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MkLinux: The delightfully weird PowerPC Mac Linux Distro of the 1990s
Co-Developed by Apple, with Linux running as a user-mode task. Seriously.
June 01, 2023
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In 1996 -- just two years after Linux, itself, hit version 1.0 -- a version of Red Hat Linux was ported to PowerPC Macintosh computers... by Apple.

Seriously.

The very same Apple that currently opposes people running macOS on any non-sanctioned hardware -- and who fights (rather hard) to keep non-macOS systems from running on Apple hardware -- used to actively help port other systems to the Macintosh computers.  My-oh-my how times have changed.

Known as MkLinux -- short for "Micro-Kernel Linux" -- the development was a joint project between Apple and "The Open Group Research Institute" in France.  And it was a truly fascinating beast... because it wasn't quite your typical "Linux" system.

In fact, MkLinux really consisted of two different kernels:

  1. "Open Group Mach" -- a variation of the Mach microkernel which had been ported to a number of platforms, including: HP PA-RISC, x86, and (of course) PowerPC Macintosh.
  2. "Linux" -- a port of the Linux kernel itself.

What made MkLinux so strange... is that "Open Group Mach" was the lowest level kernel.  It would boot the system and provide a subset of hardware access... then "Linux" would actually be run as a task within "Open Group Mach".

A user mode task, no less!  Yes, in MkLinux... the "Linux" kernel is run as a standard, user-mode application!

Wild!

Over the years, MkLinux gained support for a number of different PowerPC Macintosh models (including some G3-based machines)... and, reportedly, had somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000 total users before eventually being all but abandoned by Apple and moving to become a small, community project.

I have personally run MkLinux on a Power Macintosh 6100 running at 66 Mhz.  Was it a speed demon?  No.  It felt quite a bit more sluggish than MacOS (7.x or 8.0) on the same system.  But, you know what?  It was a surprisingly usable Linux system!  Mostly stable, and fairly high quality!

In order to preserve some of the memory of this marvelously weird Linux "distribution", what follows is a bit of a visual tour of what using MkLinux was like on PowerPC Macs of the 1990s.

The official MkLinux website (note that it was hosted by Apple itself):

0141f1.jpg

As part of the installation process, you would place the Mach Kernel and bootloader into your Mac Extensions folder.

 

The MkLinux boot screen (a MacOS application that launched when your Mac booted... with buttons that let you choose whether to boot Mk Linux or MacOS):

Splash Screen

The MkLinux Installer!  Note this is a slightly modified version of the old Red Hat installer:

Installation Path

What kind of Mouse?  An ADB (Apple Desktop Bus) mouse, naturally!

MouseConfig Screen

Screenshot from a PowerBook 1400cs/133 running a customized MkLinux DR3 (Developer Release 3) installation:

pb1400cs-mklinux-080119-03-gif.814865

Another screenshot of MkLinux DR3:

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You can find an archive of the very first release of MkLinux on Archive.org, and a great deal of in-depth details at MkLinux.org.  Unfortunately, that site hasn't been udpated since 2009.  Just the same, the information is historically fascinating.

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Be sure to subscribe here at Lunduke.Locals.com to get all shows & articles (including interviews with other amazing nerds).

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Lunduke's Week in Tech - Sep 13, 2025
Open Source Leftists Celebrate Murder, Censor Conservatives, and say "Free Software is White Supremacy".

So many stories this week about Leftist Activists, within Open Source and Big Tech, going absolutely insane.

From celebrating the murder of Charlie Kirk to censoring Conservatives and even equating Free and Open Source Software with White Supremacy. And there’s more.

What’s truly crazy to me, is that most of these cases of Leftist insanity are from leaders within Open Source. These are the people running projects and representing companies.

Seriously. It’s wild.

Here are the stories of the week, presented in reverse chronological order.

All of these links are to Substack (where you can watch the video or listen to the audio podcast) — but all of these stories are available for free on every platform which The Lunduke Journal publishes to. Use whichever platform works for you.

Only The Lunduke Journal Told These Stories

This week I am reminded why The Lunduke Journal is important.

Over the last 7 days, we published 13 stories.

Of those 13 stories only 2 were covered by any other Tech News outlet. Two.

And, in both of those 2 stories, The Lunduke Journal is the only Tech News outlet that covered them accurately — and without a pro-Big-Tech, Left Wing bias.

If we didn’t exist, the other 11 stories wouldn’t get told at all. How crazy is that?

