274 Part III . Choosing and Installing a (Anonymous web server)
274 Part III . Choosing and Installing a Linux Distribution Although it is sponsored and directed by Red Hat Inc., the Fedora Project encourages community involvement. The latest Fedora Core will include many more features than Red Hat Enterprise Linux, but those features have less guarantee of stability and no guarantee of support. Fedora Core follows the legacy of Red Hat Linux. The final version of Red Hat Linux was version 9. Fedora Core 1 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 followed Red Hat Linux 9. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), which is actually represented by multiple products for desktop, server, and workstation computer systems, is licensed commercially. Red Hat puts all its documentation, training, and support effort behind RHEL, which it sells to customers in the form of subscriptions. The intent is to have RHEL be a rock-solid Linux system that can be deployed across entire enterprises. Despite the confusion it unleashed by dumping its flagship Red Hat Linux line and fears by some that Red Hat might become another Microsoft, Red Hat is still the dominant player when it comes to commercial Linux products. Many people have been happy to upgrade their critical Linux systems to Red Hat Enterprise Linux products. To its credit, Red Hat has managed to become a profitable venture while making some remarkable contributions to the open source effort. Releasing its installer (Anaconda) and software packaging tools (RPM Package Management) under the GNU Public License (GPL), has enabled other Linux distributions to use and enhance those features. Within Red Hat Linux and now Fedora Core, Red Hat Inc. has worked hard to include only software that could be freely distributed (removing most software with patent and copyright issues). Although Fedora is more of a testing facility than a guaranteed enterprise-quality operating system, for the purposes of this book, Fedora Core is a great way to evaluate and use technology that is in all Linux distributions from Red Hat. Features in Fedora Core 3 are in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4. Both distributions are discussed in this chapter, so you can determine which distribution is right for you. Digging into Features There are many opinions on why Red Hat Linux and other distributions from Red Hat Inc. have been so popular. The following sections describe some features of Red Hat Linux distributions that are commonly believed to have led to its success and that add to the popularity of Fedora Core and Red Hat Enterprise Linux distributions. Note
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