There are different versions of Linux, but they are all essentially the same – at the core, if you will. It started as an open source, ergo ‘free’, software package and it still is. But you can purchase an out-of-the-box solution as well. Those solutions may have additional features that the free open source version doesn’t have and that’s why you are paying for those. Nonetheless, if you take the open source version then you can tweak it to do what you want it to do and create your own features.
But that’s not really the reason Linux wins the prize.
Linux has many features that make it stand out above the crowd of operating systems. For one thing, you can think of it as an open source UNIX. UNIX, of course, is a trademarked name, so Linux could not use that, but it is essentially UNIX with more flexibility.
Linux is standards compliant. That means, it contains all the standard features that you’d expect from a server operating system. All of them. No exceptions. It’s stable, it’s contemporary, and it’s mulit-user as well as multi-tasking capable.
It is also customizable. Open source, remember? It’s flexibility makes it robust and scalable. You can use Linux on any type of computer system. And it doesn’t require a Ph.D. or special fancified courses with certifications.
Linux’s GUI interface is intuitive.
There are also a host of standard software packages that you can use with Linux. A lot more than there used to be. And this will continue to grow.
You can use upload thousands of small applets and other tools to work with Linux. These tools can do a load of complex functions, making Linux a powerful operating system from the ground up.
And Linux has some of the best networking tools on the market; PLUS, it is completely compatible with everything else on the market.
One huge advantage to Linux is its security abilities. Because it isn’t as prevalent as Microsoft, Linux is free of viruses. Almost completely. And since it is open source, there are millions of minds working to make it better.
Linux is not owned by anyone. It operates on a General Public License, meaning that anyone has access to its code and can improve upon it.
Linux the operating system of choice for many web hosts and server managers. Why? Because it is just simply the best thing on the market.