<s>
A	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
(	O
often	O
abbreviated	O
as	O
distro	O
)	O
is	O
an	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
made	O
from	O
a	O
software	O
collection	O
that	O
includes	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
often	O
a	O
package	B-Application
management	I-Application
system	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Linux	B-Operating_System
users	O
usually	O
obtain	O
their	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
by	O
downloading	B-Application
one	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
,	O
which	O
are	O
available	O
for	O
a	O
wide	O
variety	O
of	O
systems	O
ranging	O
from	O
embedded	B-Architecture
devices	I-Architecture
(	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
OpenWrt	B-Application
)	O
and	O
personal	B-Device
computers	I-Device
(	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
Linux	B-Application
Mint	I-Application
)	O
to	O
powerful	O
supercomputers	B-Architecture
(	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
Rocks	B-Operating_System
Cluster	I-Operating_System
Distribution	I-Operating_System
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
typical	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
comprises	O
a	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
GNU	B-Application
tools	O
and	O
libraries	O
,	O
additional	O
software	O
,	O
documentation	O
,	O
a	O
window	B-Application
system	I-Application
(	O
the	O
most	O
common	O
being	O
the	O
X	B-Operating_System
Window	I-Operating_System
System	I-Operating_System
,	O
or	O
,	O
more	O
recently	O
,	O
Wayland	B-Language
)	O
,	O
a	O
window	B-Application
manager	I-Application
,	O
and	O
a	O
desktop	O
environment	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
of	O
the	O
included	O
software	O
is	O
free	B-License
and	I-License
open-source	I-License
software	I-License
made	O
available	O
both	O
as	O
compiled	O
binaries	O
and	O
in	O
source	O
code	O
form	O
,	O
allowing	O
modifications	O
to	O
the	O
original	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Usually	O
,	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
optionally	O
include	O
some	O
proprietary	B-Application
software	I-Application
that	O
may	O
not	O
be	O
available	O
in	O
source	O
code	O
form	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
binary	O
blobs	O
required	O
for	O
some	O
device	B-Application
drivers	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
may	O
also	O
be	O
described	O
as	O
a	O
particular	O
assortment	O
of	O
application	O
and	O
utility	O
software	O
(	O
various	O
GNU	B-Application
tools	O
and	O
libraries	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
)	O
,	O
packaged	O
with	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
in	O
such	O
a	O
way	O
that	O
its	O
capabilities	O
meet	O
many	O
users	O
 '	O
needs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	O
is	O
usually	O
adapted	O
to	O
the	O
distribution	O
and	O
then	O
combined	O
into	O
software	B-Application
packages	I-Application
by	O
the	O
distribution	O
's	O
maintainers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
software	B-Application
packages	I-Application
are	O
available	O
online	O
in	O
repositories	B-Application
,	O
which	O
are	O
storage	O
locations	O
usually	O
distributed	O
around	O
the	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Beside	O
"	O
glue	O
"	O
components	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
distribution	O
installers	O
(	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
Debian-Installer	B-Language
and	O
Anaconda	B-Language
)	O
and	O
the	O
package	B-Application
management	I-Application
systems	I-Application
,	O
very	O
few	O
packages	O
are	O
actually	O
written	O
by	O
a	O
distribution	O
's	O
maintainers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Almost	O
one	O
thousand	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
exist	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
of	O
the	O
huge	O
availability	O
of	O
software	O
,	O
distributions	O
have	O
taken	O
a	O
wide	O
variety	O
of	O
forms	O
,	O
including	O
those	O
suitable	O
for	O
use	O
on	O
desktops	B-Device
,	O
servers	O
,	O
laptops	O
,	O
netbooks	B-Device
,	O
mobile	O
phones	O
and	O
tablets	B-Device
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
in	O
minimal	O
environments	O
typically	O
for	O
use	O
in	O
embedded	B-Architecture
systems	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
commercially	O
backed	O
distributions	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Fedora	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
(	O
Red	O
Hat	O
)	O
,	O
openSUSE	B-Operating_System
(	O
SUSE	O
)	O
and	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
(	O
Canonical	O
Ltd	O
.	O
)	O
;	O
and	O
entirely	O
community-driven	O
distributions	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Debian	O
,	O
