So, I’m a Finn, and have heard many times that we prefer Android because it’s “built on a Linux kernel” (I know just enough to know the Linux dude is a Finn). But *what* is “a kernel” and how “Finnish” does this make Android? Can Linus Torvalds be credited in any way for Android?
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When you’re using your computer or phone, lots of programs are running. There’s the program that’s checking your mail, the web browser you’re using, the messaging app receiving new messages, etc.
The program running all those programs, the base program that the device starts up when it turns on, is the kernel. When some other program wants to open a file, the kernel is what actually does it and tells that program what’s in the file. When your settings app establishes a new wifi connection, it’s a module in the kernel that actually tells the radio transmitter in your phone to send/receive the signal. When more than one program wants to do something at the same time (which is nearly always), the kernel is what coordinates them and tells the processor what specifically to do next.
Android is a bunch of programs built on top of a Linux kernel that’s actually running the show underneath. Linus can be credited with creating the kernel, releasing it to the world and guiding it through its development over the years, but he didn’t make Android. He… facilitated it. He made the Android team’s job easier by giving them a ready-made solution to do the dirty work behind the scenes.
Software development is a game of standing on the shoulders of giants to reach even further, and Linus’ contributions were his shoulders.
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> I know just enough to know the Linux dude is a Finn
I was at a conference in Helsinki last year: Finns are cool people. They have solid fast food (that’s my rubric: can the local Burger King make a decent Whopper? Helsinki YES. Rio YES YES YES. London “honorable mention”. Frankfurt NO. Athens made a good burger but I couldn’t find a BK).
Linus is known for not taking any crap: he’s to-the-point and makes a great software project leader because he doesn’t hesitate to put people in their place and force coordination out of uncoordinated developers. If he thinks you’re wrong, he’ll tell you right to your face and won’t tiptoe around it. But he also respects what you have to say if it’s a good point.
A kernel is the core part of an operating system, like the brain of your phone or computer. Its job is to manage the hardware (like the processor, memory, and storage) and allow software (apps, programs, etc.) to talk to that hardware. It’s what makes everything run smoothly behind the scenes.
The Linux kernelis a specific type of kernel that was created by Linus Torvalds, who is Finnish. It’s open-source, meaning anyone can see the code, modify it, and use it for free. The Linux kernel is widely used in many different operating systems, including servers, computers, and even Android phones.
Android uses the Linux kernel as its foundation to manage the hardware on your phone or tablet. While Android adds a lot of extra layers and features on top of this kernel to make your phone work the way you expect (with a touchscreen, apps, etc.), the kernel itself comes from the Linux project.
Android isn’t directly Finnish in the sense that it’s made in Finland, but the kernel it uses is based on work that Linus Torvalds, a Finn, started in 1991. He laid the groundwork for the kernel that Android uses today, even though there have been many other contributors over the years.While Linus didn’t work on Android itself, his creation of the Linux kernel made Android possible, because the Android system relies on that kernel to function.
In short, Android owes part of its existence to the Linux kernel, which was created by a Finn, but Android itself is not a purely Finnish creation.
Very simply, a kernel is what makes the software of a computer and the hardware of a computer interact. The kernel manages things like allocating ram, CPU cores, that kind of thing. A lot of operating systems have their own proprietary kernels, but the Linux kernel is open-source, meaning free to use by anyone, so some operating systems (like android) take it to use as their own. That’s why some hardcore linux users might refer to themselves as using “GNU + Linux”, because the linux part itself is not usually the part people associate with a linux operating system. So, yes, Linus Torvalds can be credited in Android for creating the way the Android software works with the phone’s hardware, but its not the first thing that people think of when they think of Android.
The kernal is the lowest level of code for a computer. It’s how instructions and information get between hardware and software.
If the Linux kernel is LEGO, the Windows NT kernel would be K’nex or Lincoln Logs (sorry if this is US centric). Both allow you to construct stuff by putting pieces together, and at a glance they seem to do pretty much the same job, but at their core they are unique and distinct.
Many people in tech (development and computer engineering) prefer Linux as it is A) free, B) extremely customizable, and C) very performant and lightweight
and yeah, you could say Linux could be credited for Android in a distant way. Similar to how your great grandfather could be credited for your birth. I would say it doesn’t make android Finnish, though, no more than it would make me Finnish if I ate some Finnish food.
iPhone and Android has pretty similar market share in Finland as it does elsewhere. Most people don’t know or care one bit that Android has Linux at its core. And while Linux was started by Linus Torvalds back in 1991, it’s very much an international project these days, and Torvalds is an US citizen.
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