this post was submitted on 28 Feb 2026
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Linux
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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No, Linux is not UNIX. It is UNIX like. MacOS is UNIX, based on a BSD system.
BSD isn't Unix. It's fairest to say it is a Unix. Unix was built in Murray Hill and maintained by a succession of corporations and now sits locked in a safe at a company where they will never have the clue or interest to maintain or distribute it, thanks to IBM. Everything else is just sparkling multics.
(Source: was on the periphery, know the people who know where the bodies are)
And it's neat to see how well IBM killed the competition who dared to cry code-rape.
Linux could be unix if someone wanted to pay to have it certified. It's meaningless.