As time has passed with me continually using Linux I've grown more fond of it. As such I wish to learn, and I mean really learn more about it. However, looking into different resources to do so one question comes to mind. How did the people who have a career working in Linux learn so much about it? In most colleges computer science programs they don't seem to cover Linux a whole lot. Also, most of the training's on The Linux Foundation's website are seasonal. So how did they learn and where can I find these resources?
Most likely they learned through certification courses at least the people who are Linux system administrators. A company might pick up Linux to use on there servers RHEL 7 or Cent OS and then pay for their administrators to go and take the classes to get certified. I learned a tone when I took those classes and am still learning as I work towards a certification. The only other way I know how to learn about Linux is by using it breaking it then figuring out how to fix it.
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I watch defcon, read the man pages when they get edited, dive into a new OS structure, used to use linux magazines before it was HEY LOOK LINUX ITS GOOD FOR CHILDREN AND KILLS TERRORISTS AND ALL THE 3D PRINTERS MINECRAFT RASPBERRY PIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII, dug into IRC and continue to call it home, talk to people, dig into old documentation and follow the rabbit hole to corrunt (for example how did gBuffalo used to be the stardard compiler and now its between gcc and proprietary stuff).... Lots, everything. Like building a library for your brain. I also collect old documentation.
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What he said.
Linux is for practical people. College is typically vocational training. There is a lot of information there, but nothing you cant obtain on your own. Not to discount an education, that is very important. But how you obtain the information is trivial.
Grab any distro you please, I'm certain the answer to any question you have is an internet search away. Or ask here, there are many linux users around.
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Okay.. so we can stop with the B.S tin-foil talk. the best way to learn Linux is to actually USE GNU / LINUX. I didn't know anything about Linux a year ago. I started out with Manjaro, and as time went on, moved on to other things. one of my goals was to get into Arch Linux and I did it. but back to the point here's some key things you should learn.
- Know uour File Systems
- Know some basic BASH syntax
- Know your package manager (within your preferred distro)
- Know some basic Systemd syntax
- Learn to Compile a piece of software / Kernel
These are just some basics. as you become acquainted, you should know your security, your networking stuff, and your way around the directories and such.
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could take an operating systems course but you would need to take a computer architecture class as well if your ok with state machines and assembly.
You should probably learn a little C as well, C was intended for the Unix environment back in Bell Labs.
Same thing as @Kat if you want to learn linux, use it.
On my case I started using on uni, when one of the windows installations on the computers available for students broke, I would use that one because I had a linux livecd and I also used on my cheap laptop because windows was sluggish on him so I learned to trim down a linux installation and compile kernels.
I learned using archlinux and I think is a good distro to learn because you have to install and configure mostly via command line and editing config files and the distros wiki provides a lot of information. You might want to use at least 2 computers when using it in case you brake something you always can find information on the other one. Creating scripts to automatize tasks of configuring a local server also a way to learn more.
We learn't most of what we know at University, because we're not American and our Uni's run on linux. From student portals to online libraries and tutorials. It's all linux, linux, linux throughout your studies. You learn pretty fast, and if you don't you fail.
You could try the linux documentation project. Some may disagree but I've personally found the guides (essentially pdf books) extremely helpful. Admittedly they are very old but fundamentally they still seem relevant enough to learn from in many cases. The introduction to Linux by Machtelt Garrels may be a good place to start.
Best way to learn is through test machines or VM's and doing it, BUT.
As a hobby user. I get it nailed and then it works forever till I decide to re-install so I make notes now on what I do fresh after learning it.
I think the only way to be an expert is when you live on breath it daily or weekly basis as a job for instance. That said the ability to research an issue online and implement the solution is a life skill that is enabling anything for you that has been done before.
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Patience! You need to spend time to find your way through the force! And if I can share an advise don't start using linux directly at work. I mean if you have no or little experience you really don't want to start using linux at work, meaning that at work (how many times I wrote this word) you want to get sh!t done! And it is really frustrating to have to google anything you want to do!
So install linux in your personal computer and start from there!
I started using linux in my second year of college and I have never gone back. One time, my girlfriend, who was in a graphical design career, was for some reason making bubble images with numbers in it, she needed 500 images, each one with a number in the center from 1 to 500. She was making every image by hand.
So I made a simple bash script, use ImageMagick (http://www.imagemagick.org/script/index.php) and a couple of minutes later I generated her 500 images. I felt like Jason Bourne... And I was appropriately rewarded
I've started learning through installing Linux as a Virtual Machine. That way you can install any distro that you like the look of until you find the one you like best.
My point is that is difficult but rewarding. There is a lot of information and also there is a lot of missing information as well. Select a distro, use it as your daily driver. When you get stuck (and you will), search in google or ask here, but do not blindly copy and paste console commands, understand them.
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