Slackware	B-Application
,	O
Gentoo	B-Application
and	O
Arch	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
distributions	O
come	O
ready-to-use	O
and	O
precompiled	O
for	O
a	O
specific	O
instruction	B-General_Concept
set	I-General_Concept
,	O
while	O
some	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
Gentoo	B-Application
)	O
are	O
distributed	O
mostly	O
in	O
source	O
code	O
form	O
and	O
must	O
be	O
compiled	O
locally	O
for	O
installation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Linus	O
Torvalds	O
developed	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
and	O
distributed	O
its	O
first	O
version	O
,	O
0.01	O
,	O
in	O
1991	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Linux	B-Operating_System
was	O
initially	O
distributed	O
as	O
source	O
code	O
only	O
,	O
and	O
later	O
as	O
a	O
pair	O
of	O
downloadable	B-Application
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
images	O
:	O
one	O
bootable	O
and	O
containing	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
itself	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
other	O
with	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
GNU	B-Application
utilities	O
and	O
tools	O
for	O
setting	O
up	O
a	O
file	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
SLS	B-Operating_System
distribution	O
was	O
not	O
well	O
maintained	O
,	O
so	O
in	O
July	O
1993	O
a	O
new	O
SLS-based	O
distribution	O
,	O
Slackware	B-Application
,	O
was	O
released	O
by	O
Patrick	O
Volkerding	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
dissatisfied	O
with	O
SLS	B-Operating_System
,	O
Ian	O
Murdock	O
set	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
free	O
distribution	O
by	O
founding	O
Debian	O
,	O
first	O
released	O
in	O
December	O
1993	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
were	O
attracted	O
to	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
as	O
alternatives	O
to	O
the	O
DOS	B-Device
and	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
operating	I-Application
systems	I-Application
on	O
IBM	O
PC	O
compatible	O
computers	O
,	O
Mac	B-Application
OS	I-Application
on	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
Macintosh	I-Device
,	O
and	O
proprietary	B-Application
versions	O
of	O
Unix	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
early	O
adopters	O
were	O
familiar	O
with	O
Unix	B-Application
from	O
work	O
or	O
school	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
embraced	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
for	O
their	O
low	O
(	O
or	O
absent	O
)	O
cost	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
availability	O
of	O
the	O
source	O
code	O
for	O
most	O
or	O
all	O
of	O
their	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
2017	O
,	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
has	O
become	O
more	O
popular	O
in	O
server	O
and	O
embedded-devices	O
markets	O
than	O
the	O
desktop	O
market	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
provide	O
an	O
installation	O
system	O
akin	O
to	O
that	O
provided	O
with	O
other	O
modern	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
distributions	O
,	O
including	O
Gentoo	B-Application
Linux	I-Application
,	O
provide	O
only	O
the	O
binaries	O
of	O
a	O
basic	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
,	O
compilation	O
tools	O
,	O
and	O
an	O
installer	O
;	O
the	O
installer	O
compiles	O
all	O
the	O
requested	O
software	O
for	O
the	O
specific	O
architecture	B-General_Concept
of	O
the	O
user	O
's	O
computer	O
,	O
using	O
these	O
tools	O
and	O
the	O
software	O
's	O
source	O
code	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Examples	O
of	O
packages	O
are	O
a	O
library	O
for	O
handling	O
the	O
PNG	O
image	O
format	O
,	O
a	O
collection	O
of	O
fonts	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
web	B-Application
browser	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
package	O
is	O
typically	O
provided	O
as	O
compiled	O
code	O
,	O
with	O
installation	O
and	O
removal	O
of	O
packages	O
handled	O
by	O
a	O
package	B-Application
management	I-Application
system	I-Application
(	O
PMS	O
)	O
rather	O
than	O
a	O
simple	O
file	B-Application
archiver	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
package	O
intended	O
for	O
such	O
a	O
PMS	O
contains	O
meta-information	O
such	O
as	O
its	O
description	O
,	O
version	O
number	O
,	O
and	O
its	O
dependencies	B-Application
(	O
other	O
packages	O
it	O
requires	O
to	O
run	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
package	B-Application
management	I-Application
system	I-Application
evaluates	O
this	O
meta-information	O
to	O
allow	O
package	O
searches	O
,	O
perform	O
automatic	O
upgrades	O
to	O
newer	O
versions	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
check	O
that	O
all	O
dependencies	B-Application
of	O
a	O
package	O
are	O
present	O
(	O
and	O
either	O
notify	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
