If you are a software developer in your 20s or 30s, you've grown up in a world dominated by Linux. It has been a significant player in the data center for decades, and while it's hard to find definitive operating system market share reports, Linux's share of data center operating systems could be as high as 70%, with Windows variants carrying nearly all the remaining percentage. Developers using any major public cloud can expect the target system will run Linux. Evidence that Linux is everywhere has grown in recent years when you add in Android and Linux-based embedded systems in smartphones, TVs, automobiles, and many other devices.

Even so, most software developers, even those who have grown up during this venerable "Linux revolution" have at least heard of Unix. It sounds similar to Linux, and you've probably heard people use these terms interchangeably. Or maybe you've heard Linux called a "Unix-like" operating system.

So, what is this Unix? The caricatures speak of wizard-like "graybeards" sitting behind glowing green screens, writing C code and shell scripts, powered by old-fashioned, drip-brewed coffee. But Unix has a much richer history beyond those bearded C programmers from the 1970s. While articles detailing the history of Unix and "Unix vs. Linux" comparisons abound, this article will offer a high-level background and a list of major differences between these complementary worlds.

• AsteroidOS 1.0 is now available to replace WearOS on your smartwatch

• AsteroidOS, a Wear OS alternative for your smartwatch, gets version 1.0 release

• AsteroidOS puts out first stable build, open source, compatible with many smartwatches

E-Con’s 55 x 30mm “eSOMiMX7” COM can simultaneously run Linux and FreeRTOS on the Cortex-A7 and MCU-driven i.MX7 SoC. It offers up to 2GB RAM and 64GB eMMC, with options including WiFi/BT, up to 2x GbE, extended temp support, and an “Acacia” carrier.

E-Con Systems’ eSOMiMX7 computer-on-module is the first NXP i.MX7 based model in its line of Linux-driven eSOM branded modules. These include its i.MX6-based 70 x 45mm “μQseven” form-factor eSOMiMX6 and 54 x 20mm eSOMiMX6-micro. Designed for IoT applications, industrial HMI, test and measurement, ebook readers, and wearables, the module supports 800MHz single- or 1GHz dual-core i.MX7 models and is available with an Acacia evaluation kit (see farther below).

One of the biggest questions at Red Hat Summit in San Francisco was "What will Red Hat be doing with its recent CoreOS acquisition?" Now we know. In a presentation, Ben Breard, Red Hat product manager for Linux Containers, and Brandon Philips, CTO of CoreOS, explained where CoreOS offerings are going now that the company is part of Red Hat.

Red Hat will be integrating CoreOS Tectonic, its Kubernetes distribution; Quay, its enterprise container registry; and Container Linux, its lightweight cluster Linux distribution, into Red Hat's container and Kubernetes-based software portfolio. One popular CoreOS technology won't be making the trip: The rkt container standard. Instead, it will become a community-supported container technology.

Also: Bringing CoreOS technology to Red Hat OpenShift to deliver a next-generation automated Kubernetes platform

Red Hat Unveils Roadmap for CoreOS Integration with Red Hat OpenShift