Re: Learning Linux

I've played around with computers for a very long time now. Mostly self-taught, I've mainly had experiance with Win9x through Vista. I'm now interested in learning Linux.

So my question is, what is a good (and free, hopefully) Linux distribution to install for the sole purpose of just playing with. Ideally, this will be going on al older PC, or potentially a laptop, so lightweight is preferred.

OR: Is my best bet buying a book that comes with a Linux CD and learning that way?

i would go with ubuntu, it's very user friendly.

[RDProgrammer]

Originally Posted by keybear

i would go with ubuntu, it's very user friendly.

This.

RDP

[rabbitweed]

Slackware, excellent documentation and doesn't come with GUI tools. Best distro for education.

Ubuntu is a wonderful distro but a lot is hidden behind the GUI.

[Eagle Bay]

If you were going to try ubuntu, I'd strongly suggest downloading (or buying) this book. After 3 or 4 weeks of 'just playing around with' ubuntu, I was getting nowhere. I didn't even understand the simplest of terminal commands. Hell, I didn't even know how to change the colour of the panels. I got this book 2 days ago, and I already know how to compile programs by source code, and do a multitude of things in the terminal I didn't even understand before. The guy wrote the book while using the 6.06 version, so it is a little out of date in some places, but still 90% accurate.

It's such a good book that I almost feel guilty that I didn't pay for it. Almost.

Looking back, I would recommend OpenBSD. Installing OpenBSD will give you a better idea of how nix operating systems are different than windows. Ubuntu in many ways tries to emulate Windows to make it easier to use, but when Windows users find things that worked a certain way in windows don't work the same in Linux they get frustrated. Thats why learning Linux is difficult at first. Windows users have a hard time learning about user groups, partitioning, file permission, and using a command line. I would try OpenBSD for a few days then wipe the drive for an Ubuntu install. Search Youtube for a video on how to install OpenBSD. Partitioning the drive is difficult if you dont know what youre doing.

[Zok]

Originally Posted by rabbitweed

Slackware, excellent documentation and doesn't come with GUI tools. Best distro for education.

Quoted for fucking truth.

I learned off of slackware (7.4) when I was in highschool - no linux experience whatsoever. It's notorious for being one of the "trickier" distros for beginners but it's also been named one of the most "linuxy linuxes there is".

To be entirely honest, it took me several weeks before I got all of my drivers and devices working - hell, it took me several days just to install it and get a working desktop env. But it was the best learning experience ever. If you're serious about learning linux and don't mind reading manual pages and googling things, go slackware. You can't expect to learn anything about linux if you hide linux behind fancy GUI's and installation wizards... Learn how to use the command line. Learn to install things from source. Learn how to use vi.

[Kamisama]

Puppy Linux.
Slackware folks and I just don't mix.
I understand Slackware arguments, but isn't slackware dead?
AKA the developer decided to pickup and leave?

[Zok]

Originally Posted by Kamisama

Puppy Linux.
Slackware folks and I just don't mix.
I understand Slackware arguments, but isn't slackware dead?
AKA the developer decided to pickup and leave?

Not that I know of. AFAIK Patrick Volkerding is still the "slackware benevolent dictator for life"

http://slackware.com/about/

[angryonion]

Originally Posted by Eagle Bay

If you were going to try ubuntu, I'd strongly suggest downloading (or buying) this book. After 3 or 4 weeks of 'just playing around with' ubuntu, I was getting nowhere. I didn't even understand the simplest of terminal commands. Hell, I didn't even know how to change the colour of the panels. I got this book 2 days ago, and I already know how to compile programs by source code, and do a multitude of things in the terminal I didn't even understand before. The guy wrote the book while using the 6.06 version, so it is a little out of date in some places, but still 90% accurate.

It's such a good book that I almost feel guilty that I didn't pay for it. Almost.

E B thanks for link for that book,I downloaded and printed it out today and the brief time i spent thumbing though it was time well spent.
One thing i didn't know was how many pages the book was.I pissed off a few people waiting for the printer at work today.