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Linux
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Linux: /lee'nuhks/ or /li'nuks/, *not* /li:'nuhks/
/n./ The free Unix workalike created by Linus Torvalds and
friends starting about 1990 (the pronunciation /lee'nuhks/ is
preferred because the name `Linus' has an /ee/ sound in Swedish).
This may be the most remarkable hacker project in history -- an
entire clone of Unix for 386, 486 and Pentium micros, distributed
for free with sources over the net (ports to Alpha and Sparc-based
machines are underway). This is what GNU aimed to be, but the
Free Software Foundation has not (as of early 1996) produced the
kernel to go with its Unix toolset (which Linux uses). Other,
similar efforts like FreeBSD and NetBSD have been much less
successful. The secret of Linux's success seems to be that Linus
worked much harder early on to keep the development process open
and recruit other hackers, creating a snowball effect.
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