Linus Torvalds, the man credited with creating the Linux operating system, ranks right up there with Bill Gates and Steve Wozniak as one of the world's foremost geeks. Few people know, however, that he holds the rank of Second Lieutenant in the Finnish Army, and is also an avid Scuba diver! That's not very geeky of him. In addition to Linux, he combined his passion for diving and his talent for software design to create the world's first Scuba diving log book software, Subsurface. He is an interesting person to say the least, though he has managed to remain largely under the radar of public attention, unlike some of his contemporaries.
Meanwhile, the operating system he is best known for is extremely popular, especially in web hosting applications. The majority of all websites are hosted on servers that use some version of Torvalds' operating system. While there are other options, and some webmasters and server administrators swear by Windows or FreeBSD, most people will agree that Linux is the leader when it comes to web server operating systems. Some of the reasons for this are its stability, flexibility, and affordability. When a Linux operating system is employed in a virtual hosting environment, a cheap yet powerful web hosting solution is created, and this is one of the most popular choices for webmasters all over the world.
Torvalds, in addition to creating Linux, is also credited with a key role in the beginning of the open source software revolution. Open source means that the actual code for the software is free and accessible to anyone who wants to examine it. This results in developers all over the world modifying and improving open source programs, then re-releasing their new versions. Since Linux is open source and has been from the beginning, an active worldwide community of developers has contributed to the code. Each one adds their own improvements to the software over time, and the net result is similar to having a team of thousands of software engineers working nonstop on the OS. Thus the versions of Linux used in web hosting today are incredibly stable and powerful. Furthermore, the open nature of the development allows Linux to adapt quickly to the rapidly changing world of the Internet.
When the flexibility and reliability of Linux are brought to virtual hosting servers, the result is a feature rich hosting solution that is affordable on nearly any budget. Since virtual hosting splits the cost of one physical web server between many users, the cost per user is incredibly low. But since each virtual server acts like an independent server, every one of those users enjoys the privacy, flexibility, and administrative control that come with a truly dedicated server. When stacked up against the alternatives, Linux hosting virtual is a clear winner. No wonder it is the most popular choice of hosting plan by a wide margin. Some of the world's top websites are hosted on Linux virtual servers, and many of the big hosting companies use certain versions of Linux like Red Hat exclusively.
As we've seen, Linux has a long and illustrious track record of reliability, flexibility and technical prowess. If you have specific technical requirements of your web server, chances are a Linux OS can meet and likely exceed them. If you're a beginning webmaster, Linux based hosting plans offer a user friendly way to get a website active as quickly as possible. So whether you're a techie like Torvalds, or couldn't tell the difference between HTML and SQL, there is a Linux hosting virtual plan to meet your needs. Feel free to browse our Linux virtual plans; we're confident you'll find what you're looking for.