Free Open Source Software: Linux

Computing

n the first article of this three- part series on desktop software >> By Loren J. Gibson, LS (“Current Problems in Desktop Computer Usage,” June 2006), I concentrated largely on the issue of open data standards and why I believe that it is desirable to move toward open standards. A formidable problem was noted—that of viruses, spyware, and other malicious software found running on our computers without our prior knowledge or approval. In this issue and the next, I will describe some “new” software which has great potential to mitigate some of the computational problems we face.

“New” Software Solution Interesting new software trends in personal computing technology continue to develop. One type of software that is getting a lot of attention is an operating system which is called Linux. Linux provides an alternative to the Intel/Microsoft Windows computer platform, which has found widespread acceptance in the surveying industry. Linux is being used with increasing frequency by IT departments and computer end users alike. This is the appearance of the default initial desktop you see when you boot a An operating system is special soft- KNOPPIX 3.7 CD. The open window in the screen is a web browser. Note that not ware that provides fundamental only can the user customize the mere appearance of the desktop of a Linux work- operational capabilities that all other station, but there are numerous different graphical user interfaces available which running programs require. and it runs have somewhat different capabilities. The one shown here is called KDE. constantly in order to provide these services. Additionally, modern operating systems such as Linux and Microsoft tions: Is Linux an operating system of Linux to help the reader judge the Windows XP provide various programs which is useful to surveyors? If so, will potential of Linux for himself. and software tools that are useful to the Linux-based computers fare any better user. Linux, and application software than (for example) Apple’s line of per- History of Linux that runs on Linux, are now in the spot- sonal computers, which are infrequently The roots of Linux go back to the first light because it is being used to mitigate seen in surveying practices? Will new multiple-platform operating system the problems previously mentioned, and choices in computer software help us devised. In 1969, AT&T/Bell Labs start- because it provides additional computa- cope with some of the technology prob- ed the development of an operating tional tools which can be useful for a lems we’re experiencing? I beleive the system called UNIX. After 1975, the wide variety of data processing chores. answer to all these questions is yes. My UNIX operating system was made This brings to mind a couple of ques- purpose therefore is to describe key traits available to entities outside of Bell Labs,

Displayed with permission • The American Surveyor • July/August • Copyright 2005 Cheves Media • www.TheAmericanSurveyor.com For Further Reading The following resources are good starting places for obtaining more information about UNIX, Linux, and free open source software:

www.linux.org (Lots of Linux information, including a list of Linux user groups, tutorials, etc.) www.distrowatch.com (List of popular Linux distributions and BSD operating system software, together with links to various related websites) www.tldp.org (The Linux Documentation Project. Contains the formal, official documentation about Linux.) www.linux-laptop.net (A collection of users’ experiences in getting Linux to work on many brands and models of laptop computers.) Linux computers are well-known for their prowess in server applications. Here a www.fsf.org (The Free Software Microsoft Windows user is editing a document stored and viewing a folder, both Foundation, which creates the supporting involving shared network resources on Linux. software for the Linux kernel to make a complete operating system. Some open source application software is also avail- eventually resulting in UNIX being trademark, Linux cannot accurately be able here. This site has background made available on a commercial basis called UNIX, however Linux operates material about free software issues.) for several different brands and types of in essentially the same fashion as the www.opensource.org (The website computers. While versions of UNIX UNIX operating systems. for the Open Source Initiative.) were developed for the Intel/PC-compat- There are other freely available ible line of computers during the 1980s, UNIX-like operating systems, such as The following websites offer informa- UNIX was, for quite some time, pre- FreeBSD and OpenBSD. The result of tion about a few of the distributions of dominantly confined for use in large this is that there are now several oper- Linux or other UNIX-like operating sys- mainframe computers and minicomput- ating system alternatives to Microsoft tems, as well as some of the software ers. UNIX was seldom used on desktop Windows which run on Intel-compati- available (not all of which is FOSS): personal computers, probably due to the ble and other hardware. While I’ll inability of early, primitive PC hardware continue to discuss Linux exclusively www.suse.com (SUSE Linux) to take full advantage of the UNIX (as well as software that is available for www.redhat.com (Red Hat Linux) design, and because of the extra expense Linux) for the remainder of this arti- www.mandrakelinux.com (Mandrake incurred buying a UNIX operating sys- cle, most of what will be stated also Linux) tem. However, there are a few surveyors applies to the other UNIX-like operat- www.xandros.com (Xandros Linux) who actually used UNIX on their PCs. ing systems. fedora.redhat.com (Fedora Core In 1991, a Finnish graduate student Linux) named Linus Torvalds began work on Permitted Uses/ www.freebsd.org (FreeBSD operating the kernel of a new UNIX-like operat- “Free” Availability system) ing system. The “kernel” is that part of Note the phrase “freely available” www.openoffice.org (Word process- UNIX and Linux which does several above. A lengthy article could be writing, spreadsheet, etc.) fundamental tasks, like managing stor- ten about copyright law with respect to www.ribbonsoft.com/qcad.html age devices and regulating other computer software, but as is well (QCad CAD program) programs running on the computer. His known, there are usually strict con- grass.baylor.edu/ (GRASS GIS soft- kernel has been combined with addi- straints placed on the permitted uses ware) tional supporting programs to produce of the commercial software which we www.mozilla.org/ (Web browsers, a freely available complete operating are licensed to use. For purposes of email clients, etc.) system which collectively called this discussion, by “freely available” I www.gimp.org/ (Digital photograph “Linux.”. The additional supporting mean that very few restrictions are retouching, image manipulation, etc.) software, whose development predates placed on your use of Linux. You are www.novell.com/products/desktop/f that of the Linux kernel, is produced by not restrained from installing it on as eatures/evolution.html (Eemail, cal- the Free Software Foundation and is many computers as you wish. The endar, collaboration software) called “GNU.” Therefore, some refer to source code is available for your use, ganttproject.sourceforge.net/ the entire operating system as the and you are allowed to modify the (Project management software) “GNU/Linux” operating system. In any software (assuming you have the skill). event, because UNIX is a registered You may provide the software to oth-

