Linux (commonly , also ) is a computer operating system which is based on free and open source software. Although many different varieties of Linux exist, all are Unix-like and based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel created in 1992 by Linus Torvalds.

Linux can be installed on a wide variety of computer hardware, ranging from mobile phones, tablet computers, routers and video game consoles, to desktop computers, mainframes and supercomputers. Linux is a leading server operating system, and runs the 10 fastest supercomputers in the world.

The development of Linux is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software collaboration; typically all the underlying source code can be used, freely modified, and redistributed, both commercially and non-commercially, by anyone under licenses such as the GNU General Public License. Typically Linux is packaged in a format known as a ''Linux distribution'' for desktop and server use. Some popular mainstream Linux distributions include Debian (and its derivatives such as Ubuntu), Fedora and openSUSE. Linux distributions include the Linux kernel, supporting utilities and libraries and usually a large amount of application software to fulfill the distribution's intended use.

A distribution oriented toward desktop use may include the X Window System, the GNOME and KDE Plasma desktop environments. Other distributions may include a less resource intensive desktop such as LXDE or Xfce for use on older or less-powerful computers. A distribution intended to run as a server may omit any graphical environment from the standard install and instead include other software such as the Apache HTTP Server and a SSH server like OpenSSH. Because Linux is freely redistributable, it is possible for anyone to create a distribution for any intended use. Commonly used applications with desktop Linux systems include the Mozilla Firefox web browser, the OpenOffice.org or LibreOffice office application suites, and the GIMP image editor.

The name "Linux" comes from the Linux kernel, originally written in 1991 by Linus Torvalds. The main supporting user space system tools and libraries from the GNU Project (announced in 1983 by Richard Stallman) are the basis for the Free Software Foundation's preferred name ''GNU/Linux''.

History

Unix

The Unix operating system was conceived and implemented in 1969 at AT&T;'s Bell Laboratories in the United States by Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna. It was first released in 1971 and was initially entirely written in assembly language, a common practice at the time. Later, in a key pioneering approach in 1973, Unix was re-written in the programming language C by Dennis Ritchie (with exceptions to the kernel and I/O). The availability of an operating system written in a high-level language allowed easier portability to different computer platforms. With a legal glitch forcing AT&T; to license the operating system's source code to anyone who asked, Unix quickly grew and became widely adopted by academic institutions and businesses. In 1984, AT&T; divested itself of Bell Labs. Free of the legal glitch requiring free licensing, Bell Labs began selling Unix as a proprietary product.

GNU

The GNU Project, started in 1983 by Richard Stallman, had the goal of creating a "complete Unix-compatible software system" composed entirely of free software. Work began in 1984. Later, in 1985, Stallman started the Free Software Foundation and wrote the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL) in 1989. By the early 1990s, many of the programs required in an operating system (such as libraries, compilers, text editors, a Unix shell, and a windowing system) were completed, although low-level elements such as device drivers, daemons, and the kernel were stalled and incomplete. Linus Torvalds has said that if the GNU kernel had been available at the time (1991), he would not have decided to write his own.

BSD

Although not released until 1992 due to legal complications, development of 386BSD, from which NetBSD and FreeBSD descended, predated that of Linux. Linus Torvalds has said that if 386BSD had been available at the time, he probably would not have created Linux.

MINIX

MINIX is an inexpensive minimal Unix-like operating system, designed for education in computer science, written by Andrew S. Tanenbaum. Starting with version 3, MINIX was free and redesigned for “serious” use.

In 1991 while attending the University of Helsinki, Torvalds, curious about the operating systems and frustrated by the licensing of MINIX limiting it to educational use only (which prevented any commercial use), began to work on his own operating system which eventually became the Linux kernel.

Torvalds began the development of the Linux kernel on MINIX, and applications written for MINIX were also used on Linux. Later Linux matured and it became possible for Linux to be developed under itself. Also GNU applications replaced all MINIX ones, because with code from the GNU system freely available, it was advantageous if this could be used with the fledgling operating system. Code licensed under the GNU GPL can be used in other projects, so long as they also are released under the same or a compatible license. In order to make Linux available for commercial use, Torvalds initiated a switch from his original license (which prohibited commercial redistribution) to the GNU GPL. Developers worked to integrate GNU components with Linux to make a fully functional and free operating system.

Commercial and popular uptake

Today, Linux distributions are used in every domain, from embedded systems to supercomputers, and have secured a place in server installations often using the popular LAMP application stack. Use of Linux distributions in home and enterprise desktops has been growing. They have also gained popularity with various local and national governments. The federal government of Brazil is well known for its support for Linux. News of the Russian military creating its own Linux distribution has also surfaced, and has come to fruition as the G.H.ost Project. The Indian state of Kerala has gone to the extent of mandating that all state high schools run Linux on their computers. China uses Linux exclusively as the operating system for its Loongson processor family to achieve technology independence. In Spain some regions have developed their own Linux distributions, which are widely used in education and official institutions, like gnuLinEx in Extremadura and Guadalinex in Andalusia. Portugal is also using its own Linux distribution Caixa Mágica, used in the Magalhães netbook and the e-escola government program. France and Germany have also taken steps toward the adoption of Linux.

Linux distributions have also become popular in the netbook market, with many devices such as the ASUS Eee PC and Acer Aspire One shipping with customized Linux distributions installed.

Current development

Torvalds continues to direct the development of the kernel. Stallman heads the Free Software Foundation, which in turn supports the GNU components. Finally, individuals and corporations develop third-party non-GNU components. These third-party components comprise a vast body of work and may include both kernel modules and user applications and libraries. Linux vendors and communities combine and distribute the kernel, GNU components, and non-GNU components, with additional package management software in the form of Linux distributions.

Design

A Linux-based system is a modular Unix-like operating system. It derives much of its basic design from principles established in Unix during the 1970s and 1980s. Such a system uses a monolithic kernel, the Linux kernel, which handles process control, networking, and peripheral and file system access. Device drivers are either integrated directly with the kernel or added as modules loaded while the system is running.

Separate projects that interface with the kernel provide much of the system's higher-level functionality. The GNU userland is an important part of most Linux-based systems, providing the most common implementation of the C library, a popular shell, and many of the common Unix tools which carry out many basic operating system tasks. The graphical user interface (or GUI) used by most Linux systems is built on top of an implementation of the X Window System.

User interface

Users operate a Linux-based system through a command line interface (CLI), a graphical user interface (GUI), or through controls attached to the associated hardware, which is common for embedded systems. For desktop systems, the default mode is usually a graphical user interface, by which the CLI is available through terminal emulator windows or on a separate virtual console. Most low-level Linux components, including the GNU userland, use the CLI exclusively. The CLI is particularly suited for automation of repetitive or delayed tasks, and provides very simple inter-process communication. A graphical terminal emulator program is often used to access the CLI from a Linux desktop. A Linux system typically implements a CLI by a shell, which is also the traditional way of interacting with a Unix system. A Linux distribution specialized for servers may use the CLI as its only interface.

On desktop systems, the most popular user interfaces are the extensive desktop environments KDE Plasma Desktop, GNOME, and Xfce, though a variety of additional user interfaces exist. Most popular user interfaces are based on the X Window System, often simply called "X". It provides network transparency and permits a graphical application running on one system to be displayed on another where a user may interact with the application.

Other GUIs may be classified as simple X window managers, such as FVWM, Enlightenment, and Window Maker, which provide a minimalist functionality with respect to the desktop environments. A window manager provides a means to control the placement and appearance of individual application windows, and interacts with the X Window System. The desktop environments include window managers as part of their standard installations (Metacity for GNOME, Kwin for KDE, Xfwm for Xfce as of 2010) although users may choose to use a different window manager if preferred.

Development

The primary difference between Linux and many other popular contemporary operating systems is that the Linux kernel and other components are free and open source software. Linux is not the only such operating system, although it is by far the most widely used. Some free and open source software licenses are based on the principle of copyleft, a kind of reciprocity: any work derived from a copyleft piece of software must also be copyleft itself. The most common free software license, the GNU GPL, is a form of copyleft, and is used for the Linux kernel and many of the components from the GNU project.

Linux based distributions are intended by developers for interoperability with other operating systems and established computing standards. Linux systems adhere to POSIX, SUS, ISO, and ANSI standards where possible, although to date only one Linux distribution has been POSIX.1 certified, Linux-FT.

Free software projects, although developed in a collaborative fashion, are often produced independently of each other. The fact that the software licenses explicitly permit redistribution, however, provides a basis for larger scale projects that collect the software produced by stand-alone projects and make it available all at once in the form of a Linux distribution.

A Linux distribution, commonly called a "distro", is a project that manages a remote collection of system software and application software packages available for download and installation through a network connection. This allows the user to adapt the operating system to his/her specific needs. Distributions are maintained by individuals, loose-knit teams, volunteer organizations, and commercial entities. A distribution is responsible for the default configuration of the installed Linux kernel, general system security, and more generally integration of the different software packages into a coherent whole. Distributions typically use a package manager such as dpkg, Synaptic, YAST, or Portage to install, remove and update all of a system's software from one central location.

