Linux is a Unix-like operating system that runs on most 386, 486 and Pentium based PCs. It is a complete operating system. It can boot up by itself with no help from DOS or Ms-Windows. Linux itself is the OS kernel, or "core" of the operating system. Most people use the term "Linux" to mean all the software that goes along with the kernel to make a usable OS. Many companies, organizations, and individuals have packaged Linux with other software to create "distributions" of Linux. Linux is both Multi-User and Multi-Tasking. This means it can support more than one user at a time, AND run more than one program at a time.

• It’s cheap (one of the main reasons…)
• Linux is the only operating system in the world that has Native support for Packet Radio. (AX.25 Protocols)
• supports normal ax.25 (i.e. normal packet radio)
• supports KISS TNC’s and BAYCOM 1k2/9k6 modems
• supports using cheap sound cards as TNC’s (up to 9600 baud!)
• supports Internal DRSI type PC cards (85C30 type radio interface cards)
• supports a NetRom (clone) node (also supports BPQ over Ethernet)
• supports Rose protocol
• can run multiple packet radio programs sharing the same radio ports
• can link multiple ax.25 packet radio programs together via software (no serial ports needed)
• supports internet gateway operations without Tnos/Jnos (using IPIP and AXIP daemons)
• It will run on low-end 386sx systems. (but I recommend at least a 486-66 16M Ram system)
• Supports almost all the latest PC hardware, including laptops, PCI, PCMCIA, Pentium II’s, etc.
• It is rock-solid stable. It will run for months (maybe years) at a time with needing a reboot
• X-FBB, Tnos, and DX Cluster programs are available for Linux
• Supports TCP/IP protocols including Web browsers (Netscape) and Web servers (Apache)
• Supports Text-only screens (TTL mono monitors too) and VGA text/graphics (X Windows)

• Linux can install onto one of the following hard drive configurations:
• Same hard drive as Ms-Dos/Windows lives on
• Same hard drive as Ms-Dos/Windows lives on, but on a separate partition
• A dedicated hard drive for Linux
• A second (or third, or fourth) IDE or SCSI hard drive dedicated to Linux
• Ideally a CD ROM drive to install Linux, but you could (I won’t) use a floppy drive
• 386SX CPU minimum (but much nicer with a 486 or better CPU)
• 4 MB Ram (practical min for text only screens – 8MB, X Windows - 16MB)
• about 200MB of free hard drive space to actually load and do "real" things with Linux
• Can boot via LILO Boot Manager, or from MS-DOS LoadLin Linux loader

Technically Linux is free. You can use it without paying a licensing fee to anyone. You can also freely share it with anybody as well. Linux is licensed under the Free Software Foundation’s General Public License, which specifies that the source code to Linux will always remain freely available. You can download almost any version of a Linux distribution from various Internet ftp sites. (Such as sunsite.unc.edu, tsx-11.mit.edu, nic.funet.fi, ftp.cdrom.com, and 100’s of others) The more popular method is to purchase a CD-ROM distribution of Linux. I recently purchased the four CD "Slakware" v3.4 Linux distribution from Chapters bookstore in Richmond for $18.99. You can also purchase a reference book on Linux that includes 1 or more CD’s containing Linux for between $20 to $100. Check out the "Half Price Computer Book Store" in Richmond for some really good deals on Book/CD combinations. (The Linux items there will not be the latest though)

Linux is written by an international collaboration of Linux software enthusiasts spread all over the world, and tied together via the Internet. The original author of the Linux kernel is Linus Torvalds. No one person or company "owns" Linux. (Bill Gates cannot buy it out….)

Here are a few places that I have found Linux Books and CD’s: (I’m sure there are other places too)

• Discovery Multimedia- 7966 Granville St., (64^th and Granville), Vancouver
• MultiMedia Technologies - 365 W. Broadway, Vancouver
• Half Price Computer Books- #122 – 4940 No. 3 Road, Richmond (by Landsdowne Mall)
• Chapters Books- 8171 Ackroyd Rd, Units #180/181, Richmond (by #3 Road)
• Computer City- Landsdowne Mall, Richmond

What are some of the Popular Linux Distributions? (This is not a complete list)

• Slackware (popular with Tnos/Linux users)
• Red Hat
• Debian GNU
• Caldera

There is a ‘huge’ amount of documentation available for Linux. What is interesting is that most of the printed documentation that is available in bookstores, is actually contained on most of the CD ROM distributions of Linux! There are text versions, html versions, and post-script version of the ‘HOWTO’ documents right on the CD-ROM’s. My first Linux book (with CD-ROM) came from Costco in Surrey for $22! A lot of computer bookstores carry Linux books. There is a lot to choose from, but be aware that most of the books out there for sale, do not match the most current distributions of Linux available on CD-ROM or over the Internet. This is generally not a big problem, as configuring and setting up Linux has quite been stable for the last few years.

If you like "Plug-and-Play" no configuration required operating Systems, Maybe not. But if you like to dig into things, study docs, and experiment a bit (actually a lot) then Linux might be for you!