Tux (mascot)

{{Short description|Mascot of Linux}} </noinclude> {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}} {{More citations needed|date=September 2025}} {{Infobox character | name = Tux | series = | franchise = Linux | multiple = | image = Tux.svg | image_size = 265px | alt = | caption = Tux, here in a vector image conversion but originally drawn as a raster image by Larry Ewing in 1996 | first_major = | first_minor = | first_issue = | first_date = May 9, 1996 | last_major = | last_minor = | last_issue = | last_date = | first = | firstgame = | last = | creator = Larry Ewing | based_on = | adapted_by = | designer = | portrayer = | voice = | motion_actor = | lbl1 = | data1 = | lbl2 = | data2 = | lbl3 = | data3 = | lbl4 = | data4 = | lbl5 = | data5 = | noinfo = | info-hdr = | full_name = | nickname = | nicknames = Linux | alias = | aliases = | species = Penguin | race = | gender = | title = | occupation = | position = | class = | affiliation = | alignment = | fighting_style = | weapon = | family = | spouse = | spouses = | significant_other = | significant_others = | children = | relatives = | religion = | origin = | home = | nationality = | lbl21 = | data21 = | lbl22 = | data22 = | lbl23 = | data23 = | lbl24 = | data24 = | lbl25 = | data25 = | extra-hdr = | lbl31 = | data31 = | lbl32 = | data32 = | lbl33 = | data33 = | lbl34 = | data34 = | lbl35 = | data35 = }} '''Tux''' is a penguin character and the official mascot of the Linux kernel.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20040401161253/http://www.linux.org/info/logos.html Linux Logos and brand characters]. linux.org</ref> Originally created as an entry to a Linux logo competition, Tux is the most commonly used icon for Linux, although different Linux distributions depict Tux in various styles. The character is used in many other Linux programs and as a general symbol of Linux.

==History== The concept of the Linux brand character being a penguin came from Linus Torvalds, the creator of Linux. According to Jeff Ayers, Linus Torvalds had a "fixation for flightless, fat waterfowl" and Torvalds claims to have contracted "penguinitis" after being nibbled by a little penguin on a visit to the National Zoo & Aquarium in Canberra, Australia,<ref>{{cite web |title="Tux" the Aussie Penguin |url=http://www.linux.org.au/linux/tux |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060507115127/http://www.linux.org.au/linux/tux  |archive-date=7 May 2006 |access-date=25 June 2006 |publisher=Linux Australia}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Delio |first=Michelle |date=13 March 2001 |title=The Story Behind Tux the Penguin |language=en-US |magazine=Wired |url=https://www.wired.com/2001/03/the-story-behind-tux-the-penguin/ |url-status=live |access-date=22 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221217232554/https://www.wired.com/2001/03/the-story-behind-tux-the-penguin/ |archive-date=17 December 2022 |issn=1059-1028}}</ref> in 1993.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Warum ist das Linux-Logo ein Pinguin? Die Geschichte hinter Tux |url=https://linux-de.com/?p=14246 |access-date=8 December 2025 |website=linux-de.com |language=de}}</ref>

Linus spoke at the 1994 AUUG Conference (5–9 Sept, Melbourne)<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zju3xMaLsGcC&dq=%22AUUG+conference%22+linus&pg=PA9 |title=Linux Kernel Implementation |first=Linus|last=Torvalds |date=15 March 1994 |access-date=9 July 2022}}</ref> as part of a "World Tour" to Belgium, Australia, Singapore and elsewhere, mentioning in ''Linux Journal'' he was bitten by a penguin at Canberra Zoo, not at Phillip Island, Victoria, by a (shy) wild penguin.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Frazier |first=Belinda |date=1 January 1995 |title=A Conversation with Linus Torvalds |url=https://www.linuxjournal.com/article/36 |url-status=live |magazine=Linux Journal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230107195239/https://www.linuxjournal.com/article/36 |archive-date=7 January 2023 |access-date=23 January 2023}}</ref>