Community

A distribution is largely driven by its developer and user communities. Some vendors develop and fund their distributions on a volunteer basis, Debian being a well-known example. Others maintain a community version of their commercial distributions, as Red Hat does with Fedora and Novell does with openSUSE.

In many cities and regions, local associations known as Linux User Groups (LUGs) seek to promote their preferred distribution and by extension free software. They hold meetings and provide free demonstrations, training, technical support, and operating system installation to new users. Many Internet communities also provide support to Linux users and developers. Most distributions and free software / open source projects have IRC chatrooms or newsgroups. Online forums are another means for support, with notable examples being LinuxQuestions.org and the various distribution specific support and community forums, such as ones for Ubuntu, Fedora, and Gentoo. Linux distributions host mailing lists; commonly there will be a specific topic such as usage or development for a given list.

There are several technology websites with a Linux focus. Print magazines on Linux often include cover disks including software or even complete Linux distributions.

Although Linux distributions are generally available without charge, several large corporations sell, support, and contribute to the development of the components of the system and of free software. An analysis of the Linux kernel showed 75 percent of the code from December 2008 to January 2010 was developed by programmers working for corporations, leaving about 18 percent to the traditional, open source community. Some of the major corporations that contribute include Dell, IBM, HP, Oracle, Sun Microsystems (now part of Oracle), Novell, and Nokia. A number of corporations, notably Red Hat and Novell, have built a significant business around Linux distributions.

The free software licenses, on which the various software packages of a distribution built on the Linux kernel are based, explicitly accommodate and encourage commercialization; the relationship between a Linux distribution as a whole and individual vendors may be seen as symbiotic. One common business model of commercial suppliers is charging for support, especially for business users. A number of companies also offer a specialized business version of their distribution, which adds proprietary support packages and tools to administer higher numbers of installations or to simplify administrative tasks.

Another business model is to give away the software in order to sell hardware. This used to be the norm in the computer industry, with operating systems such as CP/M, Apple DOS and versions of Mac OS prior to 7.5 freely copyable (but not modifiable). As computer hardware standardized throughout the 1980s, it became more difficult for hardware manufacturers to profit from this tactic, as the OS would run on any manufacturer's computer that shared the same architecture.

Programming on Linux

Linux distributions support dozens of programming languages. The most common collection of utilities for building both Linux applications and operating system programs is found within the GNU toolchain, which includes the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC) and the GNU build system. Amongst others, GCC provides compilers for Ada, C, C++, Java, and Fortran. Proprietary compilers for Linux include the Intel C++ Compiler, Sun Studio, and IBM XL C/C++ Compiler. BASIC in the form of Visual Basic is supported in such forms as Gambas, FreeBASIC, and XBasic.

Most distributions also include support for PHP, Perl, Ruby, Python and other dynamic languages. While not as common, Linux also supports C# (via Mono), Vala, and Scheme. A number of Java Virtual Machines and development kits run on Linux, including the original Sun Microsystems JVM (HotSpot), and IBM's J2SE RE, as well as many open-source projects like Kaffe and JikesRVM.

The two main frameworks for developing graphical applications are those of GNOME and KDE. These projects are based on the GTK+ and Qt widget toolkits, respectively, which can also be used independently of the larger framework. Both support a wide variety of languages. There are a number of Integrated development environments available including Anjuta, Code::Blocks, CodeLite, Eclipse, Geany, ActiveState Komodo, KDevelop, Lazarus, MonoDevelop, NetBeans, Qt Creator and Omnis Studio, while the long-established editors Vim and Emacs remain popular.

Uses

As well as those designed for general purpose use on desktops and servers, distributions may be specialized for different purposes including: computer architecture support, embedded systems, stability, security, localization to a specific region or language, targeting of specific user groups, support for real-time applications, or commitment to a given desktop environment. Furthermore, some distributions deliberately include only free software. Currently, over three hundred distributions are actively developed, with about a dozen distributions being most popular for general-purpose use.

Linux is a widely ported operating system kernel. The Linux kernel runs on a highly diverse range of computer architectures: in the hand-held ARM-based iPAQ and the mainframe IBM System z9, System z10; in devices ranging from mobile phones to supercomputers. Specialized distributions exist for less mainstream architectures. The ELKS kernel fork can run on Intel 8086 or Intel 80286 16-bit microprocessors, while the µClinux kernel fork may run on systems without a memory management unit. The kernel also runs on architectures that were only ever intended to use a manufacturer-created operating system, such as Macintosh computers (with both PowerPC and Intel processors), PDAs, video game consoles, portable music players, and mobile phones.

There are several industry associations and hardware conferences devoted to maintaining and improving support for diverse hardware under Linux, such as FreedomHEC.

Desktop

The popularity of Linux on standard desktop computers and laptops has been increasing over the years. Currently most distributions include a graphical user environment, with the two most popular environments being GNOME (which can utilize additional shells such as the default GNOME Shell, the Ubuntu Unity), and the KDE Plasma Desktop.

The performance of Linux on the desktop has been a controversial topic; for example in 2007 Con Kolivas accused the Linux community of favoring performance on servers. He quit Linux kernel development because he was frustrated with this lack of focus on the desktop, and then gave a "tell all" interview on the topic. Since then a significant amount of development has been undertaken in an effort to improve the desktop experience. Projects such as Upstart aim for a faster boot time.

Many popular applications are available for a wide variety of operating systems. For example Mozilla Firefox, OpenOffice.org and Blender have downloadable versions for all major operating systems. Furthermore, some applications were initially developed for Linux, such as Pidgin, and GIMP, and were ported to other operating systems including Windows and Mac OS X due to their popularity. In addition, a growing number of proprietary desktop applications are also supported on Linux; see List of proprietary software for Linux. In the field of animation and visual effects, most high end software, such as AutoDesk Maya, Softimage XSI and Apple Shake, is available for Linux, Windows and/or Mac OS X. There are also several companies that have ported their own or other companies' games to Linux.

Many types of applications available for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X are also available for Linux. Commonly, either a free software application will exist which does the functions of an application found on another operating system, or that application will have a version that works on Linux, such as with Skype and some video games. Furthermore, the Wine project provides a Windows compatibility layer to run unmodified Windows applications on Linux. CrossOver is a proprietary solution based on the open source Wine project that supports running Windows versions of Microsoft Office, Intuit applications such as Quicken and QuickBooks, Adobe Photoshop versions through CS2, and many popular games such as ''World of Warcraft'' and ''Team Fortress 2''. In other cases, where there is no Linux port of some software in areas such as desktop publishing and professional audio, there is equivalent software available on Linux.

The collaborative nature of free software development allows distributed teams to perform language localization of some Linux distributions for use in locales where localizing proprietary systems would not be cost-effective. For example the Sinhalese language version of the Knoppix distribution was available significantly before Microsoft Windows XP was translated to Sinhalese. In this case the Lanka Linux User Group played a major part in developing the localized system by combining the knowledge of university professors, linguists, and local developers.

Installing, updating and removing software in Linux is typically done through the use of package managers such as the Synaptic Package Manager, PackageKit, and Yum Extender. While most major Linux distributions have extensive repositories, often containing tens of thousands of packages, not all the software that can run on Linux is available from the official repositories. Alternatively, users can install packages from unofficial repositories, download pre-compiled packages directly from websites, or compile the source code by themselves. All these methods come with different degrees of difficulty; compiling the source code is in general considered a challenging process for new Linux users, but it's hardly needed in modern distributions and is not a method specific to Linux.

Servers, mainframes and supercomputers

Linux distributions have long been used as server operating systems, and have risen to prominence in that area; Netcraft reported in September 2006 that eight of the ten most reliable internet hosting companies ran Linux distributions on their web servers. Since June 2008, Linux distributions represented five of the top ten, FreeBSD three of ten, and Microsoft two of ten; since February 2010, Linux distributions represented six of the top ten, FreeBSD two of ten, and Microsoft one of ten.

Linux distributions are the cornerstone of the LAMP server-software combination (Linux, Apache, MySQL, Perl/PHP/Python) which has achieved popularity among developers, and which is one of the more common platforms for website hosting.

Linux distributions have become increasingly popular on mainframes in the last decade due to pricing, compared to other mainframe operating systems. In December 2009, computer giant IBM reported that it would predominantly market and sell mainframe-based Enterprise Linux Server.

Linux distributions are also commonly used as operating systems for supercomputers: , out of the top 500 systems, 459 (91.8%) run a Linux distribution. Linux was also selected as the operating system for the world's most powerful supercomputer, IBM's Sequoia which will become operational in 2011.

