If you really want the deep dive, look into LFS (Linux from scratch), besides that I've always been the learning by doing kind of guy. Got a problem? Search a solution and read up on the intricacies of the problem
Linux
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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Hey, thanks for the great suggestion. Looked onto it and it's great to build your own linux. I think that's really the essence of linux, the freedom to build it on your own.
IMO running through a Gentoo installation is a great way to learn.
The handbook is well documented and walks you through all of the steps that an installer would traditionally do.
You can do it in a VM or bare metal if you're feeling adventurous!
And for more in depth explanation of compilation, patches etc. consider LFS, or at least reading the 'book' on https://linuxfromscratch.org/
Yeah, Gentoo is a good way to get your hands dirty. Reading the guide and trying to dig in deeper as to what you're doing will give you a decent understanding of Linux.
I found that, at the cost of a few months of absolute suffering, using Gentoo as my first distro fasttracked my Linux learning.
Nothing will teach you the basics of Linux better than a good ol' Arch installation.
- Arch user sneering at Ubuntu user
- Gentoo user sneering at Arch user
- Linux from Scratch user sneering at Gentoo user
Try setup arch or even gentoo with the help of the arch wiki or gentoo wiki
The MANnly way is to use the man pages for things your curious on. The arch wiki is another fantastic tool
I would start with YT channels like Learn Linux TV, Distro Tube, and Lawrence Systems, they have a bunch of great Linux content especially for beginners and intermediate learners.
Freecodecamp.org YT channel has a free 6 hour intro to Linux course that is very good. you might want to check that out as well.
For using a distro hands on while learning, any basic distro will do. You might want to check out Arco Linux first though. It's an Arch based distro that is specifically meant for Beginner and Intermediate Linux users to dig in and learn the nuts and bolts of the Linux Operating System. They have their own resources and the majority of things you learn for one distro will carry over to any other.
If you're looking for a formal certification, Comp TIA has a Linux+ certification and there is also a Linux cert called the LPIC-1, both of these are beginner level certs. If you study on your own the earlier resources I listed, you could probably pass those certs pretty easily, but they are only useful if you are trying to get a formal job as a Linux Sys admin, and even then, most jobs want higher level certs than those.
Still, if getting a formal piece of paper is motivating for you, they might be worth looking into.
The most important thing though is to just pick a distro, open up the terminal, open up a YT vid and start pecking away. If you have a spare old computer you don't need, wipe the drive and install a distro on it. That compy becomes your dedicated learning machine for the next year. Make sure it's one you can destroy because...trust me...you will destroy your installation at least a few times if you're really trying to learn.
If you have no spare computer, fire up a distro as a VM in something like Virtual Box. This can be useful because you can save old VM states to recover if you blow something up, although learning to recover from disaster without having to literally start from scratch is a valuable skill in and of itself.
Good luck and have fun! I got started with Linux about 4 years ago and it's been an amazing ride so far!
if you really want to get into the details, there’s the Linux Upskill Challenge ( !linuxupskillchallenge@programming.dev and https://linuxupskillchallenge.org/ ) – runs through the nitty-gritty of running a Linux server – aimed at remoting in to a command line but it looks like the majority of the lessons would work just fine from a terminal or console on your own computer
Find a decent book on the topic and read it.
If you want to learn the terminal there's a game called Hack Net that teaches you command line. IMO if you pick a distro like Ubuntu, Pop, Zorin or Vanilla you don't need the terminal tho
I've learned Linux (and vim) just by forcing me to use it. One day I've installed i3 and just used it forcing me to solve my problems by myself haha
@amphetaminisiert @fbsz i3 was so intuitive (long time Vim user) that I ditched macOS for Linux because of it.