Getting Into Linux

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Smith1776
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Getting Into Linux

Post by Smith1776 » Thu Mar 19, 2020 4:52 pm

How many forums users here are regular Linux users? I've noted in some other threads that I've switched to Ubuntu Linux and am wanting to learn more.

What kind of learning resources or tips and tricks do resident experts here perhaps have to share?

Also, what can make switching from MacOS web development to Linux web development easier?

My biggest gripe so far is the lack of a turnkey backup solution like Time Machine in MacOS. Also, there is no Microsoft Visual Studio Code, so I've elected to use Atom as my IDE. It's not as good, though.

Hopefully, once I'm truly comfortable with Linux I will no longer be hostage to expensive Apple hardware.

Please, share your Linux wisdom with me!
I still find the James Rickards portfolio fascinating.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Tortoise » Thu Mar 19, 2020 5:14 pm

I'm not a Linux expert, but I worked mostly in a Linux environment for three years at one of my previous jobs.

I found the book The Linux Command Line by Shotts to be quite helpful as a basic introduction to the environment. Got me up and running.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Smith1776 » Thu Mar 19, 2020 5:15 pm

Found a copy.

https://wiki.lib.sun.ac.za/images/c/ca/TLCL-13.07.pdf

Thank you!

Edit: If I can truly become comfortable with Linux, my next laptop will definitely be one of those workstation Thinkpads. ;D ;D ;D
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by pmward » Thu Mar 19, 2020 5:20 pm

You can also get a job at a company that will give you a Mac. My job gives all of us engineers new MacBook Pro's, and replace it every 2 years. I'm up for upgrade here in a few months, looking forward to getting that new 16 inch MBP. All of our servers are either Linux or Windows, but we all develop on Mac's.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by europeanwizard » Fri Mar 20, 2020 2:10 am

Smith1776 wrote:
Thu Mar 19, 2020 4:52 pm
How many forums users here are regular Linux users?
Not on the desktop, but on the server, yes.
My biggest gripe so far is the lack of a turnkey backup solution like Time Machine in MacOS. Also, there is no Microsoft Visual Studio Code, so I've elected to use Atom as my IDE. It's not as good, though.
But that really is the story of Linux, in a nutshell... I fall back to the old command-line tools. Configure vim until it works as good as an IDE, for example, would be my solution here. The modern backup solutions right now seem to be Restic and Borg (if I remember correctly) but I don't have experience with either.
Hopefully, once I'm truly comfortable with Linux I will no longer be hostage to expensive Apple hardware.
No, but I noticed that with Linux, I invest time instead of money. Which kinda comes down to the same, at some point in your career :)

Still, it's incredibly freeing to be comfortable with Linux, and be able to just start a VM somewhere, buy a Raspberry Pi and configure it, etc.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Libertarian666 » Fri Mar 20, 2020 2:49 am

Smith1776 wrote:
Thu Mar 19, 2020 4:52 pm
How many forums users here are regular Linux users? I've noted in some other threads that I've switched to Ubuntu Linux and am wanting to learn more.

What kind of learning resources or tips and tricks do resident experts here perhaps have to share?

Also, what can make switching from MacOS web development to Linux web development easier?

My biggest gripe so far is the lack of a turnkey backup solution like Time Machine in MacOS. Also, there is no Microsoft Visual Studio Code, so I've elected to use Atom as my IDE. It's not as good, though.

Hopefully, once I'm truly comfortable with Linux I will no longer be hostage to expensive Apple hardware.

Please, share your Linux wisdom with me!
I can't help you with most of that, but I use mksquashfs (http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/SquashFS-HOWT ... using.html) to back up my Linux installation.

Wouldn't it be nice if Microsoft ported Visual Studio to Linux? Stranger things have happened.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Libertarian666 » Fri Mar 20, 2020 3:07 am

By the way, why Linux instead of Windows?
One of the main reasons that most of my development is on Windows is that there isn't a Linux IDE nearly as good as Visual Studio.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Smith1776 » Fri Mar 20, 2020 3:37 am

Thank you for your replies, guys. I'm currently playing with GNU Privacy Guard, generating public/private key pairs for encrypted messages. This stuff is hella fun.