Embedded devices

Due to its low cost and ease of customization, Linux is often used in embedded systems. Android—based on a modified version of the Linux kernel—has become a major competitor of Nokia's older Symbian OS, found in many smartphones. During the third quarter of 2010, 25.5% of smartphones sold worldwide used Android (with all Linux variants forming 27.6% of the total during that time). Cell phones and PDAs running Linux on open-source platforms became more common from 2007; examples include the Nokia N810, Openmoko's Neo1973, and the Motorola ROKR E8. Continuing the trend, Palm (later acquired by HP) produced a new Linux-derived operating system, webOS, which is built into its new line of Palm Pre smartphones. The popular TiVo digital video recorder also uses a customized Linux, as do several network firewalls and routers from such makers as Cisco/Linksys. The Korg OASYS, the Korg KRONOS, the Yamaha Yamaha Motif XS/Motif XF music workstations, Yamaha S90XS/S70XS, Yamaha MOX6/MOX8 synthesizers, Yamaha Motif-Rack XS tone generator module, and Roland RD-700GX digital piano also run Linux. Linux is also used in stage lighting control systems, such as the WholeHogIII console.

Market share and uptake

Many quantitative studies of free / open source software focus on topics including market share and reliability, with numerous studies specifically examining Linux. The Linux market is growing rapidly, and the revenue of servers, desktops, and packaged software running Linux was expected to exceed $35.7 billion by 2008.

IDC's Q1 2007 report indicated that Linux held 12.7% of the overall server market at that time. This estimate was based on the number of Linux servers sold by various companies, and did not include server hardware purchased separately which had Linux installed on it later. In September 2008 Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer admitted that 60% of web-servers run Linux versus 40% that run Windows Server.

Primarily based on web server statistics, various companies estimated that the desktop market share of Linux range from less than 1% to 4.8%. In comparison, Microsoft operating systems hold more than 85%.

Analysts and proponents attribute the relative success of Linux to its security, reliability, low cost, and freedom from vendor lock-in.

The Wine compatibility layer allows users to run many programs designed for Windows under Linux. About half of Wine's code has been contributed by volunteers and half sponsored by commercial interests including CodeWeavers, which produces a commercial version of the software. Since 2009, Google has also provided funding to the Wine project.

The XO laptop project of One Laptop Per Child is creating a new and potentially much larger Linux community which is planned to reach millions of schoolchildren and their families in the developing world. Major supporters of the project include Google, Red Hat, and eBay. Although the XO will have a Windows option, it will be primarily deployed with Fedora Linux while using Sugar as the desktop environment.

For years Linux has been the platform of choice in the film industry. The first major film produced on Linux servers was 1997's Titanic. Since then major studios including Dreamworks Animation, Pixar, Weta Digital, and Industrial Light & Magic have migrated to Linux. According to the Linux Movies Group, more than 95% of the servers and desktops at large animation and visual effects companies use Linux.

Copyright and naming

Linux and most GNU software are licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL). The GPL requires that anyone who distributes Linux must make the source code (and any modifications) available to the recipient under the same terms. Other key components of a software system may use other licenses; many libraries use the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL), a more permissive variant of the GPL, and the X.org implementation of the X Window System uses the MIT License.

Torvalds states that the Linux kernel will not move from version 2 of the GPL to version 3. He specifically dislikes some provisions in the new license which prohibit the use of the software in digital rights management, and it would also be impractical to obtain permission from all the copyright holders, who number in the thousands.

A 2001 study of Red Hat Linux 7.1 found that this distribution contained 30 million source lines of code. Using the Constructive Cost Model, the study estimated that this distribution required about eight thousand man-years of development time. According to the study, if all this software had been developed by conventional proprietary means, it would have cost about $|0}} ( US dollars) to develop in the United States.

Most of the code (71%) was written in the C programming language, but many other languages were used, including C++, assembly language, Perl, Python, Fortran, and various shell scripting languages. Slightly over half of all lines of code were licensed under the GPL. The Linux kernel itself was 2.4 million lines of code, or 8% of the total.

In a later study, the same analysis was performed for Debian GNU/Linux version 4.0 (etch, which was released in 2007). This distribution contained close to 283 million source lines of code, and the study estimated that it would have required about seventy three thousand man-years and cost US$|0}} (in dollars) to develop by conventional means.

In the United States, the name ''Linux'' is a trademark registered to Linus Torvalds. Initially, nobody registered it, but on 15 August 1994, William R. Della Croce, Jr. filed for the trademark ''Linux'', and then demanded royalties from Linux distributors. In 1996, Torvalds and some affected organizations sued him to have the trademark assigned to Torvalds, and in 1997 the case was settled. The licensing of the trademark has since been handled by the Linux Mark Institute. Torvalds has stated that he trademarked the name only to prevent someone else from using it. LMI originally charged a nominal sublicensing fee for use of the Linux name as part of trademarks, but later changed this in favor of offering a free, perpetual worldwide sublicense.

GNU/Linux

The Free Software Foundation views Linux distributions that use GNU software as GNU variants and they ask that such operating systems be referred to as ''GNU/Linux'' or ''a Linux-based GNU system''. The media and common usage, however, refers to this family of operating systems simply as ''Linux'', as do many large Linux distributions (e.g. SUSE Linux or Mandriva Linux). Some distributions, notably those based on Debian, use ''GNU/Linux''. The naming issue remains controversial.

See also

List of Linux distributions

Comparison of Linux distributions

Comparison of open source and closed source

Comparison of operating systems

Comparison of Windows and Linux

Linux Documentation Project

Linux Mark Institute

Linux.com

List of operating systems

Usage share of operating systems

9885 Linux

References

External links

Graphical map of GNU/Linux OS Internals

Linux kernel website and archives

Linux.org

Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:1991 software Category:Computing platforms Category:Cross-platform software

ace:Linux af:Linux als:Linux am:ሊኑክስ ar:لينكس an:Linux as:লীনাক্স ast:Linux az:Linux bn:লিনাক্স zh-min-nan:Linux be:Linux be-x-old:Linux bar:Linux bs:Linux br:Linux bg:Линукс ca:GNU/Linux ceb:Linux cs:Linux co:Linux cy:Linux da:Linux de:Linux et:Linux el:Linux es:GNU/Linux eo:Linukso eu:Linux fa:لینوکس fr:Linux ga:Linux gl:Linux ko:리눅스 hy:Լինուքս hi:लिनक्स hsb:Linux hr:Linux io:Linux ilo:GNU/Linux id:Linux ia:Linux os:Линукс is:GNU/Linux it:Linux he:לינוקס jv:Linux kn:ಲಿನಕ್ಸ್ ka:ლინუქსი csb:Linux kk:Linux ht:Linux ku:Linux lo:ລິນຸກຊ໌ la:Linux lv:Linux lb:Linux lt:Linux li:Linux jbo:linuks lmo:Linux hu:Linux mk:Линукс mg:Linux ml:ഗ്നു/ലിനക്സ് mr:लिनक्स arz:لينكس ms:Linux mn:Линукс my:လင်းနပ်စ် nl:Linux ne:लिनक्स new:लाइनक्स ja:Linux no:GNU/Linux nn:Linux oc:Linux uz:GNU/Linux km:លីនុច nds:Linux pl:Linux pt:Linux kaa:Linux ksh:Linux (Bedriefsystem) ro:GNU/Linux qu:Linux rue:Лінукс ru:Linux sah:Linux sc:Linux stq:Linux sq:Linux scn:Linux simple:Linux sk:Linux sl:Linux szl:Linux so:Linux ckb:گنو/لینوکس sr:Линукс sh:Linux fi:Linux sv:Linux tl:Linux ta:க்னூ/லினக்சு tt:Linux te:లినక్సు th:ลินุกซ์ tr:Linux udm:Linux bug:Linux uk:Linux ur:لینکس vec:Linux vi:Linux fiu-vro:Linux wa:Linux war:Linux wo:Linux yi:לינוקס zh-yue:Linux zea:Linux bat-smg:Linux zh:Linux

name	Qi Lu
birth date	August 30, 2009
birth place	China
occupation	President, Online Services Division at Microsoft
website	}}

Lu Qi (), more commonly known as Qi Lu in English (pronounced "chee loo"), is currently an executive at Microsoft working on the Bing search engine. Lu formerly worked as technology developer and manager for Yahoo!'s technology search division.

Lu faced and overcame difficulty and challenge from a young age. Facing persecution during China's Cultural Revolution, his parents sent him from their Shanghai home to live with his grandfather in a tiny town in Jiangsu province, five hours away. Lu did not have access to electricity or plumbing, and was so poor that meat was a once-a-year luxury. His first two choices to escape poverty were closed off: His slight build left him short of government weight mandates for coveted shipbuilding jobs, and his eyesight was too poor to pass requirements for becoming a physicist.