Thankfully the stories are spreading — with people seeing them over 9 million times last month alone.

If you want to be part of making The Lunduke Journal possible, consider becoming a subscriber. Lots of options, big and small. And all go directly towards daily operations.

Might I make a suggestion?

The Lifetime Subscription (which counts towards both Substack and Locals — and last for life) is a marvelous, one time, way to show support. And it comes with all of the perks (access to the Locals community as well as the official Lunduke Journal forum, & DRM-free eBooks).

You can snag a Lifetime Subscription via Locals, Substack, or with Bitcoin.

But, heck, any type of subscription (via any platform) is appreciated! Choose whichever works best for you!

Then be sure to go to Lunduke.com and choose the platforms which are the most convenient for you to use — The Lunduke Journal publishes all over the Inter-Tubes!

And, once again, thank you to every subscriber. This work is only possible because of you. You rule.

-Lunduke

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September 11, 2025
Keep The Lunduke Journal Free!

So far, in 2025, The Lunduke Journal has published 246 shows — being the only Tech News outlet covering the vast majority of those stories.

All without even the slightest influence from Big Tech. No sponsorships, no ad reads, not a penny taken from any company.

And every single story — every article, podcast, & video — is free to share far and wide.

In order for The Lunduke Journal to continue doing this unique work — to keep the lights on well into the future — we need your help.

If you haven’t yet become a subscriber to The Lunduke Journal, doing so today makes a big impact. Pick one of the options below. Big or small. Monthly, Yearly, or Lifetime subscriptions — or even simply one-time donations — all make a huge difference.

Support The Lunduke Journal

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Pay Once, For Life (Locals & Substack)

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You Make The Lunduke Journal Possible

Seriously. This is all possible because of you.

We are able to make all of this free to share with the world because of you.

Might I make a suggestion?

The Lifetime Subscription (which counts towards both Substack and Locals) is a marvelous, one time, way to show support. And it comes with all of the perks (access to the Locals community as well as the official Lunduke Journal forum, & DRM-free eBooks).

You can snag a Lifetime Subscription via Locals, Substack, or with Bitcoin. Lots of options.

But, heck, any type of subscription (via any platform) is appreciated! Choose whichever works best for you!

Then be sure to go to Lunduke.com and choose the platforms which are the most convenient for you to use — The Lunduke Journal publishes all over!

And, once again, thank you for making The Lunduke Journal possible.

-Lunduke

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September 08, 2025
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Lunduke Journal hit 9 million views in August
And still not taking a single penny from Big Tech.

Thanks to all of you, August was a truly spectacular month for The Lunduke Journal.

After everything was tallied up — audio podcast downloads, video views, and article views — all of you viewed (or listened to) my work over 9 million times last month.

I’m not sure if that’s a record or not — I’ll need to go over some of the past stats to be sure — but it definitely makes me smile.

It means that the real Tech News — the stories that most Tech Journalists refuse to tell — is getting out there. In a big way. No matter how much Big Tech wants some of these stories to go away.

Stats for August

Here’s some Lunduke Journal stats (because stats are fun):

  • 238 shows, so far, in 2025 (Jan 1st → Sep 8th, nearly one show per day).

  • Over 9 million views (or listens) during the last month (August) alone.

  • 131,817 free subscribers (not including audio podcast feeds).

  • 4,488 new free subscribers on the primary platforms.

  • $0.00 (zero) taken from any corporation (no sponsorships, no ad campaigns… not a penny).

9 Million “views”. In one month. Hot diggity!

You better believe I’ll be keeping a close eye on the stats this month to see if we get close to 10 Million. Because 10 Million is a nice, big round number.

And big, round numbers are fun.

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One other thing I wanted to mention: I’m hoping to do away with sales and discounts on Lunduke Journal subscriptions. Which means no sales during this month (September).

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The Lunduke Journal is unique in taking zero money from any company (while giving away nearly everything for free). Most Tech News outlets struggle to keep the lights on even with running paid ads (and paid articles) nearly non-stop.

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With that in mind, if you appreciate The Lunduke Journal, consider grabbing a subscription. Big or small (and via any platform), every subscription and donation goes directly to making this work possible.

Once again, a huge thank you for every subscription and donation.

Truly, The Lunduke Journal would not be possible without all of you.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have another show to record… which is probably going to make another Tech company very grumpy.

I love my job.

-Lunduke

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