I know Microsoft publishes Windows.
I don't know who are all releasing different versions of Linux.
Hardly there are 7 versions of Windows ( 3.1, 3.11, 95,98, NT4, 2000, XP).
Why there is more than 50 versions of linux & releasing everymonth so quickly ? Who are they behind so many versions of Linux ?
One of them can be your next door neibhour.
The open source community is very vast.
N they dont mind sharing their knowledge.
Unlike Microsoft.
Linux developers are a large number of people from all around the world. Most do it for free. Linux initially was a port of Unix for the pc, made by Linus Torvalds. Now, many companies like Redhat, Suse etc are developing variants of linux. The reason there are so many versions is that linux is open-source ie anyone can modify it for a purpose.
Linux Distributions
Hi,
[I may be replying to a troll posting - but...]
Linux-based operating systems are known as 'distributions' (or 'distros'). They consist of the core operating system kernel ('Linux'), one or more desktop environments (eg 'GNOME', 'KDE'), development tools, games etc. The common theme running across all distros is that they all run atop the Linux kernel (although many other components would be common as well).
*Anyone*, including yourself can legally roll-out such a distribution. As a result there are several commercial as well as non-commercial distros available - each having its own fan following. Which distro is best for you depends upon what you want to do with it - there is no 'one size fits all' distro - though some vendors aim for that too...
As far as the frequency of releases is concerned, Linux (and free software in general) follows a philosphy of 'release early and release often'). However, just because a new version of your distribution is available does not mean you have to rush out and install it. Unless there's a compelling reason - security fixes, incredible new features - you may choose to stick to an older version. This is similar to people using Windows 98, even though XP is available...
Hope this helps,
Yogesh
Even my organization has a distribution of GNU/Linux... wanna have a test copy of it....
even i did not know there are so many versions of linux check this page out
*www.cbel.com/linux_distributions/
I want to get the list of all developers/companies those are well known to Linux users for releasing different distributions.
can anyone tell me if free bsd is advisable for a newbie?
Distros
*distrowatch.com
This is a perfect site to review Linux distros and to find all kinda of info on any linux distro.
They give a detailed information of the packages,apps that ship with each distros.
wow wat a nos of distros -- *www.cbel.com/linux_distributions/