The history of the universal operating system Linux, which is used by virtually everyone, began with a huge blunder. "I'm working on a (free) operating system (just a hobby, won't be big and professional ...)," wrote Finnish student Linus Torvalds on August 25, 1991. At the time, he could not have imagined that 30 years later, Linux would not only run on around 80% of all smartphones, but would also be found in almost every modern car and other countless devices. Even the Mars helicopter 'Ingenuity', which is exploring the red planet together with the ground vehicle 'Perseverance', is powered by Linux.

Linux was initially only intended to run on the widespread PCs with x86 chips from Intel. Even then, however, the architecture defined by Torvalds was in principle suitable for use as an operating system regardless of the existing hardware. Today, all high-performance computers in the world from the top 500 list run the free operating system and have overtaken the technically related Unix. Linux was also able to run on smartphones, however, as the system became the foundation for Android from Google.

Against the tide - global success with open source

In contrast to commercial software platforms such as Microsoft 's Windows, Linux was free in both senses of the word right from the start: free as in free speech and free as in free beer. The fact that no license payments were due boosted its spread immensely. In addition, Torvalds and his team made some early fundamental technical decisions that, in retrospect, proved to be absolutely right, such as the integration of the Internet protocol TCP/IP.

Torvalds and his colleagues initially encountered opposition, particularly within their own scene. The influential computer scientist Andrew Tanenbaum, for example, could not imagine how distributed programming could succeed: "I think that coordinating 1000 prima donnas living all over the world is as easy as herding cats," wrote Tanenbaum in a now legendary debate on Usenet.

But the distributed system worked. And with the increasing spread of Linux, large software companies also became nervous. "Linux is a cancer that infects everything it touches in terms of intellectual property," ranted the then Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer in an interview in 2001. He took exception to the basic idea of free software: the source code of software should not be a trade secret, but should be made openly available to all interested parties. Others can then improve and add to the code, but must make it available to the community again. Under Ballmer's successor Satya Nadella, Microsoft made peace with Linux and uses the system itself for some cloud applications.

Linux in your pocket, Microsoft at your desk

Computer scientist Mario Haustein works with the Linux operating system at Chemnitz University of Technology's computer center.

© Jan Woitas/dpa-central image/dpa

Program development as 'open source', as with Linux, is now virtually a prerequisite for many complex software projects. For example, the RKI's Corona-Warn-App was developed as open source and under a free license. The program code could be viewed via the Github platform and suggestions for changes could be submitted to the app makers at the software group SAP and Deutsche Telekom.

However, Linux has not succeeded in breaking through in all areas. With the Linux version Android, the system dominates the mass market of smartphones. And most web servers on the Internet also run on Linux. But in the very platform for which Linux was invented 30 years ago, namely ordinary desktop computers, the system plays a subordinate role.

The analytics company Statcounter recently recorded a market share of just under 2.4% for Linux, while Windows was installed on 73% of PCs. The Linux camp also includes the 1.2% for portable Chromebooks with Google's Chrome OS software, which is also a Linux variant. In recent years, Microsoft's dominance was most likely to be challenged by Apple with its macOS operating system. Apple's software currently has a 15.4% market share.

There are several reasons why Linux has never really been able to gain a foothold on the PC: Firstly, manufacturers such as Lenovo, Dell and HP do not deliver their devices 'naked' without an operating system, but with Windows pre-installed. It is also not clear to buyers how much of the purchase price is accounted for by Windows, as this is not shown separately.

The operating system of the code experts

For a long time, it was quite complicated for technical laymen to install Linux. Nowadays, Linux distributions such as Ubuntu can be made to run with just a few mouse clicks. But the system still has a reputation for being complicated. And in the early Linux phase, the applications familiar to Windows or Mac users were also missing. Some are still not available today, such as Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Office programs or many games. Linux supporters point out that a number of programs for image processing, everyday office tasks or gaming have long been available. But even Torvalds himself admitted in 2014 that it is "damn complicated" for programmers to provide applications for Linux because there is no standardized system, but rather a wide variety of Linux distributions.

As the leading developer of the Linux operating system kernel, Torvalds has only limited influence on how the different variants are designed. He is also reliant on hardware manufacturers to go along with him and provide suitable drivers. If a manufacturer such as the graphics card provider Nvidia refuses to do so, he has no choice but to insult him on the open stage and give him the finger. Things have become quieter around Torvalds in recent years, partly because the father of the free operating system took some time out himself in 2018.

Torvalds is now active again and occasionally takes to the mailing lists for Linux development. He recently made headlines when he rebuked vaccination skeptics: "You don't know what you're talking about, you don't know what mRNA is and you're spreading stupid lies."