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announcement of GNU project
an attempt at creating a completely free operating system -
work begings
work begins on GNU operating system -
freee software is established
free software foundation is established as a non-profit organization to promote the development of free software. GNU is the sponsors the project -
The textbook Operating System:Design and Implementation is published
The textbook Operating System:Design and Implementation is published which includes the copy of a teachin version of Unix called Minix -
Version of 1.0 of pearl is released
Larry Wall releases version 1.0 of Pearl -
Version 1 of GNU is released
version 1 of GNU gerneral public licences (GPL) is released -
version 2 of GNU is released
version 2 of GNU general public lincense (GPL) is realeased -
Linus Torvalds announces he is working on a operating system
Linus Torvalds announces he is working on an operating system to Minix -
Version 0.01 of Torvalds project is made
Version 0.01 of Torvalds project is made availible via ftp.funet.fi.Ari Lemmke, the system administrator,gives the dictory the name Linix -
Interest in having the free software foundation with GNU system
Richard Stallman expresses interest in having the free software foundation distribution a GNU system with the Linix kernal -
the first Linix FAQ
Robert Blum post the first Linix FAQ -
alt.os.linix newgroup is created
Minix creator Andrew Tannenbaum claims 'Linix is obsolete" in a posting to comp.os.minix and starts a public discussion on the merits of lunix in which Linus torvalds participates. -
what could be described as the first linux 'distrabution'
what could be described as the first linux 'distrabution', called MCC interrim linux is released by the university of Manchester,England -
Version 0.95 of lunix kernal is released
this version will be able to support X - windows -
sep 1 1992
A Linux distribution called Softlanding Linux System (SLS) is released. Early users include Patrick Volkerding and Ian Murdock. -
nov 1 1992
Software und System Entwicklung GmbH (SuSE) founded in Nuremberg, Germany. Distributes a German version of SLS with corresponding manuals -
mar 1 1993
Matt Welsh issues the Linux Documentation Project Manifesto. He states that the goal of the LDP is to "collaborate in taking care of all of the issues of Linux documentation". -
aug 1 1993
Version 1.0 of Slackware released by Patrick Volkerding. It is based on the SLS distribution. -
mar 1
Linux kernel version 1.0 released.
First issue of Linux Journal publis -
apr 1
Version 1.0 of SuSE Linux released. It is based on SLS. -
apr 1 1994
Version 1.0 of SuSE Linux released. It is based on SLS. -
may 1
Michael McLagan registers the linux.org domain. -
jun1
Jon 'maddog' Hall founds Linux International
Rasmus Lerdorf releases the first version of the PHP scripting language. -
sep 1 1994
William R. Della Croce, Jr. of Boston, Massachusetts registers the Linux trademark. He begins, shortly thereafter, to ask for compensation for the use of the word Linux. -
oct 1
Marc Ewing releases the first version of Red Hat Linux.
Linux distributor Caldera founded by Ray Noorda of Novell and Ransom Love. -
mar 1 1995
Bob Young partners with Marc Ewing and forms Red Hat Software.
Apache web server project started as a series of patches to the NCSA HTTPd server (a patchy server). -
mar 1 1996
Linux kernel version 2.0 released. -
mar 1
Linux kernel version 2.0 released. -
may 1 1996
Linus Torvalds suggests that a "slightly overweight penguin" would be the best mascot for Linux. He recommends Larry Ewing's "Tux" penguin images. -
sep 1 1996
Linus Torvalds along with Linux Journal, Yggdrasil Computing, Inc., Linux International Work Group Solutions and with the help of Digital Equipment Corporation and Red Hat, file suit against William R. Della Croce, Jr. to re-assign the Linux trademark to Linus Torvalds. The firm of Davis & Schroeder handles the case on an almost pro-bono basis. -
sep 1 1996
Linus Torvalds along with Linux Journal, Yggdrasil Computing, Inc., Linux International Work Group Solutions and with the help of Digital Equipment Corporation and Red Hat, file suit against William R. Della Croce, Jr. to re-assign the Linux trademark to Linus Torvalds. The firm of Davis & Schroeder handles the case on an almost pro-bono basis. -
oct 1 1996
Kool Desktop Environment (KDE) project announced. -
feb 1
Linus Torvalds moves to California and begins working for Transmeta, a microprocessor manufacturer. -
may 1
Eric S. Raymond gives a paper entitled The Cathedral and the Bazaar at Linux Kongress. It outlines the principles of what would become known as the "open source" method. -
may 1
Google search engine appears using servers running Linux. -
aug 1 1997
The Linux trademark dispute between William Della Croce and Linus Torvalds is settled, with Della Croce re-assigning the trademark to Torvalds.
