Linux Turns 25
Linux has evolved from “won’t be a professional” project to one of the most professional software projects in the history of computers.
On August 25, 1991, Linus Torvalds made an announcement about a project he was working on. He wrote on the Minix mailing list that he was working on a free operating system for 386/486 AT clones, which he stated was just a hobby and wouldn't be big and professional like GNU.
It’s been 25 years since that announcement, and today, Linux is a dominating presence in the IT world. Linux powers a huge chunk of the Internet, as well as data centers, mission-critical operations like stock exchanges, supercomputers, mobile phones (Android), consumer desktops (Chrome OS), embedded devices, and much more.
Linux has become so dominant in the enterprise space that even Microsoft is now investing in Linux; they have developed a Linux-based modular operating system for data center networking. The company is putting Linux and Windows on an even playing field by bringing Linux development tools to Windows and Windows development tools (e.g., PowerShell) to Linux.
Jim Zemlin, the executive director of the Linux Foundation, claims that Linux is the biggest shared technology, and he has stats to back it up. According to the latest Linux kernel development report published by the Linux Foundation, “since 2015 more than 14,000 individual developers from over 1,300 different companies have contributed to the kernel.”
The top 10+ companies that contribute to the development of the Linux kernel include Intel, Red Hat, Linaro, Samsung, SUSE, IBM, Renesas, Google, AMD, Texas Instruments, and ARM.
The size of the kernel has increased over the last 25 years. The first release of the kernel had more than 10,000 lines of code in 1991. Now the Linux kernel has more than 22 million lines of code.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
LibreOffice 25.2 Has Arrived
If you've been hoping for a release that offers more UI customizations, you're in for a treat.
-
TuxCare Has a Big AlmaLinux 9 Announcement in Store
TuxCare announced it has successfully completed a Security Technical Implementation Guide for AlmaLinux OS 9.
-
First Release Candidate for Linux Kernel 6.14 Now Available
Linus Torvalds has officially released the first release candidate for kernel 6.14 and it includes over 500,000 lines of modified code, making for a small release.
-
System76 Refreshes Meerkat Mini PC
If you're looking for a small form factor PC powered by Linux, System76 has exactly what you need in the Meerkat mini PC.
-
Gnome 48 Alpha Ready for Testing
The latest Gnome desktop alpha is now available with plenty of new features and improvements.
-
Wine 10 Includes Plenty to Excite Users
With its latest release, Wine has the usual crop of bug fixes and improvements, along with some exciting new features.
-
Linux Kernel 6.13 Offers Improvements for AMD/Apple Users
The latest Linux kernel is now available, and it includes plenty of improvements, especially for those who use AMD or Apple-based systems.
-
Gnome 48 Debuts New Audio Player
To date, the audio player found within the Gnome desktop has been meh at best, but with the upcoming release that all changes.
-
Plasma 6.3 Ready for Public Beta Testing
Plasma 6.3 will ship with KDE Gear 24.12.1 and KDE Frameworks 6.10, along with some new and exciting features.
-
Budgie 10.10 Scheduled for Q1 2025 with a Surprising Desktop Update
If Budgie is your desktop environment of choice, 2025 is going to be a great year for you.