. It
- includes articles intended for almost all skill levels, and is
- intended to be helpful to all Linux users. Subscriptions are 19
- USD worldwide. Subscription inquiries can be sent via email to
- linux@fylz.com or faxed to (U.S.) 1-203-454-2582 or mailed to
- Linux Journal, P.O. Box 3364, Westport, CT 06880-8364 USA.
- Please do not send credit card numbers via email; the internet
- is not secure, and it is entirely possible that a
- technologically adept thief may steal your credit card number
- and cost you a large sum of money if you do.
-
-
- There are several Usenet newsgroups for Linux discussion, and
- also several mailing lists. See the Linux FAQ for more
- information about the mailing lists (you should be able to find
- the FAQ either in the newsgroup or on the FTP sites).
-
- The newsgroup comp.os.linux.announce is a moderated newsgroup
- for announcements about Linux (new programs, bug fixes, etc).
-
- The newsgroup comp.os.linux.admin is an unmoderated newsgroup
- for discussion of administration of Linux systems.
-
- The newsgroup comp.os.linux.development is an unmoderated
- newsgroup specifically for discussion of Linux kernel
- development. The only application development questions that
- should be discussed here are those that are intimately
- associated with the kernel. All other development questions are
- probably generic UNIX development questions and should be
- directed to a comp.unix group instead.
-
- The newsgroup comp.os.linux.help is an unmoderated newsgroup for
- any Linux questions that don't belong anywhere else.
-
- The newsgroup comp.os.linux.misc is the replacement for
- comp.os.linux, and is meant for any discussion that doesn't
- belong elsewhere.
-
- In general, do not crosspost between the Linux newsgroups. The
- only crossposting that is appropriate is an occasional posting
- between one unmoderated group and comp.os.linux.announce. The
- whole point of splitting comp.os.linux into many groups is to
- reduce traffic in each. Those that do not follow this rule will
- be flamed without mercy...
-
- For the current status of the Linux kernel and a summary of the
- most recent versions, finger torvalds@kruuna.helsinki.fi
-
-
- 0.9 The Future
-
-
- Now that Linux 1.0 has been released, work is already in
- progress on several enhancements. Disk access speedups, TTY
- improvements, and many more things are being worked on. Linux
- 1.0 is not the end of Linux, or is it even very important; it is
- mostly intended to provide a stable version that people can use
- without being afraid that they are using beta software, and that
- can be standardized on to some extent.
-
- There is plenty of code left to write, and even more
- documentation. Please join the DOC channel of the mailing list
- if you would like to contribute to the documentation.
-
-
- 0.10 This document
-
- This document is maintained by Michael K. Johnson,
- johnsonm@Sunsite.unc.edu. Please mail me with any comments, no
- matter how small. I can't do a good job of maintaining this
- document without your help. A more-or-less current copy of this
- document can always be found as
- tsx-11.mit.edu:/pub/linux/docs/INFO-SHEET, and a DVI version can
- be found as INFO-SHEET.dvi, in the same directory.
-
-
- 0.11 Legalese
-
-
- Trademarks are owned by their owners. There is no warranty about
- the information in this document. Use and distribute at your own
- risk. The content of this document is in the public domain, but
- please be polite and attribute any quotes.
-
-