Libertarian666, I'm using Linux and have set my goal to make it my main operating system. Why? Because it's there. I want to master it. In particular, it seems to me that Linux is where it's really at when it comes to heavy metal computing. You know, like how major servers and infrastructure all seem to run on Linux. Additionally, I love the tools and customizability. The number of distros to play with means there's kind of a nerd playground. Finally, it seems if you want to have as private and secure computing as possible, Linux is the way to go. Looks like Edward Snowden likes the Tails distro.

Feel free to correct me if I am wrong about any of my impressions.

Thank you to both yourself and europeanwizard for the backup advice.
Last edited by Smith1776 on Fri Mar 20, 2020 3:44 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Smith1776 » Fri Mar 20, 2020 3:41 am

As you guys can probably tell, I think I've had my fill of a few days of being lazy thanks to quarantine.

Finished a calculus assignment and an English essay tonight. Now I'm experimenting with Linux. '

No more TV for me. That binge watch list may have to wait till X-mas break. O0

P.S. Totally going to start growing a Linux beard.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Kriegsspiel » Fri Mar 20, 2020 5:55 am

Smith1776 wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 3:41 am
As you guys can probably tell, I think I've had my fill of a few days of being lazy thanks to quarantine.

Finished a calculus assignment and an English essay tonight. Now I'm experimenting with Linux. '

No more TV for me. That binge watch list may have to wait till X-mas break. O0

P.S. Totally going to start growing a Linux beard.
Are you still in school? I thought in the other thread you said you had started in 2008.
You there, Ephialtes. May you live forever.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by pmward » Fri Mar 20, 2020 7:37 am

Libertarian666 wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 3:07 am
By the way, why Linux instead of Windows?
One of the main reasons that most of my development is on Windows is that there isn't a Linux IDE nearly as good as Visual Studio.
You can get Visual Studio Code on Linux, which can be configured to be a pretty good C# and SQL IDE (as well as being a really good Javascript IDE out of the box). Also, JetBrains Rider is on Linux. I prefer Rider to Visual Studio these days. It's basically like VS and Resharper in one, and unlike VS it's actually 64 bit so it isn't limited in the memory it can use so it runs much smoother. Highly recommend Rider, and it's available on all of the major OS.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by shekels » Fri Mar 20, 2020 10:38 am

Smith1776 wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 3:37 am
Thank you for your replies, guys. I'm currently playing with GNU Privacy Guard, generating public/private key pairs for encrypted messages. This stuff is hella fun.

Libertarian666, I'm using Linux and have set my goal to make it my main operating system. Why? Because it's there. I want to master it. In particular, it seems to me that Linux is where it's really at when it comes to heavy metal computing. You know, like how major servers and infrastructure all seem to run on Linux. Additionally, I love the tools and customizability. The number of distros to play with means there's kind of a nerd playground. Finally, it seems if you want to have as private and secure computing as possible, Linux is the way to go. Looks like Edward Snowden likes the Tails distro.

Feel free to correct me if I am wrong about any of my impressions.

Thank you to both yourself and europeanwizard for the backup advice.
That is the why I use Linux and got away From Windows after XP.
There are some programs Windows runs that is not build for Linux, but with a VM Windows is all but a memory.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Smith1776 » Fri Mar 20, 2020 4:07 pm

shekels wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 10:38 am

That is the why I use Linux and got away From Windows after XP.
There are some programs Windows runs that is not build for Linux, but with a VM Windows is all but a memory.
Right, I remember the ol' XP days. I was in high school then... those were good times.

Installing 3rd party firewalls, AVG antivirus scans, playing Counter-Strike 1.6 after school, and watching the show Pure Pwnage.

Reminiscing aside, my setup currently is a dual boot Ubuntu and MacOS. I figure I'll still need MacOS if I ever want to develop anything for the iPhone. Additionally, I've got some distros ready for liveboot on a few USB flash drives.

pmward wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 7:37 am
You can get Visual Studio Code on Linux, which can be configured to be a pretty good C# and SQL IDE (as well as being a really good Javascript IDE out of the box). Also, JetBrains Rider is on Linux. I prefer Rider to Visual Studio these days. It's basically like VS and Resharper in one, and unlike VS it's actually 64 bit so it isn't limited in the memory it can use so it runs much smoother. Highly recommend Rider, and it's available on all of the major OS.

