SearchEnterpriseLinux: Tux Taking Off in Pop Culture

“‘OK, so we should be thinking of a lovable, cuddly, stuffed
penguin sitting down after having gorged itself on herring.’ When
he made this suggestion on the Linux Kernel Mailing List in 1996,
Linux creator Linus Torvalds sealed his fate as a life-long second
banana.

“Sure, Torvalds is the ueber-guru of Linux, but you don’t see
his face on T-shirts or mugs or see him depicted in video games.
His effigy doesn’t dangle from the earlobes of pretty girls or sit
on Linuxphiles’ desks around the world. No, it’s Tux the Linux
penguin that’s hot, not Linus, and it’s Tux’s image that pops up in
fun places all over the Internet.

“Besides being cute as all get-out, Tux the penguin is probably
the most-famous computer-related mascot in the world. Powering his
fame is the characteristic he shares with the Linux kernel itself:
he’s free. Tux’s creator/illustrator, Larry Ewing, encourages
people to ‘do as you see fit with the images…'”

Complete Story