WORTHINGTON'S WORKSHOP
Computers - Main Page
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Some interesting computer systems for the home user. The beauty of this software is that it is completely free of cost, being developed and distributed under a liberal open source licensing system such as GNU General Public License (GPL). I have been installing Linux since 2008 (Ubuntu 8.04) and Unix since 2010 (Solaris 10). The Operating Systems have improved steadily over the years and are a match for, or better than, Windows and Mac OS. Both Linux and Unix have large free software repositories, available from a desktop menu, to supply almost any software. Each distribution comes pre installed with the typically used software such as an Office suite, internet, music, video, graphics and games. There are also plentiful programs for software development plus operating system management. Currently I use Ubuntu 16.04.6 with Windows 7 for a couple of older Windows specific programs. Distrowatch for information on Linux and Unix distributions: Distrowatch A microcontroller is a programmable microchip capable of replacing a group of discrete logic devices. They contain a CPU, memory and an internal logic set by the operation of the loaded program to create a complex logic operation.
A microcomputer contains a CPU chip and extra chips for
I/O. They are loaded with an operating system which enables the use
of many programs and applications. The Raspberry Pi can
emulate a desktop PC with a complete Ubuntu Linux OS.
The Gnu/Linux Computer Operating System (Linux OS) is Open Source and is thus free to download, distribute and use. It has similar functionality to Unix. Linux was named for LINus UniX. Ubuntu Linux is a highly developed OS with modern utilities, an advanced desktop and a substantial software repository. The Unix Operating System (Unix OS) was originally developed as a professional operating system for 'Big Iron' computing. Sun Microsystems (Solaris and Open Solaris), Illumos Foundation (OpenIndiana) and Berkley Software Development (PC-BSD, Open-BSD, etc) offer free home PC versions. Russian Serge Vakulenko wrote the code for the BSD v2.11 Unix for PIC 32 bit microcontrollers. Aussie Geoff Graham designed the Micromate microcomputer that it operates on. Both are available locally and for less than $AUS100 you can obtain a fully working text only Unix system, as described in this article. |