I will look into this. If I can't figure out how to set it up I may end up PMing you for extra wisdom. ^-^

Kriegsspiel wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 5:55 am
Are you still in school? I thought in the other thread you said you had started in 2008.
Yeah, my first degree was in business administration. I worked in finance for a while, decided it wasn't for me, and elected to go back to school. Now here I am: 31 years old; in school; working part time; and back living with my parents. (Just till I graduate, I swear!) Living the dream. ::)
I still find the James Rickards portfolio fascinating.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by pmward » Fri Mar 20, 2020 4:12 pm

Smith1776 wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 4:07 pm
pmward wrote:
Fri Mar 20, 2020 7:37 am
You can get Visual Studio Code on Linux, which can be configured to be a pretty good C# and SQL IDE (as well as being a really good Javascript IDE out of the box). Also, JetBrains Rider is on Linux. I prefer Rider to Visual Studio these days. It's basically like VS and Resharper in one, and unlike VS it's actually 64 bit so it isn't limited in the memory it can use so it runs much smoother. Highly recommend Rider, and it's available on all of the major OS.

I will look into this. If I can't figure out how to set it up I may end up PMing you for extra wisdom. ^-^
Also, if you're a student, you can get a free all products license from JetBrains. That will give you access to Rider, as well as Webstorm, IntelliJ, Resharper, and all their other tools.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Smith1776 » Sun Mar 22, 2020 5:21 pm

Have you guys noticed how much more efficient with system resources Linux is compared with the major commercial operating systems? Man, Ubuntu really flies. And it's not even the most lightweight distro out there.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by dualstow » Thu Mar 26, 2020 2:42 pm

Just to summarize a multitude of posts from pre-Smith times:

I tried Linux, but I'm not really smart enough to take advantage of it, even on a secondary computer.
I started with system-on-a-stick and that Wubi website.
Then, dual-boot with WinXP.
Next, a $300 hp notebook that had Windows on it, which I had to delete for space. That's how I learned that some hardware is not really linux friendly. Never got wifi, even with a special dongle. It is now collecting dust.
Finally, I bought a dedicated Linux laptop. Not System76- what are they called-- ZaReason, I think. So many issues.

I was goofing around with too many distros and a Kevin(?) here who is very good with BSD said, "Just pick a distro and learn it." I got the furthest with Linux Mint, which I probably heard about from PointedStick. I silently vowed to read the entire BSD manual and I did start it in the bookstore. You know that scene in The Frisco Kid where the Native American chief -- that's First Nation Chief in Canadian -- says "I have read this Torah -- did not understand one word." That's how it was going with the BSD manual.

Maybe in the next life. If I had children, and one of those knew Linux, I would enjoy having her maintain a Linux machine for me.

So, now I'm one of those contented idiot Mac users. But, I like to read these threads just to see what you guys are up to.
RIP Marcello Gandini
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by shekels » Thu Mar 26, 2020 4:07 pm

dualstow wrote:
Thu Mar 26, 2020 2:42 pm
Just to summarize a multitude of posts from pre-Smith times:

I tried Linux, but I'm not really smart enough to take advantage of it, even on a secondary computer.
I started with system-on-a-stick and that Wubi website.
Then, dual-boot with WinXP.
Next, a $300 hp notebook that had Windows on it, which I had to delete for space. That's how I learned that some hardware is not really linux friendly. Never got wifi, even with a special dongle. It is now collecting dust.
Finally, I bought a dedicated Linux laptop. Not System76- what are they called-- ZaReason, I think. So many issues.

I was goofing around with too many distros and a Kevin(?) here who is very good with BSD said, "Just pick a distro and learn it." I got the furthest with Linux Mint, which I probably heard about from PointedStick. I silently vowed to read the entire BSD manual and I did start it in the bookstore. You know that scene in The Frisco Kid where the Native American chief -- that's First Nation Chief in Canadian -- says "I have read this Torah -- did not understand one word." That's how it was going with the BSD manual.

