I first encountered the expression "runtime" when s.o. told my that in Linux files ending in .ko are able to be loaded into the kernel at runtime to increase its functionality when needed. So, runtime is, in my layman's understanding during the time when a program is in the ram and running, I also stumbled upon a term "compile time", I do not know what it is, but do other kind of xxx-time expression exist ? I would like to write them down and look them up to understand the context.
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Wikipedia has a relevant page, which mentions run time (aka "runtime" or "execution time") as well as "other program lifecycle phases such as compile time, link time and load time". – Oct 12 '16 at 15:04
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There's no particular list of all times, runtime basically refers to the fact that the program in question has been scheduled and is running on the processor. .ko stands for kernel objects and are usually associated with loadable kernel modules (LKMs).
LKMs are important because they allow us to add functionality to the kernel without modifying the source code. If you were to modify the kernel's behaviour by editing the source code and recompiling the kernel, you would call it editing at compile time!
Take an example of plugging in a new device, you need the device drivers only as long as the device is plugged in. When a device is plugged in, the kernel loads the LKM corresponding to the device without your intervention. This happens when the kernel is running and hence the phrase 'at runtime'. By doing so, the kernel changes its behaviour and now supports reading and writing from this device
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