Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

User talk:EulerMascheroni0577

2008-07-30T00:46:33Z

EulerMascheroni0577: I'm greeting myself. :)

{{welcome}}
--[[User:EulerMascheroni0577|EulerMascheroni0577]] 20:46, 29 July 2008 (EDT)

Mozilla Firefox

2008-07-30T00:39:55Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Version.

[[Image:Firefox-first-run.png|right|thumb|Mozilla Firefox v2.0 running on [[Windows Vista]].|300px]]
'''Mozilla Firefox''' is a free, [[open source]] web browser developed by the [http://www.mozilla.org/foundation/ Mozilla Foundation]. The software is licensed under the ''Mozilla Public License version 1.1'' and is the main competitor of [[Microsoft]]'s [[Internet Explorer]]. The current stable release is version 3.0.1.

Firefox was originally developed as an offshoot of the Mozilla Browser project, developed by [[Netscape]], as a lightweight version of the software. The original Mozilla browser was extremely feature rich, including such things as an [[HTML]] editor, which created a large and correspondingly slow piece of software. Firefox has gone through several name changes, all due to existing trademarks. It was originally named ''Phoenix'', then ''Firebird'' and finally ''Firefox''.

Since it's original release in 2003, Firefox has had a continued increase in the market share of web browsers. Exact numbers are difficult to determine, but as of March 2007, in North America Firefox had a 15% share<ref>[http://marketshare.hitslink.com/report.aspx?qprid=0 Browser Market Share]</ref>, and 25% in Europe<ref>[http://www.xitimonitor.com/en-us/browsers-barometer/firefox-march-2007/index-1-2-3-77.html Close to 25% of Use Rate in Europe for Firefox]</ref>.

The browser is officially supported in 41 languages<ref>[http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/all.html Firefox International Versions]</ref>, and is available for the different versions of Microsoft [[Windows]], [[Apple Inc.|Apple]] Mac [[OS X]], and [[Linux]] operating systems. Unofficial builds are available for Sun Microsystems Solaris, BSD and other operating systems.

==External Links==
*[http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/ Firefox Home Page]
*[http://developer.mozilla.org/ Programming Center]

==References==
<references/>

[[category:information technology]]

NOVA (PBS)

2008-07-30T00:35:13Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Attempted to temper evolution sentence.

'''NOVA''' is a scientific television show on [[PBS]]. Many creationists find its bias towards evolution to be objectionable, although the program attempts to reflect generally accepted scientific views, unless designed to do specifically otherwise. It has a spinoff series, ''Nova Science Now'', which documents newer trends in science.

==External links==
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ Official site on PBS]
[[Category:Television Shows]]

Socialism

2008-07-30T00:23:14Z

EulerMascheroni0577: What was being described was communism, which is entirely different.

[[Image:Backrdv12n2.jpg|right|400px|thumb|The caption reads, "Long live the great undefeatable flag of Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin!"]]
'''Socialism''' is an economic system in which the government controls the means of production. Unfortunately, many nations have implemented socialism poorly, many with immense corruption, leading to massive economic breakdown. However, although some see it as placing a drag on the economy, in democratic countries of the industrialized west, some socialist ideas have been put into practice with varying degrees of success.

==Controversy==
The ideology of '''Socialism''' is subject to a variety of interpretations. From a conservative perspective, socialism is an economic system whereby the means of production are seized and monopolized by the government without compensation to the builders of the [[capital]], and where investments, production, distribution, income, prices, and economic justice are administered by a government [[nomenklatura]] that regulate the transfer of money, goods (including capital goods), and services primarily through taxation and regularized and institutionalized aggressive coercion. However, the majority of socialists would reject this description. Democratic socialists advocate a system of governance based on the principles of [[solidarity]], [[equality]] and [[liberty]], viewing these principles as interconnected, with increased socio-economic equality associated with increased practical freedom to fulfill human potential. In many countries, such as the United Kingdom, socialist movements have been built on Christian and co-operative bases, embracing the notion that individuals should 'treat others as they would wish to be treated', and arguing that all individuals have a moral responsibility for the welfare of other members of their society. Socialism seeks to prioritize human welfare over other goals, such as profit and wealth accumulation by elites; it views increased redistribution of wealth as vital to securing greater freedom and happiness for the bulk of the people, and deplores the devastating effects of gross inequality on society in terms of increased crime, mental illness, unhappiness and lack of life chances.