Lu studied at Fudan University in Shanghai, China. He was assigned to a $10 a month teaching job in Shanghai after earning his master's degree. After a weekend rainstorm prevented his weekly bike ride home to see his parents, he was in his dorm room when a student pleaded with him to attend a poorly attended talk by Carnegie Mellon professor Edmund M. Clarke. Clarke was impressed with Lu's questions, and invited him to apply for a PhD at Carnegie Mellon. Clarke even offered to waive the $45 application fee that Lu says he could never have come up with. In 1996, Lu graduated with a PhD in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon.

Lu, aged 47 in August, 2009, worked first in one of IBM's research labs 1996-98, then joined Yahoo!, eventually rising to manage 3,000 engineers and the development of search and search advertising technologies for the company. Lu's departure from Yahoo! in mid-2008 was long-planned, and he was contemplating opportunities in venture capital and even thinking of returning to China. However, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer personally recruited him to join the software giant. After joining Microsoft, Lu along with Satya Nadella was instrumental in driving the partnership with Yahoo! in search and the launch of Bing. While Google is still expected to have double the market share of the newly combined Microsoft/Yahoo! search function, the overall Yahoo!/Bing initiative represents a substantial and expanded challenge to the market leader.

References

External Links

interview with Tim O'Reilly

New York Times interview

Press release on joining Microsoft

Article on initial direction at Microsoft

Qi voted number 10 in Fast Company top 100 innovators

Twitter stream

Category:Living people Category:Microsoft employees Category:Yahoo! employees Category:IBM employees Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

pt:Qi Lu zh:陸奇

Name	Jet Li
Tradchinesename	李連杰
Simpchinesename	李连杰
Pinyinchinesename	Lǐ Liánjié
Jyutpingchinesename	Lei5 Lin4 Git6
Ancestry	Beijing, China
Birth date	April 26, 1963
Birth place	Beijing, China
Othername	Lee Yeung Chung /Li Yangzhong李陽中 (Traditional)李阳中 (Simplified)Lǐ Yángzhōng (Mandarin)Lei5 Joeng4 Zung1 (Cantonese) (Chinese producer pseudonym)
Occupation	ActorMartial artistFilm producer
Yearsactive	1982–present
Religion	Buddhist
Spouse	Huang Qiuyan (1987–1990)Nina Li Chi (1999–present)
Hongkongfilmwards	Best Actor2008 ''The Warlords''
Goldenhorseawards	Special Award1995
Hkfcsawards	Best Actor2006 ''Fearless''
Awards	Shanghai Film Critics Awards2008 Best Actor (''The Warlords'')
Website	www.jetli.com }}

Li Lianjie (; born April 26, 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese martial artist, actor, film producer, wushu champion, and international film star who was born in Beijing, and has taken up Singaporean citizenship in 2009.

After three years of intensive training with Wu Bin, Li won his first national championship for the Beijing Wushu Team. After retiring from wushu at age 17, he went on to win great acclaim in China as an actor making his debut with the film ''Shaolin Temple'' (1982). He went on to star in many critically acclaimed martial arts epic films, most notably the ''Once Upon A Time In China'' series, in which he portrayed folk hero Wong Fei-hung.

Li's first role in a Hollywood film was as a villain in ''Lethal Weapon 4'' (1998), but his first Hollywood film leading role was in ''Romeo Must Die'' (2000). He has gone on to star in many Hollywood action films, most recently co-starring in The ''Expendables'' (2010) with ''Sylvester Stallone'', in ''The Forbidden Kingdom'' (2008) with Jackie Chan, and as the title character villain in ''The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor'' (2008) opposite Brendan Fraser. He also appeared in the Hong Kong film ''Ocean Heaven'' (2010), directed and written by Xue Xiaolu.

Early life and martial arts career

}}

Li Lianjie was born in Beijing, People's Republic of China, the youngest of two boys and two girls. His father died when he was two years old, leaving the family struggling.

Li was eight when his talent for wushu was noticed at a summer course at school, and he began his practice there. Li participated in the sport of wushu in the non-sparring event. He began his wushu on the Beijing Wushu Team, an athletic group organized to perform martial arts forms during the All China Games. He was coached by renowned wushu coaches Li Junfeng and Wu Bin, who made extra efforts to help the talented boy develop. Wu Bin even bought food for Li's family because they could not afford to buy meat, which was essential for the good physical condition of an athlete. As a member of the team, he received wushu training and went on to win fifteen gold medals and one silver medal in Chinese wushu championships, where, despite his young age, he competed against adults. According to Li, once, as a child, when the Chinese National Wushu Team went to perform for President Richard Nixon in the United States, he was asked by Nixon to be his personal bodyguard. Li replied, "I don't want to protect any individual. When I grow up, I want to defend my one billion Chinese countrymen!" which earned him much respect in his homeland.

Li is a master of several styles of wushu, especially Changquan (Northern Longfist Style) and Fanziquan (Tumbling fist). He has also studied other arts including Baguazhang (Eight trigram palm), Taijiquan (Supreme ultimate fist), Xingyiquan (Shape intent fist), Zuiquan (Drunken fist), Yingzhaoquan (Eagle claw fist) and Tanglangquan (Praying mantis fist). He did not learn Nanquan (Southern fist), because his training focused only in the Northern Shaolin Styles. He has also studied some of wushu's main weapons, such Sanjiegun (Three section staff), Gun (staff), Dao (Broadsword), Jian (Straight sword) and many more.

It is Jet Li's authentic martial arts prowess that enabled his rise to domestic and international fame.

Acting career

Chinese films

The fame gained by his sports winnings led to a career as a martial arts film star, beginning in mainland China and then continuing into Hong Kong. Li acquired his screen name in 1982 in the Philippines when a publicity company thought his real name was too hard to pronounce. They likened his career to an aircraft, which likewise "takes-off" as quickly, so they placed the name Jet Li on the movie posters. Soon everybody was calling him by this new name, which was also based on the nickname, "Jet," given to him as a young student, due to his speed and grace when training with the Beijing Wushu team. He made his debut with the 1982 film ''Shaolin Temple''. Some of his more famous Chinese films include:

The ''Shaolin Temple'' series (1, 2 and 3), which are considered to be the films which sparked the rebirth of the real Shaolin Temple in Dengfeng, China;

The ''Once Upon a Time in China'' series (Chinese title: ''Wong Fei Hung''), about the legendary Chinese folk hero Master Wong Fei Hung.

''Fist of Legend'' (Chinese title: ''Jing Wu Ying Xiong''), a remake of Bruce Lee's ''Fist of Fury.''

The ''Fong Sai Yuk'' films about another Chinese folk hero.

Li starred in the 1995 film ''High Risk'', where Jet Li plays a Captain who becomes disillusioned after his wife is murdered by crime lords. Along the way, he pairs up with a wacky sell-out actor, Frankie (played by Jacky Cheung), and proceeds to engage in a series of violent battles in a high-rise building. The setting is similar to that of ''Die Hard'' and both their Chinese film titles. This movie is notable in that director Wong Jing had such a terrible experience working with Jackie Chan in Jing's previous film ''City Hunter'' that he chose to make Cheung's character a biting satire of Chan. Jet Li would later publicly apologize to Chan for taking part in it.

Li has two wuxia feature films scheduled for release in 2011, ''The Sorcerer and the White Snake'' and ''The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate'', the latter is helmed by Tsui Hark.

In order to promote tai chi, in 2012 Jet Li will star in a film titled ''Tai Chi'' and will co-produce the movie with Chen Kuo-Fu. Li will portary Tai Chi master Yang Lu-ch'an.

American films

In 1998, he made his American film debut in ''Lethal Weapon 4'' which also marked the first time he had ever played a villain in a film. He agreed to do ''Lethal Weapon 4'' after the producer Joel Silver promised to give him the leading role in his next film, ''Romeo Must Die'' (2000) alongside late singer Aaliyah. The film became a box office hit.

Li turned down Chow Yun-fat's role in ''Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon'' (2000) because he promised his wife that he would not make any films during her pregnancy. He also turned down the role of Seraph in ''The Matrix'' trilogy, based on his belief that the role was not one which required his skills and that the films were iconic and stunning enough without adding his name to the cast list.

In 2001, he appeared in two more Hollywood films: ''The One'' which was the first of his films with Jason Statham and ''Kiss of the Dragon'' opposite Bridget Fonda which did moderately well at the box office. In July 2001, Li agreed to produce and star in an action film with Jackie Chan which was to be released in 2002 or 2003, but no further news of their collaboration surfaced until 2006. In 2002, the period martial arts epic film ''Hero'' was released in the Chinese market. This film was both a commercial and critical success and became the highest-grossing motion picture in Chinese film history at the time. In 2003 he reunited with producer Joel Silver for the action thriller film ''Cradle 2 The Grave'' where he starred alongside rapper DMX and fellow martial artist Mark Dacascos. In 2004, Li lent his likeness, voice and provided motion capture work for the video game ''Jet Li: Rise to Honor''.