In an interview Linus commented on the penguin bite:<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Buchanan |first=James |date=22 August 2007 |title=Linus Torvalds talks future of Linux (page 3) |url=http://apcmag.com/linus_torvalds_talks_future_of_linux_page_3.htm |url-status=dead |magazine=APC Magazine |page= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180613091007/http://www.apcmag.com/linus_torvalds_talks_future_of_linux_page_3.htm/ |archive-date=13 June 2018}}</ref> {{blockquote |I've been to Australia several times, these days mostly for Linux.Conf.Au. But my first trip—and the one when I was bitten by a ferocious fairy penguin: you really should keep those things locked up!—was in 93 or so, talking about Linux for the Australian Unix Users Group. }} At Canberra zoo, a sign said in 2009 that staff believed the "original Tux" was still resident in the penguin enclosure.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Story Behind Tux |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TheStoryBehindTux.jpg |website=Wikimedia Commons |access-date=20 September 2019 |date=23 February 2009}}</ref>

Apart from this, in the book ''Just for Fun: The Story of an Accidental Revolutionary'', there is an excerpt dedicated to how Tux became the mascot of the Linux kernel. In the book, Linus says he does not remember how Tux became the mascot, but believes the zoo story, which, according to his wife, Tove Torvalds, is probably right. {{blockquote |The story, according to Linus, is that while Tove may in fact have vaguely mentioned penguins at some early stage, it was in a conversation with two high-ranking Linux types that the icy creatures were first seriously considered as the operating system's official mascot. }}

In 1996, after an initial design suggestion made by Alan Cox,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cox |first=Alan |date=2 May 1996 |title=Linux-Kernel Archive: Re: Linux logo |url=https://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9605/0237.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230122184252/https://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9605/0237.html |archive-date=22 January 2023 |access-date=22 January 2023 |website=lkml.iu.edu}}</ref> an image Torvalds found on an FTP site,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Torvalds |first=Linus |date=5 May 1996 |title=LKML: Linus Torvalds: Re: Linux logo |url=https://lkml.org/lkml/1996/5/6/44 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230122184539/https://lkml.org/lkml/1996/5/6/44 |archive-date=22 January 2023 |access-date=22 January 2023 |website=lkml.org}}</ref> showed a penguin figurine depicted in a similar style to the ''Creature Comforts'' characters created by Nick Park, the concept for Tux was further refined by Torvalds on the Linux kernel mailing list.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Torvalds |first=Linus |date=9 May 1996 |title=Linux-Kernel Archive: Re: Linux Logo prototype. |url=https://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9605/0855.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230122184856/https://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9605/0855.html |archive-date=22 January 2023 |access-date=22 January 2023 |website=lkml.iu.edu}}</ref> thumb|upright|left|Linus Torvalds' "favourite penguin picture", used as inspiration for Tux Torvalds was looking for something fun and sympathetic to associate with Linux, and he felt that a slightly fat penguin sitting down after having eaten a great meal perfectly fit the bill.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.linux.org/info/penguin.html |title=Why a Penguin? |publisher=Linux Online |access-date=19 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100815081131/http://www.linux.org/info/penguin.html |archive-date= 15 August 2010}}</ref>

