i had heard that linux is open source.....which meant that i could edit it.
so how do i start out? i've already downloaded it. the name's "puppy linux".....someone please reply quick!!!

and by the way, may i know what shell scripting is?

Please read
The Free Software Definition - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)

For information of what is a shell script
The Free Software Definition - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation (FSF)

Good luck

dude i visited the link.....but i still didnt understand where to find the linux system files.....

Please read up on

• Open source
• Open source software
• Linux kernel

before moving to such advanced topics like C programming, GCC, system calls, assembler and kernel hacking.

Also, it might be a good idea to get some experience in using a Linux system before starting to modify it's source.

well, i read up on it and thnx 4 the links.....they were quite useful!!!


but i still don't get it. how do i edit linux if i don't know where the system file is located? or is it that i have to compile my own version of linux to do that. if its like that, then why would they call it open source? open source means it code is editable right?

In a nutshell:

• Open Source means that you can get the source and modify it if you wish. But to run it you have to compile those changes
• The Linux kernel always has to be compiled to run, since it's the operating system itself and thus can't be interpreted like a shell script.
• The Linux kernel is usually located in /boot/, look for a file called vmlinuz* or similar
• Other system files, like libraries and essential executables are located in /sbin, /bin, /lib and /usr/lib. This include the glibc and alike
• The Kernel source can be installed through your distributions source package, or you can download it from kernel.org

Again, if you want to start Kernel hacking, start by installing a distribution, getting used to it, move on to the command line and it's tools, so that you get a feeling for what the kernel does and how changes could affect it's behavior.
If you want a fast dive straight into it, start with Gentoo or Slackware, and later use that to build a LFS system.