Maybe in the next life. If I had children, and one of those knew Linux, I would enjoy having her maintain a Linux machine for me.

So, now I'm one of those contented idiot Mac users. But, I like to read these threads just to see what you guys are up to.
Distro have come far in the last few years.
But Yea there is a Learning curve.
MX LINUX
Knoppix
Mint
Ubuntu
and about a dozen others I have tried.
It just depends on what you are wanting or expect using Linux.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by dualstow » Thu Mar 26, 2020 4:30 pm

One correction: BSD ⇢ I mean FreeBSD
RIP Marcello Gandini
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by anato » Thu Mar 26, 2020 6:37 pm

</rant, since I couldn't resist> ::)

Linux user since the mid '90s, first Slackware (6m), then Debian for around 10 years, then Ubuntu.

Linux was the perfect OS when I was a (eng) student: good local university groups for chatting and problem solving, plenty of very accurate and hands-on documentation (I spent endless nights reading the priceless howtos and guides).
True, you did need to study and understand something to make it work, and that could have taken weeks of late nights, but after you made it work, it was going to work FOR EVER. I carried pretty much all of the configuration of my debian untouched through 2 desktops and 1 laptop, and it always felt like working on the same machine, just faster and with a larger screen.

Then it tried to become popular... (looking at you, Ubuntu), and that was the end of it. I had to move to Ubuntu since a few applications I needed were not going to be made available on Debian, not even the unstable branch. I still regret it to this day...

So ok, let's make again a configuration that is going to "last for years". Yeah, good luck with that!
Every few releases, sometime every release, some slight change in how services are started, or configured, or just "are there" comes up, so you need to spend AGAIN time to make it work what was working yesterday.

Howtos are still useful, but Ubuntu and all those other user-friendly distros have put so much sh*t in between the user and the actual underlying OS and basic daemons, that they become useless to solve configuration issues... since those issues are always in the sh*t in-between. Sh*t that changes every year or two.
You try to find decent documentation online, and good luck with that: the documentation is usually out of date, forums are full of newbies who just copy/paste a solution that worked for them for a problem that they didn't understand and doesn't match yours (they don't have enough knowledge of the system to even understand your problem).

Then you start balancing: do I want to spend the next weekend hiking the Pacific Trail or trying to make that f*cking VPN service work? (after having been defeated already for 3 late nights)

So Linux is OK if somebody else maintains it for you (IT dept for your laptop/desktop, Google and a _real_ shitload of engineers at Samsung, LG, NVidia, Qualcomm, Intel, etc. for your phone or chromebook), otherwise hiking wins hands down.

</rant>

That said, I still love POSIX as a programming interface, but that doesn't need to be on Linux: buy a Mac, and pay in cash instead of paying in time.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by dualstow » Thu Mar 26, 2020 7:22 pm

ha, I love posts like the above, too, because they remind me not to get back into it. Life’s too short.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Libertarian666 » Thu Mar 26, 2020 7:27 pm

anato wrote:
Thu Mar 26, 2020 6:37 pm
</rant, since I couldn't resist> ::)

Linux user since the mid '90s, first Slackware (6m), then Debian for around 10 years, then Ubuntu.

Linux was the perfect OS when I was a (eng) student: good local university groups for chatting and problem solving, plenty of very accurate and hands-on documentation (I spent endless nights reading the priceless howtos and guides).
True, you did need to study and understand something to make it work, and that could have taken weeks of late nights, but after you made it work, it was going to work FOR EVER. I carried pretty much all of the configuration of my debian untouched through 2 desktops and 1 laptop, and it always felt like working on the same machine, just faster and with a larger screen.

Then it tried to become popular... (looking at you, Ubuntu), and that was the end of it. I had to move to Ubuntu since a few applications I needed were not going to be made available on Debian, not even the unstable branch. I still regret it to this day...

So ok, let's make again a configuration that is going to "last for years". Yeah, good luck with that!
Every few releases, sometime every release, some slight change in how services are started, or configured, or just "are there" comes up, so you need to spend AGAIN time to make it work what was working yesterday.