Li took on a more serious role in the 2005 film, ''Unleashed'' (a.k.a. ''Danny the Dog''), where he portrayed an adult with the mentality of a child who has been raised like an animal. Although his martial arts skills were utilized extensively, it was a somber film with more depth than had been previously seen in Li's films, and co-starred dramatic actors Bob Hoskins and Morgan Freeman.

In 2006, the martial arts film epic ''Fearless'', was released worldwide. Although he will continue to make martial arts films, ''Fearless'' is his last wushu epic. In ''Fearless'', he played Huo Yuanjia, the real-life founder of Chin Woo Athletic Association, who reportedly defeated foreign boxers and Japanese martial artists in publicized events at a time when China's power was seen as eroding. Together with the film ''Fist of Legend'', Li has portrayed both Chen Jun, the student and avenger of Huo Yuanjia (aka Fok Yun Gap), as well as Huo Yuanjia himself. ''Fearless'' was released on January 26, 2006 in Hong Kong, followed by a September 22, 2006 release in the United States where it reached second place in its first weekend.

Li has stated in an interview with the ''Shenzhen Daily'' newspaper that this will be his last martial arts epic, which is also stated in the film's television promotions. However, he plans to continue his film career in other genres. Specifically, he plans to continue acting in action and martial arts films; epic films deal more with religious and philosophical issues.

Li's 2007 Hollywood film, ''War'', was released in August of that year, and re-teamed him with actor Jason Statham, who previously starred with him in ''The One'', and action choreographer Corey Yuen. ''War'' raked in a disappointing $23 million at the box office, becoming one of Li's lowest grossers in America; however, it was a hit on video, accumulating nearly $52 million in rental revenue, more than doubling its box office take. With the exception of ''Romeo Must Die'' and the worldwide release of ''Hero'', most of Li's American films have been only modest hits like ''Kiss Of The Dragon'', ''The One'', ''Unleashed'', ''Cradle 2 the Grave'', and the worldwide release of ''Fearless''. }} In late 2007, Li returned again to China to participate in the China/Hong Kong co-production of the period war film ''The Warlords'' with Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro. This film with its focus on dramatics rather than martial arts netted Li the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor.

Li and fellow martial arts veteran Jackie Chan finally appeared together onscreen for the first time in ''The Forbidden Kingdom'', which began filming in May 2007 and was released to critical and commercial success on April 18, 2008. The film was based on the legend of the Monkey King from the Chinese folk novel ''Journey to the West''. Li also starred as the lead villain in the fantasy action film ''The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor'' with actors Brendan Fraser, Isabella Leong and Michelle Yeoh.

After a one-year hiatus from filmmaking, Jet Li returned to acting in 2009, portraying a mercenary in the film ''The Expendables'', teaming up with action stars Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Mickey Rourke, Eric Roberts, Steve Austin, Terry Crews, and Randy Couture. It was the third time he had teamed up with Statham.

Personal life

Li is a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism. His master is Lho Kunsang of the Drikung Kagyu lineage of the Kagyu school.

In 1987, Li married Beijing Wushu Team member and ''Kids from Shaolin'' co-star Huang Qiuyan, with whom he has two daughters, Si and Taimi. They divorced in 1990. Since 1999, he has been married to Nina Li Chi (born Li Zhi), a Shanghai-born, Hong Kong-based actress. He has two daughters with her as well, Jane (born 2000) and Jada (born 2002).

Li was in the Maldives when a tsunami hit during the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. Although it was widely reported at the time that he had died during the disaster, he only suffered a minor foot injury, caused by a piece of floating furniture, while he was guiding his 4-year-old daughter Jane and the nanny holding his 1-year-old daughter Jada to safety. The four of them were by the pool and slightly above the beach when the wave came ashore.

In 2009, Li, who previously had American citizenship, after years working in the United States, was thought to have renounced his American citizenship and taken up Singaporean citizenship, although no official confirmation has been provided by Singapore authorities. On July 28, 2009, the chairman of One Foundation (the Charity fund of Jet Li) announced that Jet Li had indeed become a Singaporean citizen. He was said to have chosen Singapore for its education system for his two daughters.

In 2009 Li launched his own fitness program that he named "Wuji". The programme consists of elements of martial arts, yoga and pilates and Adidas launched a special clothing line for it that bears the initials of "JL".

In his free time he likes to play badminton, table tennis, volleyball, ride his bicycle, read and meditate. He collects rare Tibetan beads. He says he is never bored in his free time.

Views on life and martial arts

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Li as a Buddhist believes that the difficulties of everyday life can be overcome with the help of religious philosophies. He thinks that fame is not something he can control; therefore, he does not care about it.

According to Li, everything he has ever wanted to tell the world can be found in three of his films: the message of ''Hero'' is that the suffering of one person can never be as significant as the suffering of a nation; ''Unleashed'' shows that violence is never a solution and ''Fearless'' tells that the biggest enemy of a person is himself. Li thinks that the greatest weapon is a smile and the largest power is love.

About Wushu Li said that he believes the essence of martial arts is not power or speed but inner harmony and considers it a sad development that today's Wushu championships place greater emphasis on form than on the essence of being a martial artist. He believes Wushu now lacks individuality and competitors move like machines, whereas according to his views Wushu should not be considered a race where the fastest athlete wins. He would like to see Wushu as a form of art, where artists have a distinctive style. Li blames the new competition rules that, according to him, place limitations on martial artists.

Li believes that Wushu is not primarily for self-defense and instead of trying to play the hero people should think about peaceful resolutions of conflicts and call the police if necessary: "A gun outdoes years of martial arts training in a split second. Like I've said many times before, it is important to differentiate between movies and reality. The hero in movies may be able to knock the gun off his opponent and save the day, but in real life – probably that is not the case." He has also stated that he has never had to use his martial arts skills in a real life fight and he does not wish to, either.

Philanthropy

Li has been a "philanthropic ambassador" of the Red Cross Society of China since January 2006. He contributed 500,000 yuan (US$62,500) of box office revenues from his film ''Fearless'' to the Red Cross' psychological sunshine project, which promotes mental health.

In April 2007, touched by his life-shaking experience in the Maldives when he was close to dying during the 2004 tsunami, Li formed his own non-profit foundation called The One Foundation. The One Foundation supports international disaster relief efforts in conjunction with the Red Cross as well as other efforts, including mental health awareness and suicide prevention. Since the starting of the foundation, Li has been involved with recovery efforts in seven disasters, including the 2008 Sichuan earthquake and Typhoon Morakot in Taiwan. Wu Jing was a One Foundation volunteer and help in the effort.

Li discussed his commitment to philanthropy in an interview with the December 2009 issue of Alliance magazine, stating that "grassroots Non-government-organizations can help the government in its blind spots. Government relief is not always detail-oriented. Grassroots NGOs can’t be as big as a government effort, but they need to be flexible and independent."

In September 2010, Jet Li was appointed by the International Red Cross as the first Good Will Ambassador. He posted online saying "Today I signed a deal with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies – IFRC to become the FIRST goodwill ambassador in the history of this humanitarian organization. I am very honored! At the same time, I will not pause to celebrate, but instead keep pushing forward.. and do my best to help the world! Thank you all once again for your support and belief in me!"

It was also announced that Jet Li would be meeting Bill Gates and Buffet to talk about charity work. "Three days ago, I received an email from Gates, hoping I could make time because he and Buffett hoped I could go for a 30-minute chat before the dinner about the future we face as human beings, so I will go," Li said.

Filmography

Considering US box office statistics, the most successful Jet Li film as of August 2010 is ''Lethal Weapon 4'', which grossed over 130 million dollars domestically, while the second is ''The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor'' with over 102 million dollars. ''Hero'' is the third most successful foreign language film in the US, and one of the best critically acclaimed Li movies. ''Fearless'' is the sixth most successful foreign language film of all times in the US. From a critical point of view, the best acclaimed Li movie is ''Fist of Legend'' (Rotten Tomatoes: 100%) and the worst is ''War'' (Rotten Tomatoes: 12%).

See also

Cinema of China;

Cinema of Hong Kong.

References

Further reading

Ducker, Chris, and Stuart Cutler. ''The HKS Guide to Jet Li''. London: Hong Kong Superstars, 2000.

Marx, Christy. ''Jet Li''. Martial Arts Masters. Rosen Publishing Group, 2002. ISBN 0823935191.

Parish, James Robert. ''Jet Li: A Biography''. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press, 2002. ISBN 1560253762.