==Key elements==

As a political ideology based on the expropriation of wealth, socialism stresses the privileges of the nomenklatura over the rights of workers and earners. Many of the most notoriously oppressive dictatorships have been socialist, such as the [[Soviet Union]] and [[National Socialist]] Germany. As an economic theory, socialism calls for redistribution of wealth, through taxation of private wealth coupled with "[[Progressivism|progressive]]" social policy or directly via [[nationalization]] and public ownership of property without compensation to owners. Wage earners suffer under Socialism, as it is hard to get paid in a system that discourages private persons from accumulating income.

Although socialist ideas such as the provision of [[unemployment benefits]], state [[pension]]s, [[universal health care]], and state control of key industries have been common throughout the developed world in the modern era, the [[United States]] has tended to reject socialism as an ideological position. In other parts of the world, such as Europe, Africa, Asia, and South and Central America, there has generally been more explicit support for socialism as a doctrine, and socialist parties have been among the most successful political forces of the last 100 years.

While socialism has often been [[atheistic]] in character, and many leading socialists (most prominently Karl Marx) have been critical of the role of religion - and conservative religion in particular - which they criticize for lending support to an unjust social order, some Socialists have been Christians, and there has been considerable interplay between Christian and Socialist ideas. [[Christian socialists]] have asserted that early Christian communities, in particular, displayed certain traits, such as the holding of possessions in common,<ref>Acts 2:44: "Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need."</ref> the rejection of conventional sexual mores and gender roles,{{fact}} the provision for communal education, etc., that could be considered similar to socialism. See, for instance, Arnold Toynbee, the British historian, has responded to this,

:"the Marxian excerpt from a Christian Socialism is an experiment which is doomed to failure because it has denied itself the aid of the spiritual power which alone is capable of making Socialism a success. ….'Christianity', they say, 'is the opiate of the People'; and, in the [[Soviet Union]]… Christianity or of any other theistic religion have been debarred… from admission to membership of the All-Union Communist Party. In fact, Communism has been definitely and militantly anti-Christian. Thus the campaign against Christianity which is to-day an integral part of the propaganda of [[Marxian Socialism]] is a challenge to the living generation of Christians …we latter-day Christians may still turn a Marxian attack upon Christianity to good account … a re-awakening of the Christian social conscience has been the one great positive practical achievement of Karl Marx" <ref>Arnold Toynbee, ''A Study of History'', Annex II to Vol. V, Part C (i) (c) 2, p. 585-586, Marxism, Socialism, and Christianity.</ref>

Communist persecution notwithstanding, the earliest Christians were decidedly living in a manner consistent with the aims of socialism. Acts 4:32-5:11 not only describes community redistribution of property, but describes punishment of a husband and wife for failing to completely share the proceeds from selling their land.

[[Marx, Karl|Karl Marx]] considered socialism to be a transitory stage between capitalism and communism. In his view, socialism is summed up by the expression: "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs." A major criticism of socialism is that it infringes individual rights in favor of the populace. In a very real sense, politics in the western world throughout the 20th century was shaped by the conflict between socialist and capitalist governmental policies.

Although socialist parties are common in Europe, the leading examples all currently embrace some free enterprise, individual property rights and certain other aspects of capitalism although leading European Socialists are very critical of America. In many European countries socialism has been changing to [[Social democracy]].