install	O
them	O
,	O
or	O
install	O
them	O
automatically	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Although	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
typically	O
contain	O
much	O
more	O
software	O
than	O
proprietary	B-Application
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
,	O
it	O
is	O
normal	O
for	O
local	O
administrators	O
to	O
also	O
install	O
software	O
not	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
distribution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
example	O
would	O
be	O
a	O
newer	O
version	O
of	O
a	O
software	O
application	O
than	O
that	O
supplied	O
with	O
the	O
distribution	O
,	O
or	O
an	O
alternative	O
to	O
that	O
chosen	O
by	O
the	O
distribution	O
(	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
KDE	B-Language
Plasma	I-Language
Workspaces	I-Language
rather	O
than	O
GNOME	B-Application
,	O
or	O
vice	O
versa	O
,	O
for	O
the	O
user	O
interface	O
layer	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
if	O
additional	O
software	O
is	O
locally	O
added	O
,	O
the	O
"	O
state	O
"	O
of	O
the	O
local	O
system	O
may	O
fall	O
out	O
of	O
synchronization	O
with	O
the	O
state	O
of	O
the	O
package	B-Application
manager	I-Application
's	O
database	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
so	O
,	O
the	O
local	O
administrator	O
must	O
take	O
additional	O
measures	O
to	O
ensure	O
the	O
entire	O
system	O
is	O
kept	O
up-to-date	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
package	B-Application
manager	I-Application
may	O
no	O
longer	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
do	O
so	O
automatically	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
distributions	O
install	O
packages	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
and	O
other	O
core	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
components	O
,	O
in	O
a	O
predetermined	O
configuration	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
can	O
be	O
done	O
via	O
compilation	O
on	O
another	O
system	O
capable	O
of	O
building	O
binaries	O
for	O
the	O
intended	O
target	O
(	O
possibly	O
by	O
cross-compilation	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
see	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
From	O
Scratch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
broad	O
terms	O
,	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
may	O
be	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
diversity	O
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
is	O
due	O
to	O
technical	O
,	O
organizational	O
,	O
and	O
philosophical	O
variation	O
among	O
vendors	O
and	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rolling	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
are	O
kept	O
current	O
using	O
small	O
and	O
frequent	O
updates	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Repositories	B-Application
of	O
rolling	B-Application
distributions	I-Application
usually	O
contain	O
very	O
recent	O
software	O
releases	O
—	O
often	O
the	O
latest	O
stable	O
versions	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
terms	O
of	O
the	O
software	O
development	O
process	O
,	O
standard	O
releases	O
require	O
significant	O
development	O
effort	O
to	O
keep	O
old	O
versions	O
up-to-date	O
by	O
propagating	O
bug	B-Error_Name
fixes	O
back	O
to	O
the	O
newest	O
branch	O
,	O
versus	O
focusing	O
on	O
the	O
newest	O
development	O
branch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Software	O
release	O
cycles	O
can	O
also	O
be	O
synchronized	O
with	O
those	O
of	O
major	O
upstream	B-General_Concept
software	O
projects	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
desktop	O
environments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
far	O
as	O
the	O
user	B-Application
experience	I-Application
,	O
standard	O
releases	O
are	O
often	O
viewed	O
as	O
more	O
stable	O
and	O
bug-free	O
since	O
software	O
conflicts	O
can	O
be	O
more	O
easily	O
addressed	O
and	O
the	O
software	O
stack	O
more	O
thoroughly	O
tested	O
and	O
evaluated	O
,	O
during	O
the	O
software	O
development	O
cycle	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
rolling	O
releases	O
offer	O
more	O
current	O
software	O
which	O
can	O
also	O
provide	O
increased	O
stability	O
and	O
fewer	O
software	B-Error_Name
bugs	I-Error_Name
along	O
with	O
the	O
additional	O
benefits	O
of	O
new	O
features	O
,	O
greater	O
functionality	O
,	O
faster	O
running	O
speeds	O
,	O
and	O
improved	O
system	O
and	O
application	O
security	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Regarding	O
software	O
security	O
,	O
the	O
rolling	O
release	O
model	O
can	O
have	O
advantages	O
in	O
timely	O
security	O
updates	O
,	O
fixing	O
system	O
or	O
application	O
security	O
bugs	B-Error_Name
and	O
vulnerabilities	O
,	O
that	O
standard	O
releases	O
may	O
have	O
to	O
wait	O
till	O
the	O
next	O
release	O
for	O
or	O
patch	O
in	O
various	O