Farquhar, M.(2010) ‘Jet Li: "Wushu Master" in Sport and Film’ in Jeffreys, Elaine. & Edwards, Louise (eds.), Celebrity in China, Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong pp. 103–124. ISBN 9622090885

External links

Jet Li's Foundation: The One Foundation Project

Jet Li Biography (HKCinema)

Jet Li Biography (HKFilm)

Jet Li discusses The One Foundation

Interview At FarEastFilms.com

Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:Best Actor HKFA Category:Chinese actors Category:Chinese wushu practitioners Category:Chinese martial artists Category:Hong Kong film actors Category:Hong Kong Buddhists Category:Hong Kong film producers Category:People from Beijing Category:People's Republic of China Buddhists Category:Immigrants to Singapore Category:Singaporean Buddhists Category:Tibetan Buddhists from Singapore

ar:جيت لي ast:Jet Li az:Cet Li bo:ལི་ལན་ཅིའེ། bg:Джет Ли ca:Jet Li cs:Jet Li da:Jet Li de:Jet Li et:Jet Li el:Τζετ Λι es:Jet Li fa:جت لی fr:Jet Li ko:이연걸 hr:Jet Li id:Jet Li it:Jet Li he:ג'ט לי ka:ჯეტ ლი sw:Jet Li lv:Džets Lī hu:Jet Li mn:Жет Ли my:ဂျက်လီ nl:Jet Li ja:ジェット・リー no:Jet Li pl:Jet Li pt:Jet Li ro:Jet Li ru:Ли, Джет sq:Jet Li simple:Jet Li sl:Jet Li sr:Џет Ли sh:Jet Li fi:Jet Li sv:Jet Li ta:யெற் லீ th:หลี่ เหลียนเจี๋ย tr:Jet Li uk:Джет Лі vi:Lý Liên Kiệt zh-yue:李連杰 zh:李连杰

Li Lan (; born July 12, 1961) is a former Chinese handball player. She competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics.

She was a member of the Chinese handball team which won the bronze medal. She played all five matches and scored nine goals.

External links

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Category:1961 births Category:Living people Category:Chinese handball players Category:Handball players at the 1984 Summer Olympics Category:Olympic bronze medalists for China Category:Olympic handball players of China Category:Olympic medalists in handball

da:Li Lan

name	Jolin Tsai
chinesename	蔡依林
pinyinchinesename	Cài Yīlín
origin	Republic of China (Taiwan)
birth date	September 15, 1980
birth place	Sinjhuang City, Taiwan
occupation	Singer, dancer, Actress, Designer, Model, Spokesperson
genre	Mandopop, Dance
instrument	piano
label	Universal Music Taiwan (1998–2001)Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan) (2002–2006)EMI Music Taiwan (2006–2008)Warner Music Taiwan (2008–present)
yearsactive	1998–present
website	Jolin@Warner Music Taiwan
mtvasiaawards	Style Award (2006)
goldenmelodyawards	Best Female Mandarin Artist (2007) ''Dancing Diva''Most Popular Female Artist (2007)
awards	}}

Jolin Tsai () was born on 15 September 1980. She is a Taiwanese Golden Melody Award-winning Mandopop singer, dancer and actor. She is managed by Mars Entertainment Ltd (天熹娛樂).

Career

Tsai's foray into the entertainment industry started with an MTV singing competition. She was signed on by Universal Music and released her first album ''Jolin 1019''. Her second album ''Don't Stop'' was also a success. Tsai's music career came to a halt when conflicts between her and music company surfaced. Tsai signed on with Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan).

Tsai's success as a singer continued with the release of her 3rd album, '''Castle''. Tsai's J1 World Tour included countries across Asia and North America. In that same year, Tsai released ''J-Game'', which sold over 1 million copies in Asia in the span of one month.

In 2006, Tsai left Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan), and joined EMI Music Taiwan's label Capitol Records(Taiwan). Her 8th album, Dancing Diva, proved more successful than the previous albums. Tsai's ''Dancing Forever Tour'' featured a dance performance. The tour spanned across Asia, North America and Australia. In 2005, Tsai won the Golden Melody Award for ''Best Mandarin Female Singer Award'' for her album ''Dancing Forever Tour''

In 2008, Tsai released her first English cover album ''Love Exercise''. The sales for this album was lower than expected due to minimal publicity efforts. Tsai ended her contract with EMI Music Taiwan in 2008.

Tsai re-signed her contract with Warner Music Taiwan and released her 10th album, "Butterfly". "Butterfly" was her most successful album to date.

In 2010, Tsai released Myself. The music video features a style of house dance called Vogue. Tsai's December 2010 'Myself World Tour' sold out quickly. The concert, which features Tsai performing dangerous stunts in mid-air, was choreographed by Benny Ninja.

In 2011, Tsai will continue her world tour in May, which spanned across Asia.

Tsai was named the top 2nd earner among Taiwanese Singers in a 2010 poll, with earnings of US$14.51 million that year.

Early life

Though Tsai was introverted and shy as a child, she intensively studied English during her youth and eventually majored in English Literature at Fu Jen Catholic University. During her childhood years, Tsai developed an interest in singing and experimented with different vocal techniques after listening to the songs of popular female singers such as Teresa Teng and Faye Wong.

Acting career

During the two years she faced conflict with her recording company before signing with Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan), she pursued an acting career. She debuted in a popular soap series called "HI,上班女郎" with actor Show Luo. The series, about a female worker enduring the taboos of dating her own superior in the office, became a huge hit that allowed Tsai's fans to follow her amidst her hold on singing. Since her acting debut, Jolin Tsai continues to pursue her acting career by filming music videos on the side. In an interview, she stated that after her music career is over, she hopes to make movies full time, learn more about filming, and act in movies.

Musical career

Universal Music Taiwan (1998–2001)

Tsai first started out by taking part in an MTV singing competition at the age of 18. She won the top prize at the competition with her rendition of Whitney Houston's #1 hit "Greatest Love of All". She was then signed by Universal Music.

On July 1999, her first single "Living With the World" (和世界做鄰居) was released. It was sold in convenience stores and was a tremendous success, which led to the release of her first album, ''Jolin 1019'', on September 1999. At that time, she was packaged as "The Girl Next Door," and was an instant hit with teenagers, earning her the title "Teenage Boy Killer". ''Jolin 1019'' ended up selling more than 400,000 copies in Asia. With the success of her first album, she released her anticipated second album in May 2000, ''Don't Stop''. Many of the hits from that album were well known throughout Asia and the album was also a tremendous success. She also released her first photobook with pictures mainly taken in Hawaii.

Tsai's image changed for her third album, ''Show Your Love''. Nearing the age of 21, she released an album that was much more mature and soothing. However, the album did not sell as well as her last two albums. Her fourth album, ''Lucky Number'', was not able to bring her back to the same level of popularity either. The following year, due to conflicts with her record company, Tsai did not release any albums. She did, however, release her second photo book, with photos taken in Thailand. At the end of 2001, Tsai's contract with Universal Music ended and her first greatest hits compilation, ''Together'' was released.

Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan) (2002–2006)

Tsai signed with Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan) that year and got the biggest break of her whole career. The first single released was the track "Spirit Of The Knight" (騎士精神), which became a big hit and led to the highly anticipated release of her album ''Magic'' (看我72變). The album turned out to be a smashing success, topping the Taiwan album charts for three full months and selling more than 300,000 copies in Taiwan alone. The album has sold over a million copies in Asia. The album boasted many of her most well-known singles, including the hit dance song that brought Tsai back to the top of the charts "See My 72 Changes" (看我72變), a song which has been suggested to have been named after The Monkey King's 72 transformations. Other songs from the album, such as the extremely popular "Say Love You" (說愛你) and several others, including the hit "Prague Square" (布拉格廣場) were penned by fellow Taiwan mega star Jay Chou (周杰倫). The new image she presented for this album was more playful and sexy than before and her music became more dance-oriented. This transformation gave her what she needed to make a comeback to the music scene after being gone for almost a year.

Tsai's sixth album, ''Castle'' (城堡), was just as popular as its predecessor and became a top album in many Asian countries. Just as with ''Magic'', many songs on this album were written by Chou, her rumored boyfriend at that time. Two of these songs, the cute and playful "It's Love" (就是愛) and the moving rock ballad "Rewind" (倒帶), became two of Tsai's biggest hits. Prior to the album's release, she showcased her single "Pirates" (海盜), another song composed by Chou, at a mini-concert. She subsequently filmed one of the most expensive music videos in Taiwanese history for the song. This album also featured many other hit songs including the main upbeat dance track "36 Tricks of Love" (愛情36計), the sad love ballads "The Smell of Lemon Grass" (檸檬草的味道) and "Disappearing Castle" (消失的城堡), and "Love Love Love" (Love Love Love), a Mandarin cover of the Ukrainian song "Stop Stop Stop" by Nu Virgos. Tsai also wrote the lyrics to the song "The Starter" (始作俑者).

Between ''Castle'' and her next studio album, Tsai released a CD of remixes called ''J9 New + Party Collection''. This remix album featured two new songs including the hit song "Signature Pose" and remixes of Tsai's most popular dance songs. A medley of her dance hits was also included on the album. In 2003, Tsai sang the Mandarin version of "Mirage (Warriors In Peace)", the theme song for the film ''Warriors of Heaven and Earth''.

