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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

True / False
1. Open Source Software (OSS) is freely developed and continuously improved by a large community of software
developers
a. True
b. False

ANSWER: True

2. The term hacker refers to someone who illegally uses computers for personal benefit or to cause damage.
a. True
b. False

ANSWER: False

3. Each computer on a network requires a unique way to identify itself and to refer to other computers. This is
accomplished by using IP addresses.
a. True
b. False

ANSWER: True

4. Many programming function libraries and UNIX-like commands appeared in the 1980s as a result of the work on the
GNU project.​
a. True
b. False

ANSWER: True

5. On closed­source operating systems, hot fixes for software bugs are deployed very quickly.​
a. True
b. False

ANSWER: False

Multiple Choice
6. What piece of software tells the operating system how to use a specific hardware device?
a. graphical user interface b. system service
c. device driver d. user interface

ANSWER: c

7. When viewing the version number for a Linux kernel, what number indicates the stability of the kernel?
a. major number b. revision number
c. minor number d. production kernel number

ANSWER: c

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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

8. What stipulates that the source code of any software published under its license must be freely available.
a. GNU Public License b. Free Software Foundation
c. Freeware d. Artistic License

ANSWER: a

9. What software type is software that is distributed free of charge, but the source code is not available?
a. Open source software b. Shareware
c. Close source software d. Freeware

ANSWER: d

10. Which of the following is the greatest expense for companies using Linux?
a. Additional software
b. Operating system cost
c. Hiring people to maintain the Linux system
d. Software upgrades

ANSWER: c

11. In what year was the source code for the Linux kernel released?
a. 1987 b. 1990
c. 1991 d. 1993

ANSWER: c

12. In Linux, the core component of the GUI is known as:

a. GNOME b. KDE
c. X Windows d. Red Hat

ANSWER: c

13. An archive of files that usually contain scripts that install the software contents to the correct location on the system
is referred to as a:
a. router b. package manager
c. DBMS d. tarball

ANSWER: d

14. What Linux distribution is the most commonly used distribution within organizations today?
a. Mandrake b. SuSE
c. Debian d. Red Hat

ANSWER: d

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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

15. What service provides a method for the efficient transfer of files over the Internet?
a. FTP b. HTML
c. SMTP d. Telnet

ANSWER: a

16. What computer system was the first to run the UNIX operating system?​
a. A ​ pple II
b. ​DEC PDP­7
c. Sun ​SPARC
d. I​ BM 5150

ANSWER: b

17. Which type of open source license ensures that the source code of a program is freely available while also allowing
the original author of the source code some control over the changes made to it?​
a. ​Freeware
b. ​Shareware
c. G
​ PL
d. A​ rtistic

ANSWER: d

18. The GNU General Public License (GPL) was developed by which organization?​
a. F
​ ree Software Foundation (FSF)
b. E​ lectronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
c. M ​ icrosoft
d. S ​ un Microsystems

ANSWER: a

19. The iptables software on Linux is an example of what kind of software?​
a. R
​ outing
b. A​ nti­virus
c. Firewall​
d. P ​ roxy

ANSWER: c

20. The Linux kernel was developed and released in 1991 by:​
a. R
​ ichard Stallman
b. L​ inus Torvalds
c. A ​ ndrew Tannenbaum 
d. D ​ ennis Ritchie

ANSWER: b
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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

21. T
​ he QT toolkit is utilized by which GUI environment?
a. G
​ NOME
b. E​ nlightenment
c. ​KDE
d. X ​ fce

ANSWER: c

22. T
​ he overall cost of using a particular operating system is known as?
a. T
​ otal cost of ownership (TCO)
b. O​ wner Related Expense (ORE)
c. C ​ ost to Own (CTO)
d. R ​ eturn on Investment (ROI)

ANSWER: a

23. Dennis Ritchie invented what programming language, which was then used to rewrite the UNIX operating system?​
a. ​PERL
b. P
​ ython
c. Pascal
d. ​C

ANSWER: d

24. The mutt software is an example of what type of mail service software on Linux?​
a. M
​ ail Transfer Agent
b. M​ ail Delivery Agent
c. M ​ ail User Agent
d. M ​ ail Transport Agent

ANSWER: c

25. Proxy servers keep track of the information passed to each client by maintaining what type of table?​
a. firewall
b. r​ outing
c. N ​ etwork Address Translation (NAT)
d. c​ aching

ANSWER: c

Completion
26. The _________________________ is the core component of the Linux operating system.
ANSWER: Linux kernel

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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

27. A(n) _________________________ is a computer or special hardware device that provides interconnection
between company networks, home networks, and institutional networks.
ANSWER: router

28. The ability for a computer to increase workload as the number of processors increases is known as
_________________________.
ANSWER: scalability

29. ________________ are a collection of programs and tools designed to allow for the creation, modification,
manipulation, maintenance, and access of information from databases.​
ANSWER: Database Management Systems (DBMSs)​

30. The __________ implementation of X Windows is the latest implementation, and is based on the original MIT X
Windows project that was released as OSS in 2004.​​

ANSWER: X.org​

Subjective Short Answer

31. List and describe the different types of programs that are executed on a computer.

ANSWER: There are two types of programs. The first type, applications, includes those programs designed for a
specific use and with which you commonly interact, such as word processors, computer games,
graphical manipulation programs, and computer system utilities. The second type, operating system
(OS) software, consists of a series of software components used to control the hardware of your
computer. Without an operating system, you would not be able to use your computer. Turning on a
computer loads the operating system into computer hardware, which then loads and centrally controls all
other application software in the background. At this point, the user (the person using the computer) is
free to interact with the applications, perhaps by typing on the keyboard or clicking a mouse.
Applications then take the information supplied by the user and relay it to the operating system. The
operating system then uses the computer hardware to carry out the requests.