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
rolling	O
release	O
distribution	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
user	O
has	O
chosen	O
to	O
run	O
it	O
as	O
a	O
highly	O
dynamic	O
system	O
,	O
the	O
constant	O
flux	O
of	O
software	B-Application
packages	I-Application
can	O
introduce	O
new	O
unintended	O
vulnerabilities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
"	O
live	O
"	O
distribution	O
is	O
a	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
that	O
can	O
be	O
booted	O
from	O
removable	O
storage	O
media	O
such	O
as	O
optical	B-Device
discs	I-Device
or	O
USB	O
flash	O
drives	O
,	O
instead	O
of	O
being	O
installed	O
on	O
and	O
booted	O
from	O
a	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
the	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
is	O
booted	O
from	O
a	O
read-only	O
medium	O
such	O
as	O
a	O
CD	O
or	O
DVD	O
,	O
any	O
user	O
data	O
that	O
needs	O
to	O
be	O
retained	O
between	O
sessions	O
cannot	O
be	O
stored	O
on	O
the	O
boot	O
device	O
but	O
must	O
be	O
written	O
to	O
another	O
storage	O
device	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
a	O
USB	O
flash	O
drive	O
or	O
a	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
provide	O
a	O
"	O
live	O
"	O
form	O
in	O
addition	O
to	O
their	O
conventional	O
form	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
a	O
network-based	O
or	O
removable-media	O
image	O
intended	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
only	O
for	O
installation	O
;	O
such	O
distributions	O
include	O
SUSE	O
,	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
,	O
Linux	B-Application
Mint	I-Application
,	O
MEPIS	O
and	O
Fedora	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
distributions	O
,	O
including	O
Knoppix	O
,	O
Puppy	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
Devil-Linux	O
,	O
SuperGamer	O
,	O
SliTaz	O
GNU/Linux	O
and	O
dyne:bolic	B-Application
,	O
are	O
designed	O
primarily	O
for	O
live	O
use	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
some	O
minimal	O
distributions	O
can	O
be	O
run	O
directly	O
from	O
as	O
little	O
space	O
as	O
one	O
floppy	B-Device
disk	I-Device
without	O
the	O
need	O
to	O
change	O
the	O
contents	O
of	O
the	O
system	O
's	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
drive	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
website	O
DistroWatch	O
lists	O
many	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
displays	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
ones	O
that	O
have	O
the	O
most	O
web	O
traffic	O
on	O
the	O
site	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Wikimedia	O
Foundation	O
released	O
an	O
analysis	O
of	O
the	O
browser	B-Application
User	B-Protocol
Agents	I-Protocol
of	O
visitors	O
to	O
WMF	O
websites	O
until	O
2015	O
,	O
which	O
includes	O
details	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
Operating	B-General_Concept
System	I-General_Concept
identifiers	O
,	O
including	O
some	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
,	O
a	O
desktop	O
and	O
server	O
distribution	O
derived	O
from	O
Debian	O
,	O
maintained	O
by	O
British	O
company	O
Canonical	O
Ltd	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
several	O
distributions	O
based	O
on	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
that	O
mainly	O
replace	O
the	O
GNOME	B-Application
stock	O
desktop	O
environment	O
,	O
like	O
:	O
Kubuntu	B-Application
based	O
on	O
KDE	B-Application
,	O
Lubuntu	B-Application
based	O
on	O
LXQT	B-Language
,	O
Xubuntu	B-Application
based	O
on	O
XFCE	B-Language
,	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
MATE	B-Language
based	O
on	O
MATE	B-Language
,	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
Budgie	B-Language
based	O
on	O
Budgie	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
official	O
forks	B-Application
have	O
specific	O
uses	O
like	O
:	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
Kylin	O
for	O
Chinese-speaking	O
users	O
,	O
or	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
Studio	O
for	O
media	O
content	O
creators	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Linux	B-Application
Mint	I-Application
,	O
a	O
distribution	O
based	O
on	O
and	O
compatible	O
with	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Supports	O
multiple	O
desktop	O
environments	O
,	O
among	O
others	O
GNOME	B-Application
Shell	O
fork	B-Application
Cinnamon	B-Language
and	O
GNOME	B-Language
2	I-Language
fork	B-Application
MATE	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fedora	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
a	O
community	O
distribution	O
sponsored	O
by	O
American	O
company	O
Red	O
Hat	O
and	O
the	O
successor	O
to	O
the	O
company	O
's	O
previous	O
offering	O
,	O
Red	O
Hat	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
aims	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
technology	O
