Linux Operating System

The Linux Operating System is software that runs on several kinds of computer hardware.

Since Linux is open source sofware, the "manufacturer" is a community of people rather than a single company. Companies are involved with the process of making the Linux software available. Since this involves distribution of the software to multiple people, the collection of a version of Linux with other software which uses that version is called a "distribution" or "distro". These "distros" are produced by companies and organizations which give their name to the collection such as RedHat, Mandrake, Debian, Slackware, Suse, etc.

Generally, the VistA software is not in any of the common distributions. Bhaskar is collecting versions of the software onto a single DVD-ROM, with a copy of the Morphix or Knoppix distribution, which is able to boot a computer to demonstrate the capabilities of the system.