The final and original design was a submission for a Linux logo contest by Larry Ewing<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.isc.tamu.edu/~lewing/linux/notes.html |title=Notes on creation |author=Larry Ewing |access-date=31 July 2007 |archive-date=22 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222192138/http://isc.tamu.edu/~lewing/linux/notes.html |url-status=live }}</ref>{{irrelevant citation|date=April 2024|reason=Citation is on how the design was created, not on how it was made as a submission.}} using the first publicly released<ref>{{cite book |last= Bunks |first= Carey |title= Grokking the GIMP |year= 2000 |publisher= New Riders |isbn= 0-7357-0924-6 |url= https://archive.org/details/grokkinggimp00care |url-access= registration }}</ref> version (0.54) of GIMP, a free software graphics package. It was released by him under the following condition:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.isc.tamu.edu/~lewing/linux/|title=Linux 2.0 Penguins|author=Larry Ewing|access-date=25 June 2006|archive-date=21 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080521142553/http://www.isc.tamu.edu/~lewing/linux/|url-status=live}}</ref> {{blockquote |Permission to use and/or modify this image is granted provided you acknowledge me lewing@isc.tamu.edu and The GIMP if someone asks. }} Since Tux won none of the three competitions that were held, Tux is formally known as the Linux ''brand character'' and not the ''logo''.<ref>[http://www.sjbaker.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_History_of_Tux_the_Linux_Penguin The History of Tux the Linux Penguin] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180912164545/https://www.sjbaker.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_History_of_Tux_the_Linux_Penguin |date=12 September 2018 }}. Sjbaker.org. Retrieved 4 July 2013.</ref>

The first person to call the penguin "Tux" was James Hughes, who said that it stood for "(T)orvalds (U)ni(X)".<ref>[http://www.ussg.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9606.1/0175.html Re: Let's name the penguin! (was: Re: Linux 2.0 really _is_ released..)]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070701044314/http://www.ussg.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9606.1/0175.html |date=1 July 2007}}. Ussg.iu.edu (10 June 1996). Retrieved 4 July 2013.</ref> However, ''tux'' is also an abbreviation of tuxedo, the outfit which bears resemblance in appearance to a penguin.

===Tuz 2009=== thumb|Tuz, the Tasmanian devil (2009) Tuz, a Tasmanian devil wearing a fake penguin beak, was the brand character of the 2009 linux.conf.au conference. It has been chosen by Linus Torvalds as the logo for version 2.6.29 of the Linux kernel<ref>[https://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git;a=commit;h=8032b526d1a3bd91ad633dd3a3b5fdbc47ad54f1 Linus' git commit from Rusty Russell]. Git.kernel.org. Retrieved 4 July 2013.</ref> to support the effort to save the Tasmanian devil species from extinction<ref>{{cite web |url=https://lwn.net/Articles/323966/ |title=The kernel gets a new logo |website=LWN.net |date=17 March 2009 |access-date=4 July 2013 |author=corbet |archive-date=15 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015163739/https://lwn.net/Articles/323966/ |url-status=live }}</ref> due to the devil facial tumour disease.

The image was designed by Andrew McGown and recreated as an SVG using Inkscape by Josh Bush,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://itwire.com/opinion-and-analysis-sp-481/open-sauce/one-bush-who-has-designs-on-lca2009.html |title=One Bush who has designs on LCA2009 |website=iTWire |date=30 December 2008 |access-date=4 July 2013 |first1=Sam |last1=Varghese}}</ref> and released under the CC BY-SA license.<ref>[https://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git;a=blob;f=Documentation/logo.txt;h=a2e62445e28ee523c02f5f93f80c06a431e369e3;hb=8032b526d1a3bd91ad633dd3a3b5fdbc47ad54f1 file Documentation/logo.txt from Linux kernel source code]. Git.kernel.org. Retrieved 4 July 2013.</ref>

===Linux for Workgroups 2013=== thumb|Tux logo in the "Linux for Workgroups" release (2013) For the Linux 3.11-rc1 release, Linus Torvalds changed the code name from "Unicycling Gorilla" to "Linux for Workgroups" and modified the logo that some systems display when booting to depict a Tux holding a flag with a symbol that is reminiscent of the logo of Windows for Workgroups 3.11, which was released in 1993.<ref name=Linux4WorkGroups>[http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/Linux-for-Workgroups-Linux-3-11-s-feature-set-now-confirmed-1917712.html Linux for Workgroups] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180714205538/http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/Linux-for-Workgroups-Linux-3-11-s-feature-set-now-confirmed-1917712.html |date=14 July 2018 }}, The H Open, 15 July 2013.</ref>

