Unix has had a long history in the computer world. That it’s still in common use today and has more spin-offs then any sitcom could hope to have.

Unix variants have been created by Dell and even Microsoft hawked a version. A Unix-based desktop operating system is making new sales records every quarter.

Even weirder, Unix is making it way on to gadgets that it was never meant to be on. Unix’s growth is like a cancer, spreading throughout the IT world. A lot of it’s spread is due to the limited number of CPU architectures out there. Once it’s on one, it gets to the rest with little problem. Underground hackers tweak code until they see the blessed login:

This both scares and heartens me. The ease of portability puts Unix on objects we’ve never thought of before. What happens when it starts making it to car computers? And people start tweaking it for better gas mileage? Or what happens if it makes it way to a huge portion of desktops like other operating systems have? Will Unix dominance be the downfall of civilization? Will MSCE farms become obsolete?

Hopefully.

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