gcc command in Solaris vs. Linux

[Mats Bengtsson]

Hi,
I have a question about a gcc-command that i have for Solaris. 
The command is: gcc -lsocket -lnsl -o file file.c
When i run this command in Linux Red Hat 7.1 or 7.0 the compiler says:
/usr/sbin/ld: cannot find -lsocket
What does this mean? 
Is socket a library that doesn't exist in Linux Red Hat or...?
Is there a solution? 
I know that the c file has commands for communication with sockets.
/Mats