|
|
Being 39 years of age, Linus Torvalds was born on the 28th of December 1969 in Helsinki, Finland. Though the fact that he graduated the Helsinki University with a Master's degree in computer science may not seem very interesting, you should know that the University's decision to hold a UNIX course during his years there was one of the things that led to the creation of Linux.
|
|
Though he modestly refuses to describe himself as a "good-doer" and claims that everything he's done he's done just for fun, it is clear that Linus had, has and will continue to positively impact many aspects of the world. Free and open-source software would have probably never reached the level of popularity that it knows today without Linus and his operating system. People all over the world, regardless of their financial status, are introduced to technology through Linux, schools can now teach children how to use computers without worrying about licensing costs and limitations, and small businesses can thrive by using free software. Servers, desktops, routers, set-top boxes, mobile phones, DVD players, GPS receivers, printers and many, many more embedded devices are brought to life using Linux.
The Time magazine included Linus Torvalds in the "60 Years of Heroes" feature next to people like Princess Diana, Yuri Gagarin or Nelson Mandela. Hero or not, Linus can also be considered a kind-hearted person, as he also launched a call for action on saving the Tasmanian Devil, plagued by a deadly cancer threatening to extinct the whole species, by replacing the Tux logo with Taz (the Tasmanian Devil disguised as a penguin). Full Story |