== Britain, the Labour Party and socialism ==

At its inception, the [[Labour Party]] borrowed socialist ideas by committing itself to a program of nationalization under 'Clause 4' of their Constitution, but was always fundamentally committed to the British State and the [[Westminster model]] of parliamentary government. Clause 4 was formally dropped after the election of [[Tony Blair]] as Party leader, signaling the creation of 'New' Labour.<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/21/newsid_2515000/2515825.stm</ref> The British governments of 1945-1950 and 1950-1951 under [[Clement Atlee]] implemented the nationalization of several industries and utilities, including coal, steel, water, railways and electricity. The best known example is the [[nationalization of health care]] to create the [[National Health Service]] (NHS). This made - literally overnight - health care "free" at the point of delivery for everybody in Britain.

Since the election to government of the Labour Party in 1997, many "[[progressive]]" measures have been introduced, such as the Minimum Wage, Child Tax Credits, union recognition legislation, increased maternity and paternity leave, the Child Trust Fund, refurbishment of [[council housing]], free bus travel for the elderly, increased paid leave for all workers, free nursery-school places, and large cuts in unemployment.<ref>[http://www.towerhamlets.labour.co.uk/a1c1ce9b-1488-7bb4-a528-14436f084ba3]</ref> In addition, over a million children and a million pensioners have been [[lifted out of poverty]];{{fact}} however, many in the [[Labour Movement]] are extremely critical of [[New Labour]]'s tentative approach to reducing [[inequality]], and are frustrated that the government has not been more willing to make the case to the public for the [[redistribution of wealth]].

==World socialism==

US liberal politicians often echo the rhetoric of [[world socialism]]: <ref>Before Congress adjourned last week on another of its lengthy holidays, Speaker [[Nancy Pelosi]] repeated a phrase she has previously used about the war in Iraq. She again referred to it as "the Bush policy of unending war in Iraq." [http://www.townhall.com/columnists/CalThomas/2007/05/29/unending_war Cal Thomas] Tuesday, May 29, 2007 </ref>

*"Because George W. Bush [is] among the most menacing and belligerent [presidents] in American history. [He has] outlined a program of limitless and perpetual warfare, on every continent, and against any regime that stands in the way of the rapacious American ruling class.... like Hitler and the Nazis, [[American militarism]] has embarked on a campaign of world conquest and world domination... [President Bush has issued] a declaration of the unbridled appetites of the military and of the most ruthless, corrupt and criminal sections of the American ruling elite ...Like Hitler, Bush presents an upside-down view of the world in which small and weak states are mortal threats to the most powerful and heavily armed..." (World Socialist Web Site, 31 January 2002)

== Criticism of socialism ==
Socialism is often criticized by many people, including [[Bill O'Reilly]]. In his book ''''Culture Warrior'''' O'Reilly starts the book out by painting a bleak picture of what America would look like with a socialistic government. He states problems such as lawlessness, lack of morals and ethics and an overbearing politically correct "feel good" government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=XPY4AAAACAAJ&dq=Culture+Warrior |title=Google books |accessdate=2008-02-22}}</ref>

Socialism is usually considered by most to be a weaker form of a communistic government, where a small few control and impose their beliefs onto other people. For example, Europe is used as an example of socialism. Most of the region is controlled by the [[European Union]] who impose restricts on religion and freedom of speech while promoting an "equal" and [[Political correctness|politically correct]] society.
==Other Socialist Countries (Current )==
==China==
After the Chinese Socialist Revolution in 1948, China has declared itself a communist country and has been Socialist since then, although they just pretend to be communist nowadays.
==[[Cuba]]==
Communist leader [[Fidel Castro]] violently overthrew the Cuban government in the 1950's and has declared Cuba to be Communist since then. Today, Cuba faces copious economic problems and the people lack their Fundamental Rights.

==North Korea==

North Korea's form of communism is in the form of "Juche" - a doctrine established by Kim Il Sung and carried on by current leader Kim Jong Il.

