Hello, everyone, 

I'm here to talk to you about another aspect of the Linux operating
system, one that might've been mentioned before but I wish to
elaborate on. That aspect is that in a Linux system, the source code
is open. Now, what does that mean?

Before we begin, how many of you have ever written a computer program?
ok, for those of you that haven't, a computer program is written in a
programming language. Then a tool called a 'compiler' is used to
translate what you wrote in that programming language, which is
something that humans understand, into ones and zeros, which are what
a computer understands. 

In Linux, unlike most other operating systems, you have the source
code to almost every program you run. But wait, it goes deeper: Not
only do you have the source, you also have the legal and moral right
to modify it, and distribute your modifications to others. That right
gives you unprecedented freedom - you can make any changes you want to
the software you use, and pass it on to others. In fact, that's
exactly how Linux itself is developed - companies and individuals each
build on each other's previous efforts and improve the sofware that we
all end up using.

Now, you might be asking yourself here, "gee, that's nice, but why
would I want to do that?". The first answer is that writing code is
satisfying. Writing software is like fixing your car, or solving a
difficult HEDVA problem. You may spend hours and even days on it, and
curse every minute (unless you enjoy solving HEDVA problems) but the
moment you solve it, you get immense satisfaction. That satisfaction
is later doubled and tripled when people actually *use* your software,
and at least for me, it's quadrupled when they improve it themselves.

The second answer is that being able to fix the software you're using
is convenient, and in some cases, a life saver. Let's say you
downloaded from the internet a really great program, and it has just
one small bug, but that bug means you can't use it. What would you do?
If you were using Windows, you would probably reinstall, hoping that
that would solve the problem, and then reboot your computer a few
times, hoping that *that* would solve the problem, and then you would
remove the $%^&* program and install something else.  

If you were using Linux, however, you could fix the problem yourself!
Often, the original developer has already fixed the problem, and all
you need to do is get in touch with him (which is very easy using
email, IRC and instant messaging - imagine trying to get in touch with
the person who wrote MS Word), but if he hasn't, you've got the source
code, you've got the know-how, and you can fix it. Once you've fixed
your problem, you can send the fix to the author, who will put it in
his version, and then everyone using the software will be using a
little piece of code that you wrote! Convenient AND satisfying. 

Writing software is not only convenient and satisfying, it's also
enriching. It makes you a better person, because you learn and improve
yourself, and you become a better person because you help others. In
the Linux community, you have unencumbered access to the work of
giants (imagine having access to everything Bill Gates ever
wrote). You can learn from them and maybe even contribute to their
work, if you're good enough.

One last thing, after having appealed to the hacker in you, I will now
appeal to your pocket - writing software is also enriching fiscally -
now days, many companies are hiring Linux programmers, so hacking on
Linux can be enriching your pocket as well. Linux programmers usually
make more than their Windows using friends, too. ;-)

Thank you for listening!  
--
Muli Ben-Yehuda
mulix@mulix.org

$Id: why-linux.txt,v 1.4 2002/10/29 19:57:07 mulix Exp $