testbed	O
for	O
Red	O
Hat	O
's	O
commercial	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
offering	O
,	O
where	O
new	O
open-source	B-Application
software	I-Application
is	O
prototyped	O
,	O
developed	O
,	O
and	O
tested	O
in	O
a	O
communal	O
setting	O
before	O
maturing	O
into	O
Red	O
Hat	O
Enterprise	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Red	O
Hat	O
Enterprise	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
(	O
RHEL	O
)	O
,	O
a	O
derivative	O
of	O
Fedora	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
maintained	O
and	O
commercially	O
supported	O
by	O
Red	O
Hat	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
seeks	O
to	O
provide	O
tested	O
,	O
secure	O
,	O
and	O
stable	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
server	O
and	O
workstation	O
support	O
to	O
businesses	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
openSUSE	B-Operating_System
,	O
a	O
community	O
distribution	O
mainly	O
sponsored	O
by	O
German	O
company	O
SUSE	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Arch	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
a	O
rolling	O
release	O
distribution	O
targeted	O
at	O
experienced	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
users	O
and	O
maintained	O
by	O
a	O
volunteer	O
community	O
,	O
offers	O
official	O
binary	O
packages	O
and	O
a	O
wide	O
range	O
of	O
unofficial	O
user-submitted	O
source	O
packages	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Manjaro	B-Application
Linux	I-Application
,	O
a	O
derivative	O
of	O
Arch	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
that	O
includes	O
a	O
graphical	O
installer	O
and	O
other	O
ease-of-use	O
features	O
for	O
less	O
experienced	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Android	B-Application
,	O
Google	O
's	O
commercial	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
based	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
OSP	I-Application
that	O
runs	O
on	O
many	O
devices	O
such	O
as	O
smart	O
phones	O
,	O
smart	O
TVs	O
,	O
set-top	O
boxes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
ChromeOS	B-Operating_System
,	O
Google	O
's	O
commercial	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
based	O
on	O
ChromiumOS	B-Application
that	O
only	O
runs	O
on	O
Chromebooks	B-Operating_System
,	O
Chromeboxes	B-Protocol
and	O
tablet	B-Device
computers	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
it	O
has	O
the	O
Google	B-Application
Play	I-Application
Store	I-Application
and	O
other	O
Google	B-Application
apps	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Support	O
for	O
applications	O
that	O
require	O
GNU	B-Application
compatibility	O
is	O
available	O
through	O
a	O
virtual	B-Architecture
machine	I-Architecture
called	O
Crostini	O
and	O
referred	O
to	O
by	O
Google	O
as	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
support	O
,	O
see	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whether	O
the	O
above	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
count	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
"	O
is	O
a	O
controversial	O
topic	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
use	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
so	O
the	B-Operating_System
Linux	I-Operating_System
Foundation	I-Operating_System
and	O
Chris	O
DiBona	O
,	O
Google	O
's	O
open-source	B-Application
chief	O
,	O
agree	O
that	O
Android	B-Application
is	O
a	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
;	O
others	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Google	O
engineer	O
Patrick	O
Brady	O
,	O
disagree	O
by	O
noting	O
the	O
lack	O
of	O
support	O
for	O
many	O
GNU	B-Application
tools	O
in	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
including	O
glibc	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
based	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
include	O
Cyanogenmod	B-Application
,	O
its	O
fork	B-Application
LineageOS	B-Application
,	O
Android-x86	B-Application
and	O
recently	O
Tizen	B-Application
,	O
Mer/Sailfish	O
OS	O
and	O
KaiOS	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Lightweight	B-Operating_System
Linux	I-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
are	O
those	O
that	O
have	O
been	O
designed	O
with	O
support	O
for	O
older	O
hardware	O
in	O
mind	O
,	O
allowing	O
older	O
hardware	O
to	O
still	O
be	O
used	O
productively	O
,	O
or	O
,	O
for	O
maximum	O
possible	O
speed	O
in	O
newer	O
hardware	O
by	O
leaving	O
more	O
resources	O
available	O
for	O
use	O
by	O
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Examples	O
include	O
Tiny	O
Core	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
Puppy	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
and	O
Slitaz	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Among	O
their	O
proposed	O
standards	O
are	O
the	O
Linux	B-Application
Standard	I-Application
Base	I-Application