==Different strands of socialism==
*[[Communism]]
*[[Social democracy]]
*[[National socialism]] (Nazism)
*[[Fascism]]

==References==
<div class="references-small"><div class="references-2column"><references /></div></div>

==External links==
*[http://www.mises.org/etexts/hayekintellectuals.pdf The Intellectuals and Socialism], By F.A. Hayek, ''The University of Chicago Law Review'', (Spring 1949), pp. 417-420, 421-423, 425-433.
*[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9109587/socialism Socialism] Encyclopædia Britannica.
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/socialism/ What Liberals Say - Category: Socialism], [[Accuracy In Media]]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialist_countries]

[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Socialism]]

GPG

2008-07-30T00:20:28Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Redirecting to GNU Privacy Guard

#REDIRECT [[GNU Privacy Guard]]

GNU Privacy Guard

2008-07-30T00:20:06Z

EulerMascheroni0577: New page: The '''GNU Privacy Guard''', also known as GnuPG, is an open source (GPL) piece of cryptographic software, compliant with the [http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc4880 R...

The '''GNU Privacy Guard''', also known as GnuPG, is an [[open source]] (GPL) piece of [[cryptography|cryptographic]] [[software]], compliant with the [http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc4880 RFC 4880] encryption standard, and intended as a replacement for the proprietary [[Pretty Good Privacy]] (PGP) software.

[[Category:Free software]]
[[Category:GNU]]

GNU/Linux

2008-07-29T23:37:37Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Ads.

[[Image:Tuxie.jpg|thumb|right|"Tux", the Linux mascot|90px]]
The Linux [[kernel]] that communicates with the hardware, supporting many other software components (such as the graphical user interface, file system and media players), but those who are unaware of or not concerned about the history of the project commonly used "Linux" to refer to the whole operating system. The Linux kernel was developed by Finnish grad student [[Linus Torvalds]].

Linux distinguishes itself from other operating systems such as UNIX and [[Microsoft Windows]] in that the [[source code]] is distributed freely under various [[open source]] licenses. In essence, this means that anybody can modify the code to their needs, and that the development of Linux happens in an open community, rather than in a closed commercial environment. Any improvements to the code will be contributed to the community, and any software that is based upon viral licenses will be, in turn, licenses under these. The Linux kernel itself is licensed under the GNU [[General Public License]] (GPL).

Linux is also different to the closed source operating system vendors in that the software is distributed by many different companies. Major Linux distributions include [http://www.redhat.com/ Red Hat], [http://www.novell.com/linux/ SUSE], [http://www.debian.org/ Debian] and [http://www.ubuntu.com/ Ubuntu]. There are literally hundreds of Linux distributions as can be seen on [http://distrowatch.com DistroWatch.com].

In 2005 [http://www.forbes.com/ Forbes.com] posted [http://www.forbes.com/2005/03/15/cz_dl_0315linux_print.html an article] estimating Linux ran 60% of the world's top supercomputers at that time. In 2003 the [[IBM]] Linux Technology Center [http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/l-rel/?ca=dgr-lnxw01LTP concluded] that Linux has enterprise class reliability. Linux servers can run without reboot for years as can usually be seen at the [http://uptime.netcraft.com/up/today/top.avg.html Longest uptimes] URL on [http://www.netcraft.com/ Netcraft.com]. Another location to check on Linux uptime statistics is the [http://counter.li.org/reports/uptimestats.php Machine uptimes] page at [http://counter.li.org/ Linux Counter].

Owing to the nature of open source software, many variants of a Linux distribution may be created by using the original code and making changes to it to suit a particular need. For example, there is also a [[Ubuntu]] [[Christian]] Edition.<ref>[http://www.whatwouldjesusdownload.com/christianubuntu/2006/07/about-ubuntu-christian-edition.html Ubuntu Christian Edition]</ref>

[[Image:Gnomesword large.png|right|thumb|250px|Screenshot of Ubuntu Christian Edition.]]

It is likely that Linux is becoming one of the most commonly adopted operating systems in the world. However, this is difficult to quantify with hard evidence since most Linux distributions are given away for "free" and there are few sales records or marketing numbers to review. While personal computers in the United States and other "first world nations" still overwhelmingly use [[Microsoft]] operating systems such as Windows XP, Linux is a common choice for web servers, file servers and embedded platforms, thanks to its perceived reliability, low/no cost, and the fact that modifications to the source code can readily be made by anyone.

