Bonum Certa Men Certa

GNU/Linux is Taking Over Everything and the Code is Freely Shared

The operating system part of the stack is growingly free, like an open book

Audit book



Summary: How Linux (often with GNU as a core system) is taking root in everything, from micro to macro

LITTLE by little, Linux spreads all over Earth and beyond. It is constantly growing on the desktop (even in space [1]) and on the 'cloud' (server). Mr. Pogson takes note of the growth of GNU/Linux at Microsoft's expense [3,4], demonstrating with numbers that "Linux Did Well In 2013" (as in previous years). Android plays a significant role here.



Consider some of the latest claims from Linux foes Gartner and IDC. Gartner cannot deny Android's growth [5] and neither can IDC, which reported on it through IDG [6] (conflict of interest) and other venues [7,8]. It is good not just for Google because Android can be forked and it is already being forked by at least three notable efforts (2 of which are freedom-oriented). CyanogenMod is the most notable alternative/branch/fork, which even Google Play Store is willing to foster [9,10] as a new version, Android 4.4 KitKat, comes out [11-14].

Apple's co-founder (the one who is still alive) suggests that Apple should turn to Android [15], which is better for developers [16,17] and for users that receive more and more features, as well as cutting-edge software [18,19]. Android is rapidly going upwards (ascending from 80% market share and perhaps reaching 90%), but this doesn't mean that there are no Linux-powered challengers (Android independent, but sharing some code like Linux), as we shall show in a moment. This will be the subject of our next post.

Related/contextual items from the news:



  1. In space, no one can hear you scream at Windows XP (anymore)
    I’m a little late in my reporting, but this year, in May, the International Space Station (ISS) dumped the last of its laptop installations of the Windows XP operating system to go all Linux.

    Furthermore, it dropped Red Hat Linux in favour of Debian 6, according to the Linux Foundation, which provided two training courses geared specifically for the USA/NASA team’s needs.


  2. Why the Linux mainframe is the cloud datacentre
    Linux on the server has been respected and regarded in technology circles for many years now.

    One of the main reasons for this is that Linux is argued to be especially competent at handling "many processes at once", something Windows has traditionally not done quite so well.


  3. */Linux Did Well In 2013
    Even StatCounter, which undercounts */Linux severely, shows the trends...


  4. M$’s House Is Afire
    The leader of the CEO hopefuls wants to port M$’s office suite to other platforms to sell more. There goes lock-in for the client OS. He also wants to shutdown/sell Xbox and Bing to get back to core businesses and shed employees. Two zero-day flaws are being exploited in the wild and M$ can’t do anything about it… M$ can’t add and doesn’t even try (more on this). M$ is still losing share in client OS even on legacy PCs.


  5. Gartner: 456M Phones Sold In Q3, 55% Of Them Smartphones; Android At 82% Share, Samsung A Flat Leader


  6. Android market share moves past 80%


  7. Android Blows Past 80 Percent Market Share


  8. Android Pushes Past 80% Market Share
    Google's Android operating system reached a new milestone during the third quarter of 2013 (3Q13), according to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. With a total base of 211.6 million smartphone units shipped during the quarter, Android accounted for 81.0% of all smartphone shipments, marking the first time that Android topped 80% in its short history. Despite high saturation rates in a number of mature markets, the overall smartphone space grew 39.9% year-over-year in the third quarter.


  9. CyanogenMod installer now available on Google Play Store


  10. CyanogenMod publishes new Installer app on Google Play
    Cyanogen Inc., the newly created company that produces the popular custom Android ROM CyanogenMod, published a new app called CyanogenMod Installer which will unlock the user’s boot loader, root their device, and flash CyanogenMod to their phone with minimal extra effort. The free app is available over Google Play, and when it's paired with equally free desktop software, this can replace a phone's operating system with Cyanogen Inc.'s highly customizable version of Android.


  11. Download The Android 4.4 KitKat Quick Start Guide for Free
    Google’s latest mobile operating system, Android 4.4 KitKat, is out and it comes pre-installed on Nexus 5. Android enthusiasts and developers were very excited for this new smartphone as well as the new operating system. But now that KitKat is available for Nexus 5, we can get our hands on this new OS. If you’ve got any Nexus or Google Play edition devices, then you too may be getting Android 4.4 KitKat in the near future. Unfortunately, Galaxy Nexus users won’t get this new update.


  12. Android 4.4 KitKat, thoroughly reviewed
    After three Jelly Bean releases in a row, Google has unleashed a major revision to the world's most widely used operating system. With the Nexus 5 comes Android 4.4 "KitKat." KitKat brings a ton of enhancements: support for hidden system and status bars, printer support, and lower memory usage. It also has a number of user-level improvements, including a new dialer, a Google-infused home screen, and a whole pile of UI refinements.


  13. Android KitKat aims at a broader range of devices


  14. Steve Wozniak: Apple Should Work With Google and Samsung
    Wozniak told the BBC that Apple would be more powerful if it had a good professional relationship with Google. Apple would be able to improve services such as voice-assistant software Siri (thanks to Google's search-engine ties) and even develop better wearable tech, such as smartwatches and augmented-reality glasses, Wozniak said.


  15. Google’s App Translation Service now live for all developers
    Heads up, Android devs: it’s now easier than ever to localize your app, thanks to the newly launched App Translation Service from Google.


