The result of two years' worth of development by LPI along with qualification authorities, academic partners, private trainers, publishers, government organizations, volunteer IT professionals, and Linux and open source experts, the Linux Essentials program is designed to recognize participants' knowledge of the following areas:

* The Linux community and careers in open source software* Popular operating systems and major open source applications* Open source software and licensing* Linux command line basics, files, and scripts

A single exam available online either through LPI or through partner internet-based testing services assesses understanding of these areas and leads to a PDF certificate of achievement that's valid for 10 years.

Other components of the program include regional links to employment and apprenticeship programs in Linux and open source careers; support for skills competitions such as ; support for teacher collaboration and sharing of learning exercises; and commitments from major IT courseware and content publishers on exam preparatory resources.

Opening Doors