As an example, in March of 2007 the server hosting the the Conservapedia web site was running the Linux operating system<ref>[http://toolbar.netcraft.com/site_report?url=http://www.conservapedia.com NetCraft site report for Conservapedia.com]</ref>

==Linux Pre-Installed==
From its inception, and with exception of the server market, it was difficult to find new computers available with Linux pre-installed. Users typically have to download the Linux distribution of their choice and install it on a computer themselves, slowing the increase in computers using a desktop version of Linux, as many home computer users find installing an operating system a difficult task. This situation drastically changed in 2007 when [[Dell]] started selling laptop and desktop computers to the general public with Linux pre-installed<ref>[http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/alliances/en/linux?c=us&cs=555&l=en&s=biz Dell and Linux]</ref>. As of October 2007, Dell was selling "home" computers available with [[Ubuntu]] Linux, and business workstations with [[Red Hat]] Linux.

== References ==
<references />

==External links==
*[http://www.kernel.org/ The Linux Kernel Archives]
*[http://www.linux-foundation.org/en/Main_Page The Linux Foundation]

[[Category:Information technology]]

User:EulerMascheroni0577

2008-07-29T23:37:07Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Whoops.

{{userboxtop|Userboxen!}}
{{user Geek}}
{{userboxbottom}}

Why is this site so slow?

User:EulerMascheroni0577

2008-07-29T23:36:22Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Geek userbox.

{{user geek}}

Why is this site so slow?

GNU/Linux

2008-07-29T23:35:53Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Improvements.

[[Image:Tuxie.jpg|thumb|right|"Tux", the Linux mascot|90px]]
The Linux [[kernel]] that communicates with the hardware, supporting many other software components (such as the graphical user interface, file system and media players), but those who are unaware of or not concerned about the history of the project commonly used "Linux" to refer to the whole operating system. The Linux kernel was developed by Finnish grad student [[Linus Torvalds]].

Linux distinguishes itself from other operating systems such as UNIX and [[Microsoft Windows]] in that the [[source code]] is distributed freely under various [[open source]] licenses. In essence, this means that anybody can modify the code to their needs, and that the development of Linux happens in an open community, rather than in a closed commercial environment. Any improvements to the code will be contributed to the community, and any software that is based upon viral licenses will be, in turn, licenses under these. The Linux kernel itself is licensed under the GNU [[General Public License]] (GPL).

Linux is also different to the closed source operating system vendors in that the software is distributed by many different companies. Major Linux distributions include [http://www.redhat.com/ Red Hat], [http://www.novell.com/linux/ SUSE], [http://www.debian.org/ Debian] and [http://www.ubuntu.com/ Ubuntu]. There are literally hundreds of Linux distributions as can be seen on [http://distrowatch.com DistroWatch.com].

In 2005 [http://www.forbes.com/ Forbes.com] posted [http://www.forbes.com/2005/03/15/cz_dl_0315linux_print.html an article] estimating Linux ran 60% of the world's top supercomputers at that time. In 2003 the [[IBM]] Linux Technology Center [http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/l-rel/?ca=dgr-lnxw01LTP concluded] that Linux has enterprise class reliability. Linux servers can run without reboot for years as can usually be seen at the [http://uptime.netcraft.com/up/today/top.avg.html Longest uptimes] URL on [http://www.netcraft.com/ Netcraft.com]. Another location to check on Linux uptime statistics is the [http://counter.li.org/reports/uptimestats.php Machine uptimes] page at [http://counter.li.org/ Linux Counter]. It is worth mentioning that there are other free operating systems not based on the Linux kernel that Linux borrows from and has been a source of inspiration to: namely [http://www.freebsd.org/ FreeBSD], [http://www.openbsd.org OpenBSD], [http://www.netbsd.org NetBSD], and dragonflyBSD, and the more recent Minix 3 and openSolaris. Free operating systems allow a great deal of new ideas to be tried and collaboration made possible by the Internet makes teams easy to form. [http://www.netbsd.org NetBSD] claims to run on [http://www.netbsd.org/ports/ almost any hardware], [http://www.openbsd.org OpenBSD] has a goal to become the [http://www.openbsd.org/security.html most secure operating system] in the world, and [http://www.freebsd.org/ FreeBSD] has been powering computers for free since [http://www.freebsd.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/history.html before Linux became popular]. [http://www.opensolaris.org/ OpenSolaris] is a free version of [http://www.sun.com/ SUN Microsystems] proprietary Solaris OS.