On April 25, 2005, Tsai seventh album ''J-Game'' was released, also topping charts throughout Asia and raised her popularity in Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, and Singapore. Not only did the album become the longest running album on the Taiwanese album charts in 2005, it also sold over 1 million copies throughout Asia in just a little over a month. The album featured many more hip-hop influenced tracks than before, though it retained the dance pop and love ballads that made her famous. Though she supposedly broke up with Chou around the time the album was recorded, Tsai was able to find many other writers and producers for this album, including another huge pop star, Leehom Wang. One of the songs he penned for Tsai, "Exclusive Myth" (獨佔神話), was included on the album. The first single of the album "Barbaric Game" (野蠻遊戲) was a huge hit across Asia and it was followed by several other strong singles including "The Greek Girl Next To The Wishing Pond" (許願池的希臘少女) (composed by rising Hong Kong singer Ivana Wong), "Sky" (天空), "Repeat Signs" (反覆記號), "I Really Miss You" (好想你) and "Eyes Half Shut" (睜一隻眼 閉一隻眼). The music video of the latter song presented a much sexier image of Tsai than ever seen before. During this time, Tsai also rapped in a duet with fellow artist Show Luo called "真命天子" [Destined Guy], which was featured on his album Hypnosis Show. She also appear with Show in his first solo concert at the Taipei Arena, performing "真命天子" [Destined Guy].

Late in 2005, Tsai released her ''J1 Live Concert DVD'', featuring performances from a concert in Taipei in late 2004. Her hits from her albums ''Magic'' (看我72變) and ''Castle'' were performed. Show Luo made a guest appearance in the performance of "Prove It". The concert also had a guest appearance by Jay Chou, in which he danced together with Tsai, however this portion was not included in the DVD. It was later placed in the DVD for her greatest hits compilation, J-Top.

In early 2006, it was announced that Tsai would be leaving Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan), the record company that helped elevate her to superstar status, and joining Capitol Music Taiwan, which released under the name of EMI Music Taiwan. Since her debut and through her years, Tsai had progressed in becoming an excellent dancer and performer. To prepare for her new album, Tsai worked very hard to perfect her dancing and change up her style yet again. This was evident at the 2006 MTV Asia Awards where she performed her hot new single "Dancing Diva".(舞孃). with elements of yoga and using various props including a ball and a ribbon. She also won the Style Award during the ceremony, demonstrating the influence she has in Asia.

In May 2006, Sony released a greatest hits compilation album called ''J-Top'', which included two CDs and a DVD with new and previously unreleased music videos and a 70 minute documentary on Tsai's time at Sony. The compilation featured many of the best songs from the albums she released under Sony. There were two new songs included on the album, one of which featured a music video where Tsai looks back on all her old music videos.

EMI Music Taiwan's label-Capitol Records (2006–2009)

After the release of ''J-Top'', her first album with EMI Music Taiwan, ''Dancing Diva'' was released on May 12, 2006. This album became Tsai's biggest album yet, selling over 2 million copies in Asia. The album featured some of her most popular and sexiest dance songs ever, including the aforementioned title track "Dancing Diva" (舞孃), "Pulchritude" (玩美), "Mr.Q" (the music video for this song shows a very sexy Tsai getting intimate with Hong Kong pop star Edison Chen), and the bonus track "Attraction of Sexy Lips"(唇唇欲動) (a song she did as part of an endorsement deal with MaxFactor which is almost close to Anita Mui's song "Hot Red Lips"). The album also featured two of the biggest hits in Asia during the year: the fun and upbeat "A Wonder in Madrid" (馬德里不思議)and the touching love ballad "Pretence" (假裝). She collaborated with friend and label-mate Stanley Huang on the song "Nice Guy" (乖乖牌), which he also helped to write. Tsai also had some writing duties on the album, writing the lyrics for the song "The Prologue" (開場白), which many speculate was written about Chou. The album was re-released in July as the "Perfect Celebration Edition" with a DVD featuring music videos of all eleven of the songs on the album. She has done the same thing for ''Magic'', ''Castle'', and ''J-Game'' as well.

During the fall of 2006, Tsai began her Dancing Forever World Tour, performing concerts to sellout crowds in Asia. The huge opening concert in Hong Kong, which took place on her birthday, featured many special guests, including one of Hong Kong's top male artists Eason Chan, Taiwan's rising pop princess Rainie Yang, and Show Luo. Show Luo and Huang also made surprise appearances in other stops of her tour, however, the most shocking moment was when she kissed fellow Taiwanese diva Elva Hsiao on the lips during one of her concerts. Tsai made guest appearances at her friend Stefanie Sun's concerts, while she and popular Singaporean male artist JJ Lin took turns appearing at each other's concerts.

Tsai released another album, ''Dancing Forever'' (唯舞獨尊) in October 2006. It features two CDs and a DVD. The first disc contains all new material, including the title track and theme for her tour: "Dancing Forever". Covers of songs by Chinese divas Sandy Lam and Faye Wong and a duet called "Marry Me Today" (今天你要嫁給我)she recorded with her idol and mentor David Tao, are also included. Furthermore, she experimented with two other dialects — Taiwanese and Cantonese (the Canto version of "Pretence" is on the album). Up to this point, she had only released music in Mandarin and English. The second disc features remixes of three dance hits from ''Dancing Diva'', while the DVD features the LUX sponsored mini-concert she performed in the summer in Kaohsiung. It features Huang and Taiwanese boy band Energy.

A month later, Sony released another 2 CD compilation album called ''Jolin Favorite Live Concert Music Selection''. This album consists of remixes of popular songs Tsai recorded under Sony, as well as rare live tracks.

Tsai ended 2006 on a high note, performing hits like "Mr.Q", "A Wonder in Madrid", "Pretence" and "Dancing Diva" at several New Year countdown parties in Taiwan. Furthermore, according to g-music, ''Dancing Diva'' became the biggest selling album of the year in Taiwan, while ''Dancing Forever'' reached #15 on the year-end album sales charts. ''Dancing Diva'' accounted for 4.26% of all Mandarin album sales in Taiwan for the year, ahead of Jay Chou's ''Still Fantasy'', which placed second and accounted for 3.50%. Tsai's singles also topped year-end charts, particularly her extremely popular duet with David Tao, which is considered by many lists to be the #1 song of the year in Taiwan. Singles like "Dancing Diva," "Pretence," and "A Wonder in Madrid" were also the winners of many song awards at the end of 2006 and the start of 2007.

2007: Tsai released ''The Acquired Talent'' (地才) (DVD, photobook and poster) on June 8, which featured performances from her latest world tour and documented her hard work and perseverance in preparing for the tour. The DVD shows footage of her performing dance sequences with concert guests Luo, Huang, and Hsiao. The DVD opened at the top of the Taiwanese audio/video charts and stayed there for thirteen weeks. It is said that her new album will be coming out in mid-August or September.

On June 16, Tsai finally won at the most prestigious music awards show in Taiwan. She received the ''Most Favorite Female Artist'' and the ''Best Mandarin Female Singer Award'' at the annual 18th Golden Melody Awards. Furthermore, her duet with David Tao won the ''Best Song Award''. Tsai's win for ''Best Mandarin Female Singer'' has drawn some criticisms from netizens and industry critics due to her voice not being as strong as the other nominees (A-mei, Sandy, Angela Chang, and Penny Tai). However, many say that she won due to her all-round talent, hard work, and universal pop appeal. Regardless of the controversy surrounding this award, her other award for ''Most Favorite Female Artist'' shows the immense popularity she has around the world as the award was voted on by the fans for a couple of months prior to the awards show. She beat out many other artists such as, Fish Leong, Sun, Hsiao, Twins, A-mei, Yang, and others.

Just a few days before the release of Tsai's new album at EMI Music Taiwan, Sony released another compilation album, ''Jolin's Final Wonderland'' (Jolin夢綺地精選). This collection is the most comprehensive, featuring almost all the songs Tsai released during her time at Sony. The album includes three CDs (songs are separated into dance songs, cute songs, and love ballads), as well as a DVD with 22 music videos and a 52-page photo book.

Tsai's second album with EMI Music Taiwan, titled ''Agent J'' (特務J), was released on September 21, 2007. The album features eleven new tracks and the bonus track "Let's Move It," which was used as a promotional track in commercials for Toyota. The deluxe version of the album features a 3-part 70-minute music movie filmed in France, London, and Bangkok. The movie, costing NT 50 million to film, stars Tsai as the leather-clad Agent J and features popular Korean actor Kim Jae Won and Hong Kong stars Stephen Fung and Carl Ng. During the filming of the movie, Tsai had to learn two new forms of dance in 10 days: aerial silk dancing and poledancing, almost paralyzing her right arm and causing her to faint in the process. Hits from the album include the title track "Agent J" (特務J), the ballads "Alone" (一個人) and "Fear Free" (怕什麼), and the dance tracks "Bravo Lover" (愛無赦)(best known for its often-imitated dance steps) and "Tacit Violence" (冷‧暴力).

