GNU

By Enya Reyes

  • Linux

    Linux began in 1991 as a personal project by Finnish student Linus Torvalds to create a new free operating system kernel.

  • Linux 1.5

    The Linux kernel is relicensed under the GNU GPL. The first Linux distributions are created.

  • Slackware

    Over 100 developers work on the Linux kernel. With their assistance the kernel is adapted to the GNU environment, which creates a large spectrum of application types for Linux. The oldest currently existing Linux distribution, Slackware, is released for the first time. Later in the same year, the Debian project is established. Today it is the largest community distribution.

  • GUI

    Torvalds judges all components of the kernel to be fully matured: he releases version 1.0 of Linux. The XFree86 project contributes a graphical user interface (GUI). Commercial Linux distribution makers Red Hat and SUSE publish version 1.0 of their Linux distributions.

  • Linux 2.0

    Version 2.0 of the Linux kernel is released. The kernel can now serve several processors at the same time using symmetric multiprocessing (SMP), and thereby becomes a serious alternative for many companies.

  • KDE

    Many major companies such as IBM, Compaq and Oracle announce their support for Linux. Netscape's actions and crediting of the essay brings Linux's open source development model to the attention of the popular technical press. In addition a group of programmers begins developing the graphical user interface KDE. Linux first appears on the TOP500 list of fastest supercomputers.The ARM port is merged.

  • GNOME

    A group of developers begin work on the graphical environment GNOME, destined to become a free replacement for KDE, which at the time, depended on the then proprietary Qt toolkit.

  • Linux 2.4

    Version 2.4 of the Linux kernel is released.

  • OpenSUSE

    The project openSUSE begins a free distribution from Novell's community. Also the project OpenOffice.org introduces version 2.0 that then started supporting OASIS OpenDocument standards.

  • Lunux 6/0

    Version 6.0 of the Linux kernel is released.

  • Ubuintu

    Dell starts distributing laptops with Ubuntu pre-installed on them.

  • Ubuntu 3..0

    Version 3.0 of the Linux kernel is released.
    2012: The aggregate Linux server market revenue exceeds that of the rest of the Unix market.

  • Linux based Android

    Google's Linux-based Android claims 75% of the smartphone market share, in terms of the number of phones shipped.