Owing to the nature of open source software, many variants of a Linux distribution may be created by using the original code and making changes to it to suit a particular need. For example, there is also a [[Ubuntu]] [[Christian]] Edition.<ref>[http://www.whatwouldjesusdownload.com/christianubuntu/2006/07/about-ubuntu-christian-edition.html Ubuntu Christian Edition]</ref>

[[Image:Gnomesword large.png|right|thumb|250px|Screenshot of Ubuntu Christian Edition.]]

It is likely that Linux is becoming one of the most commonly adopted operating systems in the world. However, this is difficult to quantify with hard evidence since most Linux distributions are given away for "free" and there are few sales records or marketing numbers to review. While personal computers in the United States and other "first world nations" still overwhelmingly use [[Microsoft]] operating systems such as Windows XP, Linux is a common choice for web servers, file servers and embedded platforms, thanks to its perceived reliability, low/no cost, and the fact that modifications to the source code can readily be made by anyone.

As an example, in March of 2007 the server hosting the the Conservapedia web site was running the Linux operating system<ref>[http://toolbar.netcraft.com/site_report?url=http://www.conservapedia.com NetCraft site report for Conservapedia.com]</ref>

==Linux Pre-Installed==
From its inception, and with exception of the server market, it was difficult to find new computers available with Linux pre-installed. Users typically have to download the Linux distribution of their choice and install it on a computer themselves, slowing the increase in computers using a desktop version of Linux, as many home computer users find installing an operating system a difficult task. This situation drastically changed in 2007 when [[Dell]] started selling laptop and desktop computers to the general public with Linux pre-installed<ref>[http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/alliances/en/linux?c=us&cs=555&l=en&s=biz Dell and Linux]</ref>. As of October 2007, Dell was selling "home" computers available with [[Ubuntu]] Linux, and business workstations with [[Red Hat]] Linux.

== References ==
<references />

==External links==
*[http://www.kernel.org/ The Linux Kernel Archives]
*[http://www.linux-foundation.org/en/Main_Page The Linux Foundation]

[[Category:Information technology]]

User:EulerMascheroni0577

2008-07-29T23:34:38Z

EulerMascheroni0577: New page: Why is this site so slow?

Why is this site so slow?

GNU/Linux

2008-07-29T23:33:55Z

EulerMascheroni0577: Improvements, no idea where some of this stuff came from. Also deleted advertisements and excessively distro-specific (*cough Ubuntu*) info.

[[Image:Tuxie.jpg|thumb|right|"Tux", the Linux mascot|90px]]
The Linux [[kernel]] that communicates with the hardware, supporting many other software components (such as the graphical user interface, file system and media players), but those who are unaware of or not concerned about the history of the project commonly used "Linux" to refer to the whole operating system. The Linux kernel was developed by Finnish grad student [[Linus Torvalds]].

Linux distinguishes itself from other operating systems such as UNIX and [[Microsoft Windows]] in that the [[source code]] is distributed freely under various [[open source]] licenses. In essence, this means that anybody can modify the code to their needs, and that the development of Linux happens in an open community, rather than in a closed commercial environment. Any improvements to the code will be contributed to the community, and any software that is based upon viral licenses will be, in turn, licenses under these. The Linux kernel itself is licensed under the GNU [[General Public License]] (GPL).

