Solaris facts for kids
| Company / developer | Oracle Corporation |
|---|---|
| Programmed in | C |
| OS family | Unix |
| Working state | Current |
| Source model | Mixed open source / closed source |
| Initial release | June 1992 |
| Latest stable release | 11.1 / October 26, 2012 |
| Marketing target | Workstation, Server |
| Available language(s) | English |
| Available programming languages(s) | C |
| Supported platforms | SPARC, IA-32, x86-64, PowerPC (Solaris 2.5.1 only) |
| Kernel type | Monolithic |
| Default user interface | OpenSolaris Desktop or CDE or GNOME |
| License | Various |
| Official website | Oracle Solaris |
| Desktop OS market share as of November, 2012 |
|---|
| Microsoft Windows - 82% |
| Mac OS X and Mac OS - 6% |
| iOS - 6% |
| Android - 3% |
| Java ME - 1% |
| Linux - 1% |
| Other - 0% |
Solaris is a special kind of computer program called an operating system. Think of an operating system as the main software that makes your computer work. It helps all the other programs run. Solaris was first made by a company called Sun Microsystems in 1992.
It was designed to run on powerful computers called workstations. But it can also be used on many modern personal computers today. Before 1992, Solaris was known by a different name: SunOS.
Solaris is a type of UNIX operating system. UNIX is a family of operating systems known for being very stable and powerful. In 2010, Solaris was one of the most important commercial UNIX versions. Other well-known ones include HP-UX and AIX.
Solaris is based on an older system called UNIX System V. With version 10, released in 2009, much of Solaris became open source. This means its code was made public, and anyone could see or change it. This open-source version was called OpenSolaris.
In 2010, Oracle Corporation bought Sun Microsystems. Oracle continued to develop Solaris. However, they stopped working on OpenSolaris. Later, OpenSolaris led to new projects like the illumos kernel and the OpenIndiana operating system.
Solaris is often used in powerful servers. These are computers that store information and help the Internet work. It's also used on some workstations and by people who write computer programs. It has special features that make it good for programming in languages like Java.
See also
- In Spanish: Solaris para niños
