ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Clone (Linux system call)

Have you ever played with play-dough and made two of the same things? That's kind of like what the "clone" system call does in Linux.

In Linux, "clone" is a special command that allows a program to create a copy of itself. Just like how you can make a copy of a drawing or a toy, programs can make a copy of themselves in Linux.

But why would a program want to make a copy of itself? Well, there are a few reasons. One is that the copy can run in a completely separate way from the original program. This means that the program can do two things at once without getting confused or bogged down.

Another reason is that the copies can be modified to do different things. Just like how you can add or subtract parts from a toy to make it look different, programmers can add or subtract parts from a program to create a new version.

So basically, "clone" is like creating a copy of yourself so you can do two things at once or make a new version of yourself with different features. Cool, huh?