Linux is also different to the closed source operating system vendors in that the software is distributed by many different companies. Major Linux distributions include [http://www.redhat.com/ Red Hat], [http://www.novell.com/linux/ Suse], [http://www.mandriva.com/ Mandriva] and [http://www.ubuntu.com/ Ubuntu]. There are literally hundreds of Linux distributions as can be seen on [http://distrowatch.com DistroWatch.com].

In 2005 [http://www.forbes.com/ Forbes.com] posted [http://www.forbes.com/2005/03/15/cz_dl_0315linux_print.html an article] estimating Linux ran 60% of the world's top supercomputers at that time. In 2003 the [[IBM]] Linux Technology Center [http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/l-rel/?ca=dgr-lnxw01LTP concluded] that Linux has enterprise class reliability. Linux servers can run without reboot for years as can usually be seen at the [http://uptime.netcraft.com/up/today/top.avg.html Longest uptimes] URL on [http://www.netcraft.com/ Netcraft.com]. Another location to check on Linux uptime statistics is the [http://counter.li.org/reports/uptimestats.php Machine uptimes] page at [http://counter.li.org/ Linux Counter]. It is worth mentioning that there are other free operating systems not based on the Linux kernel that Linux borrows from and has been a source of inspiration to: namely [http://www.freebsd.org/ FreeBSD], [http://www.openbsd.org OpenBSD], [http://www.netbsd.org NetBSD], and dragonflyBSD, and the more recent Minix 3 and openSolaris. Free operating systems allow a great deal of new ideas to be tried and collaboration made possible by the Internet makes teams easy to form. [http://www.netbsd.org NetBSD] claims to run on [http://www.netbsd.org/ports/ almost any hardware], [http://www.openbsd.org OpenBSD] has a goal to become the [http://www.openbsd.org/security.html most secure operating system] in the world, and [http://www.freebsd.org/ FreeBSD] has been powering computers for free since [http://www.freebsd.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/history.html before Linux became popular]. [http://www.opensolaris.org/ OpenSolaris] is a free version of [http://www.sun.com/ SUN Microsystems] proprietary Solaris OS.

Owing to the nature of open source software, many variants of a Linux distribution may be created by using the original code and making changes to it to suit a particular need. For example, there is also a [[Ubuntu]] [[Christian]] Edition.<ref>[http://www.whatwouldjesusdownload.com/christianubuntu/2006/07/about-ubuntu-christian-edition.html Ubuntu Christian Edition]</ref>

[[Image:Gnomesword large.png|right|thumb|250px|Screenshot of Ubuntu Christian Edition.]]

It is likely that Linux is becoming one of the most commonly adopted operating systems in the world. However, this is difficult to quantify with hard evidence since most Linux distributions are given away for "free" and there are few sales records or marketing numbers to review. While personal computers in the United States and other "first world nations" still overwhelmingly use [[Microsoft]] operating systems such as Windows XP, Linux is a common choice for web servers, file servers and embedded platforms, thanks to its perceived reliability, low/no cost, and the fact that modifications to the source code can readily be made by anyone.

As an example, in March of 2007 the server hosting the the Conservapedia web site was running the Linux operating system<ref>[http://toolbar.netcraft.com/site_report?url=http://www.conservapedia.com NetCraft site report for Conservapedia.com]</ref>

==Linux Pre-Installed==
From its inception, and with exception of the server market, it was difficult to find new computers available with Linux pre-installed. Users typically have to download the Linux distribution of their choice and install it on a computer themselves, slowing the increase in computers using a desktop version of Linux, as many home computer users find installing an operating system a difficult task. This situation drastically changed in 2007 when [[Dell]] started selling laptop and desktop computers to the general public with Linux pre-installed<ref>[http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/alliances/en/linux?c=us&cs=555&l=en&s=biz Dell and Linux]</ref>. As of October 2007, Dell was selling "home" computers available with [[Ubuntu]] Linux, and business workstations with [[Red Hat]] Linux.

== References ==
<references />

==External links==
*[http://www.kernel.org/ The Linux Kernel Archives]
*[http://www.linux-foundation.org/en/Main_Page The Linux Foundation]

[[Category:Information technology]]