Miguel de Icaza starts the GNOME project. -
feb 1 1998
Bruce Perens and Eric S. Raymond found the Open Source Initiative, an organization to promote the use of open source software and establish guidelines for open source licenses. -
jul 1998
Sam Ockman founds Penguin Computing. It is the first hardware company to produce Linux-only systems. -
aug 1
Forbes magazine devotes its cover story to Linus Torvalds. -
nov 1 1998
Eric S. Raymond releases internal Microsoft memos, known as the "Halloween Documents", that show that the company is formulating plans to deal with the increasing use of Linux. -
dec 1 1998
Corel releases Word Perfect 8 for Linux as a free download. -
dec 1 1998
Corel releases Word Perfect 8 for Linux as a free download. -
jan 1 1999
Linux kernel version 2.2 released. -
mar 1 1999
The Burlington Coat Factory announces that it is using Linux in its stores. -
mar 2 1999
GNOME 1.0 desktop released -
may 1 1999
Dell pre-installs Red Hat Linux on some servers and workstations. -
aug 1 1999
Red Hat has its initial public offering (IPO) and becomes a publicly traded company. -
oct 1 1999
VA Linux systems stock reaches $320 US after starting its initial public offering (IPO) at $30. Ending the day at $239.25, it is the largest first-day gain in history to date -
nov 1
Matthew Szulik replaces Bob Young as CEO of Red Hat.
Corel releases Linux distribution. -
mar 1 2000
A Netcraft survey reveals that Apache webserver powers 60% of the World Wide Web.
Linux distributor Caldera Systems Inc has its initial public offering (IPO). -
may 1 2000
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer calls Linux "a cancer that attaches itself in an intellectual property sense to everything it touches." in an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times. -
aug 1 2000
Caldera Systems acquires the Santa Cruz Operation's (SCO) Unix server division. -
aug 1 2000
Caldera Systems acquires the Santa Cruz Operation's (SCO) Unix server division. -
sep 1 2000
Trolltech releases the QT libraries, used by KDE, under the GPL. -
oct 1 2000
IBM CEO Louis Gerstner announces that the company will invest $1 billion in Linux development. -
jan 1 2001
Linux kernel version 2.4 released.
Corel announces that it is selling its Linux unit. -
may 1 2001
Linus Torvalds publishes his autobiography entitled Just for Fun with the help of journalist David Diamond. -
aug 1 2001
MP3.com founder Michael Robertson starts development on Lindows, a Debian-based distribution which promises to be a Linux distribution that can be used by anybody. -
oct 1 2001
Amazon.com reveals in a SEC filing that switching to Linux has saved them over $20 million. -
nov 1 2001
Microsoft files a trademark infringement suit against Lindows, claiming the similarity to the name Windows "confuses the public". -
feb 1 2002
Linus Torvalds begins using BitMover's BitKeeper to manage kernel development. Bitkeeper is proprietary software and many, including Richard Stallman, criticize the decision. -
may 1 2002
Linux distributors Caldera, SuSE, Turbolinux and Conectiva sign an agreement to form UnitedLinux and jointly develop a Linux distribution for servers. -
jul 1 2002
Walmart begins selling Microtel PCs through their online store with Lindows and Mandrake Linux pre-installed
Version 1.0 of the free sound codec Ogg Vorbis is released. -
aug 1 2002
Caldera announces that they are changing their name to The SCO Group and are going to concentrate on Unix development
Free office suite OpenOffice.org 1.0 is released. Shares of VA Linux stock reach an history low $0.64 US. Having been the highest climber in IPO history, VA Linux becomes the poster child for the dot-com bust -
jan 1 2003
Maureen O'Gara of LinuxGram posts a story that SCO is planning on suing Linux vendors for using proprietary Unix intellectual property. The SCO Controversy begins.(see separate SCO timeline) -
may 1 2003
The city of Munich, Germany announces that it's switching 14,000 PCs from Windows to Linux. -
junn 1 2003
La Junta de Extremadura (Spain) announces that 80,000 computers in their schools are running a distribution called GNU/LinEx.
Linus Torvalds announces that he's leaving Transmeta to work full time on the kernel for the Open Source Development Labs. The Torvalds family moves to Oregon. -
jul 1 2003
Red Hat announces that they will no longer sell boxed sets of their Linux distribution for retail customers. Instead, they will distribute Linux to end users via a development distribution called Fedora Core. -
aug 1 2003
Novell buys Linux desktop software company Ximian. -
oct 1 2003
Novell acquires German Linux distributor SuSE. -
dec 1 2003
Linux kernel version 2.6 is released. -
jul1 2004
Microsoft settles its trademark dispute with Lindows. Lindows changes its name to Linspire and assigns Microsoft the rights to the Lindows name. Microsoft pays $20 million and grants Linspire licenses to use certain Windows media libraries. -
oct 1 2004
First version of Ubuntu Linux released. -
oct 1 2004
First version of Ubuntu Linux released. -
nov 1 2004
During the Superbowl, IBM runs a commercial promoting Linux featuring Muhammed Ali and other celebrities -
apr 1 2005
Larry McVoy, creator of BitKeeper, discontinues support for the free BitKeeper client after complaining about attempts to reverse engineer it. Linus Torvalds announces that he will no longer use BitKeeper for kernel development. Torvalds starts work on a replacement he calls Git. -
dec 2 2005
In strongly worded emails to the GNOME mailing list, Linus Torvalds reveals that he prefers KDE to GNOME, starting a small controversy. "Gnome seems to be developed by interface nazis...", claims Torvalds.