iOS usage surpasses Linux - by a whisker

The Linux OS has spent years scrabbling to claim a 1% usage share, and ultimately never managing to hold onto it, data by web metrics firm NetMarketShareshows that take Apple's iOS platform has breezed past it to the number three spot in the operating systems league table.

The iOS platform consists of the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. Given the popularity of these devices, and the voracious appetite for web content that users of these devices seem to have, it's hardly surprising that iOS has trumped Linux.

Android usage share is currently at 0.2%, or around a quarter of the Linux total.

Be aware though that we are dealing here with fractions of percentages, so the margin for error is significant. Rather than deal with specific numbers, I prefer to look at the trends, and what we're seeing here is iOS on the up, Android also going up, albeit at a gentler pace, and Linux flatlining and taking a nosedive.

NetMarketShare uses data captured from the 160 million unique visitors browsing some 40,000 Web sites it monitors for clients.