This is the first of two articles about running Domino on Linux. The first article will discuss the history of running Domino on Linux and will make a logical business case for doing so. The second article will be a how-to guide about installing Domino on Linux.

History of Linux
Linux is an open-source operating system developed by Linus Torvalds in 1991. Linux began as most programs do, because Torvalds had a need that wasn't met by any available program. At around that time, Intel released their i386 processor containing instructions that allowed for multitasking. Unfortunately, the operating systems that were capable of multitasking were also expensive. Linux was designed to run on top of the MINIX operating system, another Unix variant that was designed to run on older, inexpensive computers.

Because Torvalds knew he wouldn't be able to develop an entire operating system himself, he released the source code to the public and allowed people to make changes and additions. Torvalds has the final say as to what gets included in the kernel and what doesn't. However, anyone can take the source code, modify it to fit personal needs, and even develop his or her own operating system. This is one of the reasons why there are more than 100 different distributions of Linux worldwide.

Linux distributions
Each of the distributions is based on the same kernel but adds various features and enhancements. Obviously, there are too many distributions to cover in the space of this article, so we will focus on the three largest.

Red Hat Linux
Red Hat (at http://www.redhat.com) is the most popular Linux distribution in the United States and is geared primarily to the business market. It was the first distribution to offer advanced features such as software RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disk) support, server clustering capabilities, and KickStart installation. The KickStart installation allows you to perform a remote installation of Red Hat over a network connection, so you don't have to be in front of the actual machine. This is especially useful if your company has a large server farm.

Red Hat has also garnered a lot attention because of its partnerships with large companies like Intel, Oracle, and IBM. Because of these partnerships, software is often ported to Red Hat Linux before other distributions.