Linux
So…I very frequently go through geeky phases where I want to learn a new skill. I’m computer savvy enough to say that I’m well versed in Windows and Mac OS X – comfortable with using the command line on occasion. But I’m not a programmer, and I don’t know any code. (Nor do I really want to at present, if I’m honest with myself.) I do, however, want to learn Linux. A lot. I watched all the screencasts available from the Ubuntu crew, to give you an example.
I’ve read up on it from time to time, and I think – as shallow as it is – the videos I saw on YouTube of the Compiz / Beryl 3D eye candy made me consider going for it again. (I once had installed Fedora Core 4 on my desktop for a summer before selling it to my little sister, at which point I wiped it and slapped a fresh coat of Windows XP SP2 on it. But I never even figured out how to install stuff on it. I successfully changed the background and set screen savers. Still. It got me interested. At the time, I didn’t even know how Linux’s file system worked, let alone what packages were and whatnot.)
Anyway, I’m now considering attempting to find an old secondhand laptop for use at school. At the moment, I’m always using the school computers, and I feel in the way. I want to get out of the way. I’m thinking that I want to learn Linux. Maybe I’ll go the “safe” way and wet my toes with Ubuntu’s Gutsy Gibbon release. Or Mandriva. Or even Fedora 8. Is anyone out there knowledgeable about Linux? Any ideas for how I can learn about it without access to a Linux machine just yet?
