MkLinux
Sign in to saveMkLinux (Microkernel Linux) is a discontinued open-source experimental operating system for PowerPC Macintosh computers. It was launched in 1995 as a collaboration between the Open Software Foundation (OSF) and Apple Computer, as a critical pivot in Apple's technical and social history. MkLinux became Apple's first official free and open-source software community project, and the debut of Linux on the first Power Macintosh.
Key facts
- OS.name
- MkLinux
- OS.developer
- OSF Research Institute, Apple Computer, MkLinux Developers Association, volunteer community
- OS.family
- Macintosh, Linux (Unix-like)
- OS.working state
- Discontinued, legacy
- OS.source model
- Open source
- OS.discontinued
- Yes
- OS.latest release version
- Pre-R2
- OS.kernel type
- Microkernel (Mach 3.0)
- OS.license
- GNU General Public License
- OS.marketing target
- Researchers, hobbyists
- OS.programmed in
- C
- OS.package manager
- RPM
- OS.language
- English
- OS.supported platforms
- PowerPC
- OS.userland
- Red Hat Linux
- OS.ui
- Console, X11
- OS.preceded by
- Mach, Linux
- OS.succeeded by
- macOS, Darwin, Linux
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- operating system
- Developer
- free software movement
- Platform
- PowerPC
- Official website
- mklinux.org
Show 2 more facts
- copyright license
- GNU General Public License
- inception
- 1996-02-01
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~7 min read
Encyclopedic overview
8 sectionsContents
- Architecture
- History
- Reception
- Legacy
- Releases
- See also
- References
- External links
MkLinux (Microkernel Linux) is a discontinued open-source experimental operating system for PowerPC Macintosh computers. It was launched in 1995 as a collaboration between the Open Software Foundation (OSF) and Apple Computer, as a critical pivot in Apple's technical and social history. MkLinux became Apple's first official free and open-source software community project, and the debut of Linux on the first Power Macintosh.
MkLinux's key feature is its microkernel architecture. Most Linux distributions have a monolithic kernel, but MkLinux is distinguished by its architecture which adapted the Linux kernel to run as a user-space server hosted on top of the Mach microkernel version 3.0. This "single server" architecture makes the system stable and easier to debug, but the overhead of communicating with the microkernel reduced performance.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “MkLinux” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.