Displayed with permission • The American Surveyor • July/August • Copyright 2005 Cheves Media • www.TheAmericanSurveyor.com ers (either the original software or the software after you have modified it), so long as you also make the source code available. If you provide the software to others, you are forbidden from imposing any new restrictions upon its use, so that people who get the software from you are entitled to the same rights of usage that you have. The software can be used for commercial and non-commercial purposes. Sometimes the phrases “open source software,” “free software,” and “free open source software” (abbrevi- ated as “FOSS”) are used to denote software having those general traits. For those interested in learning the finer points of FOSS, the Free Software Foundation and the Open Source Initiative web sites are good

Linux is perfectly capable of coexisting with Windows and other computers on a network. The right window in this screen capture shows Linux software viewing folders shared by a Windows computer on the network, and the left window shows a configuration screen for a shared printer on the network.

the fact that many of the participating programmers are perceived as being seriously underpaid for their work, FOSS development has been healthy and growing steadily for over two decades, and shows no sign of slowing down.) Some groups have formed com- panies which sell Linux distributions. So why buy something that’s available for free elsewhere? Those who sell Linux attempt to add value to the soft- Typical office applications in Linux, including a spreadsheet, a word processing ware by providing formal technical document, and Adobe Acrobat Reader being used to view a PDF file. Here support, printed documentation, or per- OpenOffice is used to edit Microsoft Excel and Word documents, but ordinarily haps other software refinements that uses its own open standard data file format. they hope the customer will find valu- able. Numerous books have been written about installing and running starting points. (See the accompanying cost, and many groups have created Linux, and Linux software is included sidebar of Internet resources for further Linux “distributions” that can be down- with them. These books are an excellent reading.) loaded from the Internet without cost. way to be introduced to Linux, particu- In the context of FOSS, the word A distribution is a particular collection larly if you have an old, spare computer “free” connotes having freedom to use of Linux and other software that has on which to install the software. the software in ways that are typically been bundled together and offered to prohibited by commercially available others. Each distribution is maintained Applications and Uses software. However, much open source by a pool of programmers who are typi- If you want to decide whether or not to software can also be obtained free of cally volunteers of this effort. (Despite run a Linux computer starting, say,

