Rebel Code: Linux and the Open Source Revolution

In 1991, a 21 year-old student, Linus Torvalds set about writing a free alternative to the UNIX operating system. The system he established is now used by more than 10 million people & the numbers are growing. It is fast, it can be used on any number of hardware platforms, from multi-chip super computers to palm pilots, &, astonishingly, it's free. The story of its development reveals the power of cooperation in the development of new technology. Hundreds of programmers from around the world world have worked outside government and corporate control to create a product that has caused conventional business to blanch. The book describes in vivid detail the dreamers and businessmen who have turned a private passion into a global phenomenon.