Editing Red Hat Linux (section)

==Features==
Version 3.0.3 was one of the first Linux distributions to support [[Executable and Linkable Format|ELF]] (Executable and Linkable Format) binaries instead of the older [[a.out]] format.<ref>[http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/139 Linux Distributions Compared], Linux Journal, 1996</ref>

Red Hat Linux introduced a graphical installer called [[Anaconda (installer)|Anaconda]] developed by Ketan Bagal, intended to be easy to use for novices, and which has since been adopted by some other Linux distributions. It also introduced a built-in tool called ''Lokkit'' for configuring the [[firewall (networking)|firewall]] capabilities.

In version 6 Red Hat moved to [[GNU C Library|glibc]] 2.1, [[Enhanced GNU Compiler System|egcs-1.2]], and to the 2.2 kernel.<ref name = "smoogespace"/> It was the first version to use the [[GNOME]] as its default graphical environment.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.linuxjournal.com/article/3590 |title=Red Hat Linux 6.0 |last=Kroll |first=Jason |date=September 1, 1999 |publisher=[[Linux Journal]] |access-date=April 14, 2023}}</ref> It also introduced [[Kudzu (computer daemon)|Kudzu]], a software library for automatic discovery and configuration of hardware.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://everything2.com/title/kudzu |title=Various Kudzu facts |publisher=Everything2.com |access-date=2013-05-05}}</ref>

Version 7 was released in preparation for the 2.4 kernel, although the first release still used the stable 2.2 kernel. Glibc was updated to version 2.1.92, which was a beta of the upcoming version 2.2 and Red Hat used a patched version of GCC from CVS that they called "2.96".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://lwn.net/2000/1005/dists.php3 |title=Distributions |publisher=LWN |access-date=2013-05-05}}</ref> The decision to ship an unstable GCC version was due to GCC 2.95's bad performance on non-i386 platforms, especially [[DEC Alpha]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://lwn.net/2000/1005/a/rh-tools.php3 |title=a/rh-tools |publisher=Lwn.net |access-date=2013-05-05}}</ref> Newer GCCs had also improved support for the [[C++]] standard, which caused much of the existing code not to compile.

In particular, the use of a non-released version of GCC caused some criticism, e.g. from [[Linus Torvalds]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2000-12-14-002-21-NW-RH-SW|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191222204453/https://www.linuxtoday.com/developer/2000121400221NWRHSW |archive-date=22 December 2019 |url-status=dead |title=Linus Weighs in on Red Hat 7 Compiler Issues |publisher=Linux Today |access-date=2013-05-05}}</ref> and the GCC Steering Committee;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://gcc.gnu.org/ml/gcc-announce/2000/msg00003.html |title=Gerald Pfeifer - GCC 2.96 |publisher=Gcc.gnu.org |date=2000-10-06 |access-date=2013-05-05}}</ref> Red Hat was forced to defend this decision.<ref>[http://features.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=00/10/12/163218&mode=thread An Open Letter From Bob Young], Slashdot.org, Thu October 12, 2000 12:52 PM</ref>
GCC 2.96 failed to compile the Linux kernel, and some other software used in Red Hat, due to stricter checks. It also had an incompatible C++ [[Application binary interface|ABI]] with other compilers. The distribution included a previous version of GCC for compiling the kernel, called "kgcc".

As of Red Hat Linux 8.0, [[UTF-8]] was enabled as the default [[character encoding]] for the system. This had little effect on [[English Language|English]]-speaking users, but enabled much easier [[Internationalization and localization|internationalisation]] and seamless support for multiple languages, including [[Ideogram|ideographic]], [[bi-directional text|bi-directional]] and [[Complex text layout|complex script]] languages along with [[Languages of Europe|European languages]]. However, this did cause some negative reactions among existing [[Western Europe]]an users, whose legacy [[ISO/IEC 8859|ISO-8859]]–based setups were broken by the change.{{Citation needed|date=February 2008}}

Version 8.0 was also the second to include the [[Bluecurve]] [[Theme (computing)|desktop theme]]. It used a common theme for GNOME-2 and KDE 3.0.2 desktops, as well as OpenOffice-1.0. KDE members did not appreciate the change, claiming that it was not in the best interests of KDE.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2002/09/17/red_hat_nullifies_kde_gnome/ |title=Red Hat nullifies KDE, Gnome |website=The Register |date=2002-09-17 |access-date=2014-02-14}}</ref>

Version 9 supported the [[Native POSIX Thread Library]], which was ported to the 2.4 series kernels by Red Hat.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/linux/RHL-9-Manual/release-notes/x86/ |title=Red Hat Linux 9 Release Notes |publisher=Redhat.com |access-date=2013-05-05}}</ref>

Red Hat Linux lacked many features due to possible [[copyright]] and [[patent]] problems. For example, [[MP3]] support was disabled in both [[Rhythmbox]] and [[XMMS]]; instead, Red Hat recommended using [[Vorbis|Ogg Vorbis]], which has no patents. MP3 support, however, could be installed afterwards, through the use of packages. Support for Microsoft's [[NTFS]] [[file system]] was also missing, but could be freely installed as well.