On August 25, 1991, the Finnish student Linus Torvalds wrote that he was working as a hobby on a free operating system that would "not become big and professional". With that, he was sorely mistaken. At that time Linux should have found its original application in the strongly spread PCs. These were equipped with x86 chips from Intel. However, Microsoft with its MS Dos and Windows had already asserted itself on this. Today, not only about 80 percent of all smartphones run on Linux: Linux runs in every modern car and other countless devices, from fruit scales in the supermarket to W-LAN routers at home.

Linux has been in commercial use since 1992 and is successfully deployed in everything from wristwatches to supercomputers. Linux runs on many server systems for databases, web sites and groupware around the globe. It is estimated that 2/3 of all web servers use Linux as their operating system. Operating systems like Android on cell phones and tablets, as well as many smart TVs are based on Linux. Routers, printers, NAS and many other devices in the IT world run on Linux. And last but not least, many developers of embedded devices in various industry segments, such as medical, automotive, aerospace or automation, rely on the modularity, security and robustness of Linux as a platform.

Around the globe, thousands and thousands of developers are working on the further development and debugging of Linux. These developers are by no means just nerds or hackers in a quiet room, but many highly paid software specialists from well-known companies like IBM, who use the operating system themselves. If security gaps and errors appear in the system, they are usually quickly eliminated and made available on the Internet. The maturity of the Linux software, its tools and development environment is therefore very high and the system extremely stable.

In principle, anyone can download the GNU and Linux sources from the Internet and assemble their own operating system including tools. However, the effort is not to be underestimated and hardly feasible without expert knowledge. Fortunately, there are communities and companies that offer Linux distributions. Distributions are completely prepared packages with utilities and usually many application packages that allow easy installation of a Linux system. The best known distributions are Ubuntu, Suse and Redhat. In addition, however, there are countless derivatives that are suitable for a wide variety of applications. Most of them can also be obtained and used free of charge from the Internet.

The source code of the operating system is free of charge and freely available. Even if the software itself is "free", one must not neglect costs for the maintenance and care of a system. For rapid deployment on a particular hadware platform, it is recommended to use a customized Linux distribution. The providers of the distributions then also offer the necessary training and support for smooth development. Ginzinger electronic systems offers with GELin a complete solution for embedded systems.