==Uses and reception== In some Linux distributions, for example Gentoo,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic-t-689963-start-0.html |title=Gentoo Forums :: View topic – Tux at top of screen during boot? |publisher=Forums.gentoo.org |access-date=25 March 2014}}</ref> Tux greets the user during booting with multi-processor systems displaying multiple images of Tux, one for each processor core.{{Citation needed|date=November 2013}}

===Video games=== Tux has taken on a role in the Linux community similar to that which Mario holds in the Nintendo community.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.linuxfocus.org/English/January2001/article189.shtml|website=Linux Focus|title=Game Review – Tux Racer|date=2001-01-27|access-date=2023-06-30|quote=''There are a lot of games for Linux in which Tux plays the role of the hero. Whether he is equipped with different kinds of weapon systems, seated in a kart, fighting the Evil Empire (located in the north-west of the U.S.), solving riddles or challenging quests (either alone or with helping friends), he is always quite busy in order to entertain the Linux community.''}}</ref> The character has been featured in open-source look-alikes of other mainstream games, such as ''Tux Racer'', ''Extreme Tux Racer'', ''SuperTux'', ''SuperTuxKart'', and ''Tux Paint''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.macrumors.com/2001/04/25/tux-for-os-x/|website=MacRumours|title=Tux for OS X!|date=2001-04-25|first=Blake|last=Patterson|access-date=2023-04-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://tux4ubuntu.org/tux-games/|title=TUX Games|website=Tux4Ubuntu|first=Josef|last=Norlin|date=2018-10-09|access-date=2023-04-09}}{{Dead link|date=May 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref>

==== ''Team Fortress 2'' ==== Tux appears as a cosmetic item in the game ''Team Fortress 2'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tux - Official TF2 Wiki {{!}} Official Team Fortress Wiki |url=https://wiki.teamfortress.com/wiki/Tux |access-date=2024-06-29 |website=wiki.teamfortress.com |language=en}}</ref> following the release of the Linux version of the game and the Steam client.<ref>{{Cite web |title=News - Steam for Linux Now Available |url=https://store.steampowered.com/oldnews/9943 |access-date=2024-06-29 |website=store.steampowered.com |language=en}}</ref> It was obtainable by launching the game on any Linux distribution, from February 14 to March 1, 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Team Fortress 2 Welcomes Linux |url=https://www.teamfortress.com/linux/ |access-date=2024-06-29 |website=www.teamfortress.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Team Fortress 2 |url=https://www.teamfortress.com/post.php?id=9955 |access-date=2024-06-29 |website=www.teamfortress.com}}</ref>

====Female Tux versions in video games==== Some games that star Tux also include explicitly female penguin characters, allowing the players to play as one of those characters instead of Tux. One such female penguin is Tux's friend "Gown". Gown is variously depicted as being a pink version of Tux (''XTux'') or as having a somewhat less fat appearance and wearing items of clothing such as a red and white short skirt and a hair bow (e.g. ''TuxKart'' and ''A Quest for Herring'').{{Citation needed|date=November 2013}}

In ''SuperTux'' and ''SuperTuxKart'', there is a different female penguin called "Penny" who is purple and white (''SuperTuxKart'' once had Gown and still has a map called "Gown's Bow"). In the arcade game ''Tux 2'' there is a female penguin called "Trixi", and in ''FreeCiv'' the female leader name for the Antarctican civilization is "Tuxette".{{Citation needed|date=November 2013}}

===Tux in popular culture===  * In the comics ''Hellblazer'', in issue #234 "Joyride, part 1", a Tux plush toy makes an appearance, set on the side of the road where a little girl was killed in a hit-and-run incident. * Tux appeared as a character during one arc in the webcomic ''User Friendly''.