,	O
which	O
defines	O
a	O
common	O
ABI	B-Operating_System
and	O
packaging	O
system	O
for	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
the	O
Filesystem	B-Application
Hierarchy	I-Application
Standard	I-Application
which	O
recommends	O
a	O
standard	O
filenaming	O
chart	O
,	O
notably	O
the	O
basic	O
directory	O
names	O
found	O
on	O
the	O
root	O
of	O
the	O
tree	O
of	O
any	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
filesystem	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
diversity	O
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
means	O
that	O
not	O
all	O
software	O
runs	O
on	O
all	O
distributions	O
,	O
depending	O
on	O
what	O
libraries	O
and	O
other	O
system	O
attributes	O
are	O
required	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Packaged	B-Application
software	I-Application
and	O
software	B-Application
repositories	I-Application
are	O
usually	O
specific	O
to	O
a	O
particular	O
distribution	O
,	O
though	O
cross-installation	O
is	O
sometimes	O
possible	O
on	O
closely	O
related	O
distributions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Virtual	B-Architecture
machines	I-Architecture
such	O
as	O
VirtualBox	B-Operating_System
and	O
VMware	B-Operating_System
Workstation	I-Operating_System
virtualize	O
hardware	O
allowing	O
users	O
to	O
test	O
live	O
media	O
on	O
a	O
virtual	B-Architecture
machine	I-Architecture
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
websites	O
like	O
DistroWatch	O
offer	O
lists	O
of	O
distributions	O
,	O
and	O
link	O
to	O
screenshots	O
of	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
as	O
a	O
way	O
to	O
get	O
a	O
first	O
impression	O
of	O
various	O
distributions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
several	O
ways	O
to	O
install	O
a	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
most	O
common	O
method	O
of	O
installing	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
is	O
by	O
booting	O
from	O
a	O
live	O
USB	O
memory	O
stick	O
,	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
created	O
by	O
using	O
a	O
USB	O
image	O
writer	O
application	O
and	O
the	O
ISO	O
image	O
,	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
downloaded	B-Application
from	O
the	O
various	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
websites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
DVD	O
disks	O
,	O
CD	O
disks	O
,	O
network	O
installations	O
and	O
even	O
other	O
hard	B-Device
drives	I-Device
can	O
also	O
be	O
used	O
as	O
"	O
installation	O
media	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
1990s	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
were	O
installed	O
using	O
sets	O
of	O
floppies	B-Device
but	O
this	O
has	O
been	O
abandoned	O
by	O
all	O
major	O
distributions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
distributions	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Debian	O
also	O
enabled	O
installation	O
over	O
a	O
network	O
after	O
booting	O
from	O
either	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
floppies	B-Device
or	O
a	O
CD	O
with	O
only	O
a	O
small	O
amount	O
of	O
data	O
on	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
New	O
users	O
tend	O
to	O
begin	O
by	O
partitioning	B-Application
a	O
hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
in	O
order	O
to	O
keep	O
their	O
previously	O
installed	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Linux	B-Application
distribution	I-Application
can	O
then	O
be	O
installed	O
on	O
its	O
own	O
separate	O
partition	B-Application
without	O
affecting	O
previously	O
saved	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
Live	O
CD	O
setup	O
,	O
the	O
computer	O
boots	O
the	O
entire	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
from	O
CD	O
without	O
first	O
installing	O
it	O
on	O
the	O
computer	O
's	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
distributions	O
have	O
a	O
Live	O
CD	O
installer	O
,	O
where	O
the	O
computer	O
boots	O
the	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
from	O
the	O
disk	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
can	O
then	O
be	O
installed	O
on	O
the	O
computer	O
's	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
,	O
providing	O
a	O
seamless	O
transition	O
from	O
the	O
OS	O
running	O
from	O
the	O
CD	O
to	O
the	O
OS	O
running	O
from	O
the	O
hard	B-Device
disk	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
servers	O
and	O
personal	B-Device
computers	I-Device
that	O
come	O
with	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
already	O
installed	O
are	O
available	O
from	O
vendors	O
including	O
Hewlett-Packard	O
,	O
Dell	O
and	O
System76	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
embedded	B-Architecture
devices	I-Architecture
,	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
is	O
typically	O
held	O
in	O
the	O
device	O
's	O
firmware	B-Application
and	O
may	O
or	O
may	O
not	O
