What is Linux?

Linux is a well-known open source, cross-platform operating system. It is based on UNIX. Being an operating system, its work is to receive requests from programs and pass on those requests to the computer’s hardware. In simple sense, it is a communication bridge between software and hardware.

It is in most smartphones, like Android uses a Linux kernel. It can run on desktops, laptops and supercomputers, on servers and other embedded systems.

History

Linux was created in 1991 by Linus Torvalds. He wanted to create a free operating system kernel. So he built Linux which is free and open source.

Linux Distribution’s

There are lot of Linux distro’s available for different purposes. Here are some of the popular Linux distro’s:

Arch Linux

Arch Linux With GNOME Desktop

CentOS

CentOS With GNOME Desktop

Debian

Debian With Cinnamon Desktop

Ubuntu

Ubuntu With Unity Desktop

Linux Mint

Linux Mint With KDE Desktop

OpenSUSE

OpenSUSE With LXDE Desktop

Kali Linux

Kali Linux With GNOME Desktop

Here are some of the popular desktop environment for Linux distro’s. Some of them come default with the distro and some you can choose while installing.

GNOME 

GNOME Desktop

KDE

KDE Desktop

Cinnamon

Cinnamon Desktop

MATE

Mate Desktop

Getting started with Linux

To get started you just need a PC at your home (like Desktop or Laptop) and bootable CD/DVD or Pen drive with any popular Linux distro like Debian, Ubuntu, Arch etc. It’s not that like you have to do some research for which distro to install but if you want then you can and get the right one as per the kind of work you want to do.  

There are lots of different distro’s for different kind of works, for example if you want Linux for just basic office works, you can go for Ubuntu and if you are Ethical Hacker and want to do some penetration testing then you can go for Kali Linux and if you want a distro for your home server or any kind other then you can go for CentOS.  

But its not like these are just the one. There are lot more out there and all of them have there own pros and cons. But at the end its better to have a free and open source operating system then to pay and get licence for it.