On Tue, 14 Apr 1998, Norma Thompson wrote:
> Whoops. I see a typo. 55 instead of 65.
>
Well, I'm 65 too and I've been using linux almost exclusively for the last
couple of years. I used to use DOS (I deleted Windows long ago) and I found
the change-over hard work and sometimes near to despair-provoking but well
worth it in the end. I now only use DOS for one or two programs which I can't
find equivalents for in linux.
A few tips:
I agree the jargon is an initial difficulty. I found it very useful to keep a
pen and notebook handy to note down things I learnt and knew I was likely to
forget.
For me, the decisive event that made linux usable was changing from Slackware
to Red Hat. I got Slackware running but could never manage to install new
programs; RPM made all the difference.
The second thing was accustoming myself to use a text editor in place of a word
proessor. I use vim all the time. It's incredibly powerful. I also learnt
latex in order to be able to print stuff.
Finally, get some good books. The ones I use mainly are Running Linux (Matt
Welsh), the Red Hat installation guide, and System Administration by Eileen
Frisch (a general Unix book but lots of stuff on linux).
By the way, I've NO computer background ((I'm a physician and writer). What I
think did help was that I always used DOS with 4Dos in place of the command
interpreter and so I was happy on the command line; also 4Dos is quite
Unix-like. But Red Hat allows you to do a lot from the gui if that;s what
you're used to.
I hope this helps. If you've any specific queries, feel free to email me.
Anthony
--
Anthony Campbell Using Linux - Windows-free zone
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.achc.demon.co.uk
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