be	O
consumer-accessible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Anaconda	B-Language
,	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
more	O
popular	O
installers	O
,	O
is	O
used	O
by	O
Red	O
Hat	O
Enterprise	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
Fedora	O
(	O
which	O
uses	O
the	O
Fedora	B-Application
Media	I-Application
Writer	I-Application
)	O
and	O
other	O
distributions	O
to	O
simplify	O
the	O
installation	O
process	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Debian	O
,	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
and	O
many	O
others	O
use	O
Debian-Installer	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
distributions	O
let	O
the	O
user	O
install	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
on	O
top	O
of	O
their	O
current	O
system	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
WinLinux	O
or	O
coLinux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Linux	B-Operating_System
is	O
installed	O
to	O
the	O
Windows	O
hard	B-Application
disk	I-Application
partition	I-Application
,	O
and	O
can	O
be	O
started	O
from	O
inside	O
Windows	O
itself	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Virtual	B-Architecture
machines	I-Architecture
(	O
such	O
as	O
VirtualBox	B-Operating_System
or	O
VMware	O
)	O
also	O
make	O
it	O
possible	O
for	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
to	O
be	O
run	O
inside	O
another	O
OS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
VM	O
software	O
simulates	O
a	O
separate	O
computer	O
onto	O
which	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
system	O
is	O
installed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
installation	O
,	O
the	O
virtual	B-Architecture
machine	I-Architecture
can	O
be	O
booted	O
as	O
if	O
it	O
were	O
an	O
independent	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Various	O
tools	O
are	O
also	O
available	O
to	O
perform	O
full	O
dual-boot	B-Operating_System
installations	O
from	O
existing	O
platforms	O
without	O
a	O
CD	O
,	O
most	O
notably	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
(	O
now	O
deprecated	O
)	O
Wubi	B-Language
installer	I-Language
,	O
which	O
allows	O
Windows	O
users	O
to	O
download	B-Application
and	O
install	O
Ubuntu	B-Operating_System
or	O
its	O
derivatives	O
into	O
a	O
FAT32	O
or	O
an	O
NTFS	O
partition	B-Application
without	O
an	O
installation	O
CD	O
,	O
allowing	O
users	O
to	O
easily	O
dual	B-Operating_System
boot	I-Operating_System
between	O
either	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
on	O
the	O
same	O
hard	B-Device
drive	I-Device
without	O
losing	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Replaced	O
by	O
Ubiquity	B-Language
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
specific	O
proprietary	B-Application
software	I-Application
products	O
are	O
not	O
available	O
in	O
any	O
form	O
for	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
of	O
September	O
2015	O
,	O
the	O
Steam	B-Application
gaming	O
service	O
has	O
1,500	O
games	O
available	O
on	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
,	O
compared	O
to	O
2,323	O
games	O
for	O
Mac	B-Device
and	O
6,500	O
Windows	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Emulation	B-Application
and	O
API-translation	O
projects	O
like	O
Wine	B-Application
and	O
CrossOver	B-Operating_System
make	O
it	O
possible	O
to	O
run	O
non-Linux-based	O
software	O
on	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
systems	O
,	O
either	O
by	O
emulating	B-Application
a	O
proprietary	B-Application
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
or	O
by	O
translating	O
proprietary	B-Application
API	O
calls	O
(	O
e.g.	O
,	O
calls	O
to	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
Win32	B-Library
or	O
DirectX	B-Application
APIs	O
)	O
into	O
native	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
API	O
calls	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
virtual	B-Architecture
machine	I-Architecture
can	O
also	O
be	O
used	O
to	O
run	O
a	O
proprietary	B-Application
OS	O
(	O
like	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
)	O
on	O
top	O
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer	O
hardware	O
is	O
usually	O
sold	O
with	O
an	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
other	O
than	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
already	O
installed	O
by	O
the	O
original	O
equipment	O
manufacturer	O
(	O
OEM	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
case	O
of	O
IBM	O
PC	O
compatibles	O
the	O
OS	O
is	O
usually	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
;	O
in	O
the	O
case	O
of	O
Apple	B-Device
Macintosh	I-Device
computers	I-Device
it	O
has	O
always	O
been	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
Apple	O
's	O
OS	O
,	O
currently	O
macOS	B-Application
;	O
Sun	O
Microsystems	O
sold	O
SPARC	B-Architecture
hardware	O
with	O
the	O
