Just to throw this out there.. what are the recommendations to actually LEARN linux. Not just load and use but learn the functionality, the system, the files included. Do i have to go as far as to learn unix first? To what degree??

Thanks..r

well linux IS a version of unix meant to be cmopletely compatible, but it does differ in a few little areas. easiest way i'd say is to just get a book and find out what you can do. Otherwise you're just in a situation where you only coem up against problems you need answers to, and loose out on knowing how to do what you don't even know you could do... am i making any sense? Other than having a book infront of you, it's not as easy to find stuff out. there's an online version on redhat unleashed on the link on my sig, as well as a number of other books...

I *think* i'm allowed to link to that site.. not totally sure tho...

The way that I have found to learn Linux the fastest is to break it. I've learned more from trying to fix problems than I would have from just reading books. By having to fix problems it forced me to seek outside resources like books and forums such as this one.

quickest way i learned was first installed it.. then read anything i encountered on the web and books..

hehe same here, i also read MAN pages when i cant get stuff to work.

Just do this whatever you used to do in another OS figure out how to do in linux. Not just all the editing and internet connection etc. But administration as well.

hmm, to an extent, but then the number of posts we get saying something like....

"I just installed linux version 7 and it's great... Under windows i run a mail server to get my email, is this possible under linux??[add as many question marks as desired]"

and basically, anyone who knows jack abuot linux or any other form of *nix will basically laugh. it can do it an a thousand even cooler things you wouldn't even dream about on windows 98.

so, generally i'd say aim higher than achieving the same on linux as windows.

Yeah that is exactly my point if they just went ahead and said ok now I'll find out how to do it in linux. They'd learn with all the cooler stuff included. And it would take them like five minutes to figure out that it was a better way.

ok, i've been watching karate kid so i'm all wax on wax off at the mo... (Mr Myagi IS yoda isn't he?)

But no i don't agree with that at all. sure you'll probably find out how to do things eventually, but if you treat linux soley as windows-but-free then you're just crippling yourself. You really need to find out what you can do by deciding you want to do it and then working out how it's done, not the other way round, regardless of what it is you want it to do.

decent example is, say, a video wall. you try and find a simple way to spread a video across 4 screens.. nah i don't think so. in linux, take avi, and simply pipe it through GGI interface, and it's there waiting for you, you then take those GGI streams and send them over a network, then you could easily have a different computer showing a different 1/4, 1/9 or whatever.. i dunno WHY you'd want to do that, but it's bordering on the trivial on linux.

Your quote
"You really need to find out what you can do by deciding what you want to do it and then working out how it's done, not the other way round, regardless of what it is you want it to do"

My quote
"Just do this whatever you used to do in another OS figure out how to do in linux. "

The essential difference here is what you USED to do and what you CAN do.

If you start by learning what you USED to do in a new way it makes learning what you CAN do that much easier.

After all I believe the original question was "what's the best way to learn linux." Not how to set up a video wall. And there is no best way of learning. You just do it, however it is best for you. Maybe one way maybe another. I just offered a suggestion on one way to do it.