Linux is everywhere. You might not see it, and you probably don’t know it yet, but it’s powering the Web services you use, the phone in your hand and the ATM at your bank.
The following video, just released by the Linux Foundation, is all about the places and apps where Linux is lurking unseen by the average consumer. It also goes into some detail about how Linux, a free and open-source operating system, is built collaboratively by a global army of volunteer developers. Altogether, around six patches get applied to the Linux kernel every hour. Crazy, innit?
“Linux is the most dominant OS in supercomputing,” said Amanda McPherson, vice-president of marketing and developer programmes at the Linux Foundation, in an e-mail exchange with VentureBeat. “As for mobile and embedded [devices,] every Android has Linux in it.”
McPherson noted that Linux is making some interesting moves in the automotive space, as well.
“Toyota joined the Linux Foundation not long ago, and we now host an annual event, Automotive Linux Summit, due to increasing demand from our members and industry to use Linux in next-generation cars,” she said. “Maintaining the software needed for an auto today is a huge job and not one car makers want to depend on one vendor to handle. Car makers have to maintain their device (the car) for five to 10 years. With Linux, they have a full community supporting and updating the software. They don’t need to worry about it.”
Though the foundation stresses that the worldwide group of Linux contributors is a truly global community, McPherson said that particularly active hotspots have blossomed in North America, Japan, Europe and Brazil. — Jolie O’Dell, VentureBeat