Solaris	B-Application
installed	O
;	O
video	B-Device
game	I-Device
consoles	I-Device
such	O
as	O
the	O
Xbox	B-Application
,	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
Wii	B-Operating_System
each	O
have	O
their	O
own	O
proprietary	B-Application
OS	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
limits	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
's	O
market	O
share	O
:	O
consumers	O
are	O
unaware	O
that	O
an	O
alternative	O
exists	O
,	O
they	O
must	O
make	O
a	O
conscious	O
effort	O
to	O
use	O
a	O
different	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
,	O
and	O
they	O
must	O
either	O
perform	O
the	O
actual	O
installation	O
themselves	O
,	O
or	O
depend	O
on	O
support	O
from	O
a	O
friend	O
,	O
relative	O
,	O
or	O
computer	O
professional	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
it	O
is	O
possible	O
to	O
buy	O
hardware	O
with	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
already	O
installed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Lenovo	O
,	O
Hewlett-Packard	O
,	O
Dell	O
,	O
Affordy	O
,	O
Purism	O
,	O
Pine64	O
and	O
System76	O
all	O
sell	O
general-purpose	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
laptops	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Custom-order	O
PC	O
manufacturers	O
will	O
also	O
build	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
systems	O
,	O
but	O
possibly	O
with	O
the	O
Windows	B-Device
key	I-Device
on	O
the	O
keyboard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fixstars	O
Solutions	O
(	O
formerly	O
Terra	O
Soft	O
)	O
sells	O
Macintosh	B-Device
computers	I-Device
and	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
3	I-Operating_System
consoles	O
with	O
Yellow	B-General_Concept
Dog	I-General_Concept
Linux	I-General_Concept
installed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
more	O
common	O
to	O
find	O
embedded	B-Architecture
devices	I-Architecture
sold	O
with	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
as	O
the	O
default	O
manufacturer-supported	O
OS	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
Linksys	B-Application
NSLU2	I-Application
NAS	O
device	O
,	O
TiVo	B-Application
's	O
line	O
of	O
personal	O
video	O
recorders	O
,	O
and	O
Linux-based	O
cellphones	O
(	O
including	O
Android	B-Application
smartphones	O
)	O
,	O
PDAs	O
,	O
and	O
portable	O
music	O
players	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
current	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
license	O
lets	O
the	O
manufacturer	O
determine	O
the	O
refund	O
policy	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
15	O
,	O
1999	O
,	O
a	O
group	O
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
users	O
in	O
Orange	O
County	O
,	O
California	O
held	O
a	O
"	O
Windows	O
Refund	O
Day	O
"	O
protest	O
in	O
an	O
attempt	O
to	O
pressure	O
Microsoft	O
into	O
issuing	O
them	O
refunds	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
no	O
official	O
figures	O
on	O
popularity	O
,	O
adoption	O
,	O
downloads	B-Application
or	O
installed	B-Operating_System
base	I-Operating_System
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
also	O
no	O
official	O
figures	O
for	O
the	O
total	O
number	O
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
systems	O
,	O
partly	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
difficulty	O
of	O
quantifying	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
PCs	B-Device
running	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
(	O
see	O
Desktop	O
Linux	B-Application
adoption	I-Application
)	O
,	O
since	O
many	O
users	O
download	B-Application
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
Hence	O
,	O
the	O
sales	O
figures	O
for	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
systems	O
and	O
commercial	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
indicate	O
a	O
much	O
lower	O
number	O
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
systems	O
and	O
level	O
of	O
Linux	B-Application
adoption	I-Application
than	O
is	O
the	O
case	O
;	O
this	O
is	O
mainly	O
due	O
to	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
being	O
free	B-License
and	I-License
open-source	I-License
software	I-License
that	O
can	O
be	O
downloaded	B-Application
free	O
of	O
charge	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
Counter	O
Project	O
had	O
kept	O
track	O
of	O
a	O
running	O
guesstimate	O
of	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
systems	O
,	O
but	O
did	O
not	O
distinguish	O
between	O
rolling	O
release	O
and	O
standard	O
release	O
distributions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Desktop	O
usage	O
statistical	O
reports	O
for	O
particular	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
distributions	I-Operating_System
have	O
been	O
collected	O
and	O
published	O
since	O
July	O
2014	O
by	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
Hardware	O
Project	O
.	O
</s>