According to G-music Taiwan, the album accounted for 45% of album sales and over 65% of Mandarin album sales in Taiwan in its first week of release. Since its release, the album had stayed at the #1 position for two weeks. For the first time, Tsai released two more versions of the album: the Champion Special Edition (featuring 10 music videos, 4 dance instruction music videos, and a remix of Bravo Lover) and the No. 1 Special Celebration Edition (featuring the "Let's Move It" music video and her "Agent J" celebration concert featuring the best male artist at the Golden Melody Awards, Nicky Lee from Taiwanese hip-hop group Machi).

Tsai then collaborated with Australian pop queen, Kylie Minogue in a song called "In My Arms", which would be included in the Asian version of Kylie's album ''X''. Tsai was invited to the world premiere of Kylie's movie 'White Diamond', where Tsai presented Kylie with her newest album and a jade bracelet which she personally picked for her.

Soon after, Tsai traveled to Hong Kong for Christmas, attending various functions and performing and winning three awards at the 2007 Metro Showbiz Music Awards, before returning to Taiwan. Once again, Tsai ended off the year performing hits in Taiwan to celebrate the end of 2007. For the second year in a row, Tsai had the best-selling album in Taiwan. According to g-music, sales of ''Agent J'' accounted for 3.08% of all album sales in Taiwan and 5.96% of Chinese albums for the year, even higher than the numbers for ''Dancing Diva'' a year ago. ''Agent J'' also topped the year-end album charts according to Five Music, while ''The Acquired Talent'' was the best-selling music DVD of the year.

Like the previous year, Tsai also topped the Hito Top 100 Singles chart for the year. This time her song "Sun Will Never Set" was voted to be the top song of the year by over 340,000 voters.

In April 2008, Tsai incorporated newly learnt skills such as flying rings and pole dance in addition to her usual multi-style dances in her concert in Beijing's Workers' Gymnasium.

Tsai's first English album ''Love Exercise'' (愛的練習語) was released in November. The album features remakes of 10 popular English songs such as "I Won't Last A Day Without You" and "Lady Marmalade". This marked her first full-fledged venture into the English music territory. However, the lack of promotional activities leading up to the release of the album and the fact that it was pushed back from its original release date in March, contributed to lower-than-expected sales volume being recorded.

Because Tsai was not active in the Chinese music market during 2008, she was not on the year-end music charts. This broke her streak of having the year's best-selling album in Taiwan as ''Dancing Diva'' and ''Agent J'' topped the charts in 2006 and 2007 respectively.

''Love Exercise'' would mark Tsai's last studio release with EMI Music Taiwan. Similar to how Sony released a ''J-Top'' when she left the label for EMI Music Taiwan, they also released a greatest hits compilation to mark the end of Tsai's contract with them. ''Jeneration Collection 2006-2009'' (J世紀Jeneration 大牌新曲+精選盤2006-2009), a 2CD compilation of songs from ''Dancing Diva'', ''Dancing Forever'', and ''Agent J'' was released in February, packaged with a 416 page photo book with over 555 photos of the "goddess of a thousand faces." The album hit #2 on the album charts, while ''J-Top'' hit #1 back in 2006.

Warner Music Taiwan (2009–present)

Tsai's new Mandarin album, ''Butterfly'' (花蝴蝶), was released on March 27, 2009. This was her first official full-fledged album after joining Warner Music Taiwan. Early images that were released indicated that the album's image would be based on the concept of a "colorful butterfly", namely it being colorful and able to fly freely without worries. It is of her view that the songs in the album seek to encourage her fans to follow their dreams and not allow anything to hold them back from succeeding, thus the meaning of "flying high, flying freely" just like a butterfly. The production costs of ''Butterfly'' reached a new high – the 16 promotional outfits cost $2.5 million and the 6 most beautiful outfits were specially ordered from America. The album's first plug, entitled "Real Man" (大丈夫) was released and features Taiwanese rapper Nick, and was announced as the first single of the album. The album's subsequent singles, and the ballad "Compromise" (妥協)the title track "Butterfly" (花蝴蝶) were released soon after and was announced as the 2nd and 3rd single respectively. The music video for "Butterfly" features Tsai's new dance skill, ballet pirouettes, while the video for "Compromise" features one of Taiwan's biggest idol actors, Ethan Ruan. The final track on the album, "Hot Winter" (熱冬; 热冬), is a cover of a Monrose song called "Hot Summer," written by Thomas Troelsen, which later become the 6th and final single of the album.

After almost two years off the Chinese music charts, Tsai was back at the top. According to g-music Taiwan, the album accounted for 37% of all album sales in Taiwan and 68% of Chinese music sales in Taiwan in its first week. In 2009, ''Butterfly Jolin'' has the largest first-week sales of any artist. Its first week-sales were also greater than the first-week sales of the previous year's best-selling album, ''Poetry of the Day After...'' by Taiwanese band Mayday. The album spent two weeks on the top of the sales charts, outselling BoA in its second week but being overtaken by TVXQ in its third week. "Slow Life" (愈慢愈美麗) and "My Reliance" (我的依賴) became the 4th and 5th single of the album respectively.

Her song, "Slow Life" (愈慢愈美麗) has been used by almost 3,000 schools in Taiwan as their recess song to replace the bell ring.

Tsai injured her waist while holding a "school tour" in Taiwan. Due to the injury, Warner Music Taiwan announced that she would be taking a two months break from her work. In May 2009, she was invited as one of the special guests of her friend Stefanie Sun's "The Answer Is.." world tour. She subsequently performed a duet of the song "First Day"(第一天) with Stefanie in the concert.

Tsai launched her own brand of apparel, Seventy Two Changes, during Fashion Week in New York City, inspired by the star’s own distinctive style. The designs for each of the clothing sold under this brand are specially designed by Tsai herself. She also worked as a spokesperson for Shiatzy Chen.

In June 2010, Jolin appeared in the third night of her old friend, Jay Chou's concert, which shocked the audience with her appearance as a surprise guest and was the major highlight of the concert.

On July 11, Jolin attended the 2010 ''Head & Shoulders Chinese Show'' as the ambassador in Shanghai. She announced that her new album "Vogue" could be booked since early August, but the album name was later change to "Myself". It is said that to make "Vogue" more attractive, Jolin has invited the vogue teacher Benny Ninja (teacher of "America's Next Top Model") and Ahn Hyung Suk (dance teacher of Dong Bang Shin Ki, also known as TVXQ) to teach her hand-gesture-based Voguing dance.

The lead single of her album, "Honey Trap" (美人計), along with its music video, was leaked through the Internet. Two other songs, "Immediate Effect" (即時生效) and "Small Wound" (小傷口), were leaked as well,which would be the 5th and 6th single of the album. Her album was stated to supposedly be released on 3 August 2010. The album, titled ''Myself'', was released on August 13, 2010. The music video of "Love Player"(玩愛之徒), also the 2nd single of the album, feature Jolin naked in the bathtub. While the 3rd single, "Nothing Left to Say"(無言以對), feature her 1st dance in her ballad.

''Myself'' have topped the chart of G-Music for 3 consecutive weeks only to be overtaken by Hebe Tien's first solo album.However, the album rebound back to first,during its 6th week and sold higher than its debut week. The lead single, "Honey Trap"(美人計), managed to peak at Number three of the Yes 93.3 Music Chart, while "Real Hurt"(小傷口) managed to topped the Singapore Yes 93.3 Music Chart for two consecutive weeks.

The 4th single, "Butterflies in my stomach"(七上八下) was also made into an MV. "Take Immediate Effect"(即時生效) video was also released in September 2010, featuring her dog in the video and "Real Hurt"(小傷口) video was released in the 2nd week of September 2010.

Jolin made an appearance in the ''China Got Talent'' final, in which she perform "Black-Haired Beautiful Girl" (黑髮尤物). The winner of the ''China Got Talent'', Liu Wei, got to perform in Jolin's subsequent World Tour.

In 2011,Jolin will be continuing on her Myself World Tour,in support of her album,Myself,which spanned around Asia,which consist of her performing another dangerous stunt and songs.

Fund-raising

After the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, Tsai was one of the first few artists to contribute to the Earthquake Relief Fund. She, together with Jay Chou, S.H.E, Jiang Hui and over 100 celebrities appeared in the “Send Out Your Love” fundraising disaster relief show on the 18th of May to help raise more funds to help the victims.

References

External links

Jolin@Warner Music Taiwan Jolin@Gold Typhoon formerly EMI Music Taiwan (2006–2009) Mars Entertainment Ltd Jolin's 'I Love Super' blog Jolin's Sina Blog Jolin's Sina Microblog WeiBo 微博

Category:1980 births Category:Living people Category:Taiwanese aborigines Category:Taiwanese female singers Category:Taiwanese Mandopop singers Category:Fu Jen Catholic University alumni Category:MTV Viewer's Choice Award winners Category:People from New Taipei

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