Howtos are still useful, but Ubuntu and all those other user-friendly distros have put so much sh*t in between the user and the actual underlying OS and basic daemons, that they become useless to solve configuration issues... since those issues are always in the sh*t in-between. Sh*t that changes every year or two.
You try to find decent documentation online, and good luck with that: the documentation is usually out of date, forums are full of newbies who just copy/paste a solution that worked for them for a problem that they didn't understand and doesn't match yours (they don't have enough knowledge of the system to even understand your problem).

Then you start balancing: do I want to spend the next weekend hiking the Pacific Trail or trying to make that f*cking VPN service work? (after having been defeated already for 3 late nights)

So Linux is OK if somebody else maintains it for you (IT dept for your laptop/desktop, Google and a _real_ shitload of engineers at Samsung, LG, NVidia, Qualcomm, Intel, etc. for your phone or chromebook), otherwise hiking wins hands down.

</rant>

That said, I still love POSIX as a programming interface, but that doesn't need to be on Linux: buy a Mac, and pay in cash instead of paying in time.
I have to use Linux in my development work because my product has to work on both Linux and Windows.

I do as much development as possible in Windows because of Visual Studio, which although certainly not perfect is light-years ahead of anything on Linux.

So far I've been able to get a free subscription to Visual Studio Professional as part of my Microsoft Alumni membership. However, they are supposed to start charging us a reduced fee for that, maybe this summer.

I haven't decided what I'll do then. There's a free version but I'm spoiled by all the features in the Professional version, as well as the included support incidents. I've had to use only one of those in several years but it's nice to have them available if needed.

I guess it will depend on how my project is going when they start charging.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Smith1776 » Thu Mar 26, 2020 7:57 pm

Screenshot from 2020-03-26 17-57-07.png
Screenshot from 2020-03-26 17-57-07.png (385.8 KiB) Viewed 6557 times
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by anato » Thu Mar 26, 2020 8:13 pm

Libertarian666 wrote:
Thu Mar 26, 2020 7:27 pm

I haven't decided what I'll do then. There's a free version but I'm spoiled by all the features in the Professional version, as well as the included support incidents. I've had to use only one of those in several years but it's nice to have them available if needed.

I guess it will depend on how my project is going when they start charging.
Visual Studio Code is is light years behind VSP, especially for C/C++ development and debugging.
It "could" probably do everything you need using plugins (everything is a plugin), but the plugins suffer from the same problems as much opensource/freeware, with "free" as in "free to spend your time trying to make it work".
I had a shot at using it for simple cross-arch debugging (x32 on an x64 w/ LLVM toolset on Linux), and after 3h of swearing and useless forum posts and github tickets, I just resorted to printf...
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by Xan » Thu Mar 26, 2020 8:38 pm

I'm really surprised to hear that you're into telemetry-loving Windows, Tech, rather than your-computer-belong-to-you Linux.
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Re: Getting Into Linux

Post by PrimalToker » Thu Mar 26, 2020 9:08 pm

Smith1776 wrote:
Thu Mar 19, 2020 4:52 pm
How many forums users here are regular Linux users? I've noted in some other threads that I've switched to Ubuntu Linux and am wanting to learn more.

What kind of learning resources or tips and tricks do resident experts here perhaps have to share?

Also, what can make switching from MacOS web development to Linux web development easier?

My biggest gripe so far is the lack of a turnkey backup solution like Time Machine in MacOS. Also, there is no Microsoft Visual Studio Code, so I've elected to use Atom as my IDE. It's not as good, though.

Hopefully, once I'm truly comfortable with Linux I will no longer be hostage to expensive Apple hardware.

Please, share your Linux wisdom with me!
I have been using OpenSUSE since 2009, back when I switched from Windows XP. I have never used Mac. OpenSUSE has a filesystem backup built in, you can easily revert the system back to where it was before the update. Your personal files are separate. I don't know if thats what time machine does. I have tried almost every distro and end up back on OpenSUSE. If you want the most Mac like interface, I would use the desktop GNOME.
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