i'm wanting to learn linux, as i want a home server running linux. and just browsing these forums is enough to make me go out and buy windows home server, or just run win7, as it's SO much easier.

why is there so many commands? why isn't it all just point and click like windows? i bought a book ( a beginners book to linux) to learn, and i just gave up after about a month, as it all seems pointless..why not just part with £150 and have windows?

back to my question - how long did it take you guys to get a feel for linux gui, and learn the basic commands?

If you feel more comfortable with Windows and don't want to learn the commands then just use Windows. There is no point in using an OS that you don't like.

With constant learning (means do your everyday tasks on Linux, not on Windows) it took not very long to get a feeling for the GUI (Gnome 2 for me, back in the time), it took longer to learn the basic commands. But if you have the wish to learn it I doubt that you need longer than a few months for the basic commands. Of course, you will never stop to learn, after running Linux for more than 4 years now I still am learning commands and new options and uses of already known commands.

Because Linux is much more flexible like Windows. You can do anything you want with it, run it on really low-spec hardware, make desktop, server and embedded systems with it, use it for high performance computing and so on. There is literally almost no device that can't run Linux.

For example, I run a small home-server (Atom 330 CPU with 1GB of RAM) with Debian on it. It is currently running a webserver, a rsync server, two file-servers (Samba and FTP), an SSH server and a small download server. Currently using 71MB of RAM. So basically I could take out some of the RAM, let's say down to 128MB and it would run nonetheless with almost the same performance. In opposite, the installer of Windows Home Server will not even let you install the system if you have less than 512MB RAM or less than 65GB free space on your harddisk.

But anyways, it is totally up to you. If you want a server that behaves like Windows then use Windows. If you want to make the effort to learn something new try Linux.

Maybe this is something you should read also, to get a better understanding why Linux is not Windows.

It's easier because it's what you know. And when you use the gui in linux it's not so different. When windows comes with a new interface it also takes times to get accustomed to it. And if you look at windows forums you will find that windows is not easy.

Because the philosophy of linux is its better to make a small program that's very good for it's purpose. Then to create a large program that's mediocre at a lot of things. The power of those small programs is that you can concatenate them together. That is you can use the output of one program as input for another. With this you can create your own 'programs' actually it's called scripts wich a much more powerfull then what you can achieve with point and click.
And the change that someone created a script for a problem you have is big. It might be that a script you find needs a small modification. But if you after struggling with it can't find a solution you can turn to a forum where people gladly help you to find the solution.

It took a long time to get customized to linux, that for I first installed linux alongside windows with a dual boot. Unfortunate I'm sometimes forced to use windows, because at my work they managed to create a web application that only functions with ie. So for that I now have only linux installed on my computer and when I need windows I run it in a virtual machine with Virtualbox in which I have installed a basic win xp box.

Hi,

Maybe Gnu/Linux is not for you. Your composition above shows to me that even simple composition details are a challenge for you. UNIX/Gnu/Linux can be used to solve or implement the development for the services you are wishing. Details are important whenever working with 'cli' or system administration!

Personally I use Gnu/Linux Slackware. Slackware is the oldest Unix-like Gnu/Linux distribution developed by Patrick Volkerding. Look at: Linux Distro TimeLine to get a feel for the history of Gnu/Linux.

Slackware can be used from the 'cli' or have the perfect desktop with the 'X' environment of choice. Of course I prefer doing system setup or maintenance from the 'cli' since the GUI barrier tends to hide things from the user. Not everyone depends on a GUI within the Gnu/Linux community.

A few quotes from a UNIX wiki that are applicable to Linux;
Then you should choose what is comfortable to you. Easier is not always the best choice! Laziness will only create traps that you will have to continually fight with in order to get out of the trap.

"The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." -- G.K. Chesterton

I would like to add, as I always do when this kind of things comes up, that Microsoft have decided that the command line is the best way to configure servers and introduced PowerShell. Whilst I'm sure home server will remain point-and-click and inflexible the "real" server versions of Windows will be set up in such a way that command line is preferred for some tasks and required for others.
Even with old Windows to get some things done required adding strange things to the registry which wasn't exactly easy. I spent a few years as a Windows system admin of sorts and in that time I relied heavily on scripting to get things done -- the GUI means only one thing can be done at once and is much slower than textural commands if you know what you're doing.
In almost all cases the easier an interface is to use the less flexible it is.
If you prefer Windows then by all means stick with it. If you're just a home user then you'll never have to worry about the command line.

I'm sorry if it seems rude, but if you haven't learned the rules of grammar, punctuation, or capitalisation, I doubt that you'll manage those for Linux commands. I think you should stick with Windows.

A person of average intelligence can learn the basic commands in ~1/2 day. With a concerted effort, the same person could be fairly proficient within a week.

On average, Windows systems are more difficult to set up compared to the same functionality on Linux. The only reason that Linux sometimes seems daunting is that the typical user has to first UNlearn Windows. If you did a double-blind test with people who had never set up a computer, Linux would win hands-down.

Why are there so many commands? (Pick the answer(s) that work(s) for you..... )
---Because they are useful---Why does Windows have so few?
---Because Linux is a better system
---Because the open-source environment fosters the creation and support of useful stuff

I came to Linux from DOS via Windows. DOS was command line, so it was no great transition.

The command line is really no big deal. It's just another way of getting stuff done. Also, the command line is always faster, if you know the commands.

If all someone wants to do is browse the internet, read email, listen to music, and watch YouTube, he or she can do that in Linux quite easily without ever opening a terminal.

thanks for all the replys. and tobisgd - that 'windows is not linux' was a good read, thanks.
@david mcCann - i really don't think my forum grammar has anything to do with how well (or not) i will learn linux...i typed the question as quick as possible like i'm doing now.

Well, with a full fresh install of Slackware, for instance, I can certainly do a lot more "pointing and clicking" because of the number of applications, than I could with a fresh install of Windows.
Whatever you pay, you do not own your Windows. You've only bought a license to use it. Read the EULA.

Trying to use the proper use of the rules of grammar, punctuation and capitalisation make posts easier to read. And it is considered polite.

coming from pre-windoze DOS to linux about a week
I never did get use to operating a computer with boxing gloves on