===Other uses=== * In 1999, Corel Linux Deluxe included a free Linux Penguin (Tux) toy.<ref>Corel Linux OS Deluxe, Corel Corporation, 1999.</ref> * Introduced in 2001, there was a Linux-based web server named TUX, which was deprecated around 2006. * In 2006, Tux had an uncredited use in the ''Al Gore's Penguin Army'' video. * In 2007, Tux was used by the German cutlery producer WMF in the ''Sealion'' set for children.<ref name="tuxbesteck">{{cite web|url=https://www.linux-community.de/Internal/Nachrichten/Tux-Besteck-von-WMF |title=Tux-Besteck von WMF |first=Max Jonas |last=Werner |date=15 January 2007 |access-date=23 September 2012 |publisher=linux-community.de |language=de}}</ref> * In 2008, Tux has also been made as a virtual pet under the name Tux Droid by Kysoh for Linux and Windows, has many features including reading tweets from Twitter and checking the weather. * Since 2009, TuxGuitar, a free guitar tab reading/editing program, features Tux holding a guitar as its brand character.<ref>[https://tuxguitar.herac.com.ar/ The website of TuxGuitar]. Tuxguitar.herac.com.ar. Retrieved 4 July 2013.</ref> * In 2010, a prototype of a Tux monument with wings was presented in the Russian city of Tyumen by the local Linux user community.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110722172609/http://lazarenko.me/news/linux-monument-unveiled The first Linux monument in history unveiled in Russia] on lazarenko.me (archived)</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110511125301/http://www.tumix.ru/info/news/?news=12058736 Тюменские пользователи Linux собираются поставить памятник пингвину] on www.tumix.ru (2010)</ref> * The avatar of Electronica artist Ephixa is based on Tux (around 2011). * In April 2016, Tux was adapted to a designer toy called a Gwin and was distributed by October Toys.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.octobertoys.com/|title=October Toys|website=octobertoys.com}}</ref> The toy was redesigned by different artists and sold in short collectible runs through the October Toys website and other collectable vinyl toy sites. October Toys has since ceased operations.

==Variations of Tux== <gallery> File:Tux.png|Tux – The original, created by Larry Ewing File:Tux.svg|Vectorized version File:Tux-simple.svg|Alternate version created by Larry Ewing, vectorized File:TuxFlat.svg|Simplified version File:Tux Mono.svg|Simplified black and white version File:NewTux.svg|Glossy version File:Crystal128-penguin.svg|Everaldo Coelho's interpretation of Tux, designed for the Crystal icon set in KDE 3 File:Pax tux.png|A version of Tux designed by [https://moolok.com moolok.com] for use by the PaX team File:Tux the Linux Penguin (with headband, bandolier, and rifle).jpg|Tux with a headband, bandolier, and rifle File:Gaming Tux.png|Tux sitting with a gamepad File:Tux Enhanced.svg|Enhanced Tux with a modern look File:Slackware-mascot.svg|Slackware version of Tux, with pipe File:Tux Redesign.svg|A redesigned minimal version File:Tuxgaucho.svg|Tux in gaucho (Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil) attire, known as "Tux Gaudério" is the Tchelinux mascot. File:Trixie.png|Trixi, the female version of the Linux penguin featured in Tux Racer </gallery>

==See also== {{Portal|Free and open-source software}} * List of computing mascots * BSD Daemon, the mascot of various BSD releases * Glenda, the Plan 9 Bunny, the mascot of Plan 9 from Bell Labs * Kiki the Cyber Squirrel, the mascot of Krita * Konqi, the mascot of KDE * Mozilla (mascot), the mascot of Mozilla Foundation * Puffy (mascot), the mascot of OpenBSD * Tux Droid * Wilber (mascot), the mascot of GIMP

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * {{Commons category-inline}}

Category:Anthropomorphic penguins Category:Computing mascots Category:Finnish mascots Category:Free software culture and documents Category:Linus Torvalds Category:Linux kernel Category:Linux Category:Mascots introduced in 1996 Category:Penguin mascots