32. What is scalability? How does it relate to clustering?

ANSWER: The ability for a computer to increase workload as the number of processors increases is known as
scalability, and most computers, regardless of the operating system used, do not scale well when there
are more than 32 processors. As a result of this limitation, many people in the supercomputing
community cluster several smaller computers together to work as one large computer. This approach
results in much better scalability; 64 computers with one processor each working toward a common goal
can handle close to 64 times as much as a single processor.

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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

33. Describe what a fully qualified domain name (FQDN) is, and how it is used, then detail how IP addresses are related
to FQDNs.​
ANSWER: Servers on the Internet are identified by names, which are known as fully qualified domain names
(FQDNs). When using a web browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape to request information
from a Web server,​ the FQDN is typically used. These FQDNs exist only for the convenience of the
human beings who use computer networks. Computers themselves rely on IP addresses. A browser gets
the IP address associated with a FQDN by contacting a Domain Name System (DNS) server, which
maintains a list of the proper FQDN to IP mappings.

34. Describe the differences between Mail Transfer Agents (MTAs), Mail Delivery Agents (MDAs), and Mail User
Agents (MUAs).​ Provide examples of each.
ANSWER: E­mail is distributed via a network of e­mail servers, also known as Mail Transfer Agents (MTAs). ​
Many MTAs are freely available for Linux, including sendmail, postfix, smail,and exim. Before the user
can access his e-mail, it must be downloaded from a MTA; the service that provides this is known as a
Mail Delivery Agent (MDA). Linux also provides several of these services; procmail and fetchmail are
two of the most common. Finally, the user views her e-mail using a program known as a Mail User
Agent (MUA). Common MUAs available for Linux include mutt, pine, printmail, elm, mail, Netscape,
and Eudora.

35. D
​ iscuss the difference between developmental kernels and production kernels, and explain how the minor number is
used to distinguish between the two.
ANSWER: D
​ evelopmental kernels are not fully tested and imply instability; they are tested for vulnerabilities by
people who develop Linux software. Production kernels are developmental kernels that have been
thoroughly tested by several Linux developers and are declared to be stable. The minor number of a
kernel version indicates the stability of the kernel. An odd minor number indicates a developmental
kernel, whereas an even minor number indicates a production kernel.

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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

Matching
Match each correct item with the statement below.​
a. B ​ eowulf clustering b. Closed source software​
c. ​cracker d. d​ istribution
e. flavor f. G ​ NU General Public License (GPL)
g. ​hacker h. k​ ernel
i. n​ ewsgroup j. process
36. A
​  term that refers to the specific type of UNIX operating system. 

ANSWER: e
37. A
​  complete set of operating system software, including the Linux Kernel, supporting function libraries, and a variety
of OSS packages that can be downloaded from the Internet free of charge.
ANSWER: d
38. T
​ he central, core program of the operating system.
ANSWER: h
39. A
​  program loaded into memory and running on the processor performing a specific task.
ANSWER: j
40. A
​  person who explores computer science to gain knowledge.
ANSWER: g
41. T
​ he software whose source code is not freely available from the original author; Windows 98 is an example.
ANSWER: b
42. A
​ n Internet protocol service accessed via an application program called a newsreader.
ANSWER: i
43. A
​  software license, ensuring that the source code for any OSS will remain freely available to anyone who wants to
examine, build on, or improve upon it.
ANSWER: f
44. A
​  popular and widespread method of clustering computers together to perform useful tasks using Linux.
ANSWER: a
45. A person who uses computer software maliciously for personal profit.​
ANSWER: c

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Chapter 01: Introduction to Linux

Multiple Response
46. B
​ ecause Linux has the ability to manage thousands of tasks at the same time, including allowing multiple users to
access the system simultaneously, it is referred to as an operating system that is:
a. m
​ ultiaccess
b. m​ ultilevel
c. m ​ ultiuser
d. m ​ ultitasking

ANSWER: c, d

47. What two options below are examples of common UNIX flavors?​
a. M
​ acintosh OS X
b. R​ ed Hat Linux
c. O ​ penSuSE
d. ​HP­UX

ANSWER: a, d

48. The two different implementations of X Windows are called:​
a. ​KDE
b. X
​ Free86
c. G​ nome
d. X ​ .org

ANSWER: b, d

49. The two main competing GUI environments available in Linux are:​
a. X
​ Free86
b. X​ .org
c. G ​ NU Network Object Model Environment (GNOME)
d. K ​  Desktop Environment (KDE)

ANSWER: c, d

50. W
​ hat two Linux distributions below utilize the Debian package manager by default?
a. R
​ ed Hat Linux
b. S​ USE Linux
c. L ​ inux Mint
d. U ​ buntu Linux

ANSWER: c, d

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