GLUG | National Institute of Technology Hamirpur

What is GNU?

In the words of Richard M. Stallman, the founder of the GNU Project:

"GNU, which stands for Gnu's Not Unix, is the name for the complete Unix-compatible software system which I am writing so that I can give it away free to everyone who can use it. Several other volunteers are helping me. Contributions of time, money, programs and equipment are greatly needed."

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Linux and the GNU Project

The version of GNU which is widely used today is more often known as "Linux" and many users are not aware of the extent of its connection with the GNU Project.

Linux is the kernel: the program in the system that allocates the machine's resources to the other programs that you run. The kernel is an essential part of an operating system, but useless by itself; it can only function in the context of a complete operating system. Linux is normally used in a combination with the GNU operating system: the whole system is basically GNU, with Linux functioning as its kernel.

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