Displayed with permission • The American Surveyor • July/August • Copyright 2005 Cheves Media • www.TheAmericanSurveyor.com tomorrow, an old method of choosing suite” which includes a sophisticated software could be applied: Decide what word processor, spreadsheet, presenta- KNOPPIX you want your computer to do for you, tion software, drawing software (not then decide what software you’ll use for CAD), a web document editor, and There’s an easy way to experiment that purpose, and last find the hardware other programs. Many people use with Linux on your PC on a tempo- and operating system which runs that OpenOffice instead of comparable com- rary basis which does not require software. If the only thing you want from mercially available alternatives. you to modify the software on your a computer is to run your favorite OpenOffice saves user data in an open hard drive, so long as you can boot from your computer’s CD drive. There are numerous “live CD” distributions of Linux which contain the operating system and an assort- ment of applications all on one bootable CD. One very popular live CD distribution of Linux is called KNOPPIX. KNOPPIX happens to be made only for Intel-compatible computers, and requires a 80486 or later CPU, at least 96 MB of RAM (with 128 MB recommended), a standard SVGA- compatible graphics adapter, and a mouse. If you have high-speed Internet access and the ability to burn CDs, you can download the 700 MB CD image of the most recent version of KNOPPIX at www.knoppix.org. (Click on the U.S./Great Britain flag at the top of the page to get the English lan- guage version of the website.) After you burn the KNOPPIX CD, place it into your CD drive and reboot your computer. (If your computer will not The Mozilla web browser and e-mail client are available for Linux, Windows, and boot off your CD, find out how to Mac OS X. The Mozilla web browser is one of several considered to be a much bet- check your BIOS setup and make ter choice that Microsoft’s Internet Explorer because of Internet Explorer’s high sure that booting from CD is susceptibility to some types of malicious software. enabled.) When you’ve finished using KNOPPIX, log out of KNOPPIX (you will be given the opportunity to Windows-based surveying software, it standard data format, and OpenOffice remove the CD prior to powering would be difficult to recommend Linux. and KOffice (another popular open- down), and the next time you reboot Good progress is being made in finding source integrated office software suite) without the CD, you’ll be back to ways of actually running Windows appli- will both be moving to another open your normal system. cations under Linux, but I am reluctant standard data format. As was noted in to recommend such a solution to most the June article, I expect that the use of users at this time. There are a few native open data standards will help users to Important note: Linux programs that are relevant to sur- share data more easily and to provide While I’m confident that KNOPPIX is veying and mapping, including at least greater assurances of having access to safe to use, I nonetheless recom- one CAD program, software for laser old data in the future. (Incidentally, mend that you back up all important scanners, and GIS software, but most OpenOffice does a very good job, data on your computer before surveying programs currently running though not always perfect, of directly running KNOPPIX. Never take risks under Windows are not available for reading and writing Microsoft Office with your data. If you have not Linux. documents, despite the secret, propri- recently backed up your data, then However, even in the absence of a etary nature of the Microsoft Office I particularly urge you to back up Linux version of your favorite surveying native file formats.) the data stored on your computer’s program, some of the current work Networking applications like e-mail hard drive, even if you have decid- needs of surveyors are well addressed by and Web browsers are a routine part of ed not to run KNOPPIX! Linux and the currently available crop Linux systems, and if you make use of of application software written for these types of networking programs, Linux. For example, OpenOffice is a Linux is ready for you. It is significant freely available, highly regarded “office that users of open source operating sys-

Displayed with permission • The American Surveyor • July/August • Copyright 2005 Cheves Media • www.TheAmericanSurveyor.com Another view of KNOPPIX. The “K” button at the left end of the taskbar along the bottom of the screen is KDE’s “start” button. The Linux desktop can have lots of “eye candy” like animated cursors and the transparent menus and windows seen here, or you can have a very spartan, business-only desktop. tems and application software have sel- large and small corporations around the dom been victimized by the viruses and world. Linux has a fine reputation for “spyware” that are transmitted by net- this application because of its perform- works and that have blighted so many ance, reliability, and low occurrence of Windows systems. While open source down time. software may not be totally immune to future attacks, certain design characteris- Take a Test Drive tics of Linux make it significantly more The sidebars to this article contain Web difficult for nefarious programmers to references for additional reading and a create programs which successfully short summary of how you can “test attack Linux machines. Additionally, the drive” a Linux distribution called very open development process of FOSS KNOPPIX. KNOPPIX allows you to is credited by many as being a key factor temporarily run Linux on your comput- in making better, more secure software, er without installing any software or because the availability of the source removing any existing software. In the code allows for large numbers of pro- September issue, I will present some grammers to find and fix potential additional details of Linux and free open problems. It is for these reasons that the source software, including a few more use of Linux is a good way to help avoid comments on open data standards in the epidemic of viruses and other “mal- open source software, additional traits of ware” which exists today. Linux which distinguish it from Microsoft Another prominent reason that Linux Windows, and some possible drawbacks I use is rapidly growing is due to its see to using Linux at this time. strength for server applications. If you have a workplace which is large enough Loren Gibson is a Project Surveyor at to have file or database servers for a net- Keith and Schnars, P.A., Fort Lauderdale, work of users, Linux and open source Florida, and is licensed in the states of server software are up to the task. Linux Florida and New York. He received his already has a well established presence on MS degree in Computational Science Internet servers and in the Information from the State University of New York Technology departments of numerous College at Brockport.