The penguins are coming! The penguins are coming! Those who are Linux fans will know the reference is to the mascot chosen by Linus Torvalds for the computer operating system he founded for all the rebels in the world.

Mr. Torvalds, a Finn, was a college student in 1991 when he began creating Linux with the idea the world needed a free programme to run their computers.

Linux was created as a clone from the Unix operating system.

He was attempting to escape from the domination of the Windows, Macintosh, Unix and other systems used to run computers. Most of us at home use some version of Microsoft's Windows operating system, because it was preloaded or packaged with the machine.

Mr. Torvalds created what's called an open source code -- one in which he essentially gave the copyright to the world and allowed others to change and improve the system.

Hundreds of hackers have worked away on the system and now Linux, which bills itself as "Unix for the rest of us'', is becoming more accepted by the rest of the real world.

According to Paragon security consultant Walter Cooke, Linux has advanced far since its early geek days when you needed to input command lines to get the thing to work. Now, Linux for the desktop operates like any point and click system designed for ease of use.

The attractiveness rests in its open code which allows a firm's in-house information technology department to custom fit the software for their company. The system also supports much of the regular software already in use.

Many are using Linux in combination with their current operating system.

Linux's advantages are the system is very stable and is not as prone to crashes compared to other off-the-shelf systems, according to Mr. Cooke. It's also more resistant to viruses. NASA, Cisco Systems, internet service providers, the US Army and Grundig TV are all using Linux in some form for part of their computer systems. I was attending a lunch-time talk given by him on the Linux system. Paragon is attempting to find out how much interest there is in the local market for the Linux system and whether the company can then move into the business of providing support for it. He's holding the same talk later this week. See Business Calendar.

Flexibility in allowing users to adapt the Linux system to their system is the key for these businesses. Because it's supported by thousands, upgrades and bug fixes are available faster than the licensed products.

While you can also download Linux free from the Internet, you can also buy versions and support from such companies as Red Hat, Caldera and Slackware.

Mr. Cooke describes the current documentation of the software "adequate to excellent''. He rates security an eight out of 10.

Two of the world's largest computer manufacturers -- Dell and IBM -- have indicated they will be offering consumers the option of purchasing machines pre-installed with Linux. Dell is currently offering its Precision Workstation and Power Edge server lines pre-installed with Red Hat Linux, a commercial version of the Linux operating system.

Caldera Systems has also launched what it calls "a user-friendly desktop'' version of the operating system aimed at Linux novices. Caldera's OpenLinux lets Windows users install a trial version of Linux on their PCs. Windows is left intact, so a user's computer can be restored to the original configuration.

Companies are using Linux mainly to run it on their non-critical systems. A survey of 502 software developers in North America 48 percent said they would not run Linux on mission critical applications, 35 percent said yes, 17 percent had no opinion or were undecided, according to PC Week.

Chief information officers stated that the lack of professional support and desktop office applications limit Linux, for now, to Web and e-mail servers in their firms. You can research and download Linux from www.linux.com, and www.linux.org, sites which in turn also have links to other resources.

Still Mr. Cooke and other experts warn that Linux really still is for the professionals. I know at least one friend who tried out Linux out of curiosity and then switched back to Windows. Why change unless you can really get the full advantage of not getting frustrated with computers any more? However momentum for Linux is building and I will welcome a chance to escape the domination and control imposed on my computer habits, likes and dislikes by the commercial operating systems.

A few years ago, Mr. Torvalds had a competition among the Linux community for a logo for the system. His guide was that it should be a penguin "...sitting down after having gorged itself, and having just burped''.

The mascot was eventually created by Larry Ewing. At the time Mr. Torvalds commented: "Some people have told me they don't think a fat penguin really embodies the grace of Linux, which just tells me they have never seen a angry penguin charging at them in excess of 100 mph. They'd be a lot more careful about what they say if they had.'' While I'm not a penguin yet, some day I hope to be.

Tech Tattle deals with topics relating to technology. Contact Ahmed at techtattle ygazette.newsmedia.bm or 295-5881 ext. 248 or 238-3854.