  16. How Configure an Android Development Environment on Linux
  17. Google Debuts Nexus 5, KitKat Combo


  18. Android Candy: Flickr Uploader


  19. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft to hit Android in 2014


Recent Techrights' Posts

Now Confirmed in Western Media: Microsoft Azure Layoffs This Month
Affirmed by more sources moments ago
The 'Culture Wars' in Free Software Have Gone Out of Control
Social control media amplifies such utterly infantile discourse
10 Out of 10: RMS Attracts Massive Audience in Göteborg, Sweden (All Seats Occupied, Some People Standing)
a 55-second clip of his talk
The Lawsuit by Clients of Brett Wilson LLP Against Brett Wilson LLP is Officially On, It is Progressing, The 'Experts' Pick Outside Law Firms (RPC and Mills & Reeve) to Spare Them From Litigants in Person
So it is probably quite potent
Slopwatch: Plagiarism and "Linux" Articles by Bots
Sites that do this won't survive; many of them rely on slop services (suppliers) that will cease to exist after the bubble bursts
 
Teaser: To Compensate for the Fact Our Clients Are Terrible Human Beings Who Strangle Women (While on Microsoft's Payroll) and We Get Paid by Mystery Parties We Bombard You and Your Wife With Almost 10 Kilograms of Legal Papers
If you can't win an argument, then drown the other side with papers?
Links 11/10/2025: World Mental Health Day 2025, Another European Legal Defeat for Microsoft 360
Links for the day
MIT Technology Review is Part-Time SPAMfarm of Billionaires and Mega-Corporations
Does MIT operate its own "b2b" SPAMfarm?
Open Source Initiative Executive Director Leaves, Replacement Sought by Monopolists, Not the Community or OSI Members
Serves to show who runs this show...
Links 11/10/2025: China-US Tensions Grow Again, "Hey Hi" More Widely Recognised as Bubble Made of Capital That Doesn't Exist
Links for the day
Peter O'Callaghan QC represented grandparents, Westernport Hotel, at Liquor Royal Commission
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Either The Register MS Divests From FOSS Coverage or Liam Proven is on Long Holiday
Publishers perish when their audience loses trust in them
Microsoft Cancelling Another Datacentre is a Sign of Financial Trouble and Lack of Growth
The debt continues to grow
Gemini Links 11/10/2025: An Evening at the Fair and Fast Fourier Friday
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, October 10, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, October 10, 2025
Geminispace is Very Large
The word continues to spread and the number of participants grows
Another Wave of Microsoft Layoffs, This Time During National Day Holiday
This time it's China again
Staying Happy in Times of Crackdowns on Civil Society
Optimism in this sort of "new reality" or "new normal" seems like something for the irrational person
"Nobel" Exploited Posthumously for "AI" Hype, Now They Do the Same With "Quantum"
ere have been many jokes about "Nobel" for peace (often granted to pro-war people) and a fake one for "Economics" (establishment propaganda)
Distinguished Lecture by Richard Stallman This Coming Monday in Rome
After "Free software, Crucial for Freedom in a Digital World"
Links 10/10/2025: Putin Admits Russia Downed Azerbaijan Airlines Jet, More New Heat Records
Links for the day
Noteworthy Claim That IBM is Firing a Lot of Lawyers This Week (RAs in the Legal Department)
A lot of what they do is patent 'trolling' or lawyering up against their own staff (e.g. HR disputes)
Links 10/10/2025: US Judge Bars Attacks by ICE On Journalists and Protesters; “We Took The Freedom of Speech Away” Says the President
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Serial Sloppers, Google News Gifting Slopfarms, and Fake News/Plagiarism About "Linux"
Google itself is a slop pusher these days
Qualcomm, the New Owner of Arduino, Blasted for Its Software Patents Tax on 'Smartphones'
A lot of Qualcomm's patents are on software. We wrote about this in prior years.
XBox Layoffs Rumours, Downtime, and Criticism From XBox Co-Founder
"everyone is ditching the xbox."
Links 10/10/2025: Honoring The Legacy Of Robert Murray-Smith, Many Articles on the Hey Hi (AI) Bubble
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/10/2025: October Gothic and Reading Middle Earth Role Playing; C and Ada
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, October 09, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, October 09, 2025
Links 09/10/2025: Farewell to Jane Goodall, California Bans Algorithmic Price-Fixing
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/10/2025: Lost Wages and a Saga Of Continuing To Use Palm PDAs
Links for the day
Richard Stallman's Talk in Helsinki is Done. Tomorrow Göteborg.
There are scarce details in Finnish about Dr. Stallman's talk
New XBox Leaks Probably Serve to Confirm XBox's Collapse (Many More Layoffs)
It's very much consistent with what many other sites have reported lately
The Slop Song
The train wreck marches on
LLM Slop/Advanced Plagiarism Flooding the Zone With Capital That Does Not Exist
Many publishers out there still participate in this bubble instead of calling it what it is
Links 09/10/2025: Sacked Microsoft Workers Make "Sackbird", IBM Taps CockroachDB for PostgreSQL
Links for the day
"Happy Hacking Day" Richard Stallman Talk This Afternoon (From 14:00 to 16:00) at Haaga-Helia University in Pasila
Richard Stallman in Helsinki, Finland
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, October 08, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, October 08, 2025
Links 09/10/2025: Impact of Microsoft Layoffs, More Data Breaches
Links for the day
Gemini Links 09/10/2025: Autumn Blues and C IRC Bot
Links for the day