Is 50 too old to be learning Linux
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
Age has nothing to do with it, and 50 isn't very old. Don't be too intimidated by Linux, it's not that hard to learn, it just takes time to become familiar with it. It's actually a lot simpler than Windows or Amiga OS in some ways, like the way it treats everything as a file system, and the modularity of it. There are also some good GUIs out there these days, so you don't have to do everything from a command line anymore (unless you want to).
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
Paul S Wilcox wrote:
I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI
You should sorely miss MS-DOS... ;P Seriously, my choice of distros is Ubuntu, Fedora and OpenSUSE; any of them will be good to start with.
CEO at: - Rafaga Systems - Para Facturas - Modern Components for the moment...
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
I was probably 40 when I started learning Linux using Slackware, and am still learning at 62 (it never stops). (When I turned 55, I also re-started learning to play Chopin.) So, it is never too old to start, in fact, it will keep your brain healthier, so I recommend it. When I first started UNIX and Linux, I went through some courses and found it unbelievable that they expected me to remember hundreds of really long cryptically named commands full of cryptic options and special characters to get anything done. So, I never work on Linux without lots of notes handy. Things have gotten little better, though. For distributions, I slightly favor Fedora, because it provides the best GUI administration tools, and packages are always available for the latest software. It is a nuisance, however, that they introduce a new version every 6 months and drop support after only two versions, which means you are always upgrading, and sometimes upgrades don't work (same as Windows) and you have to re-install from scratch. So, I am currently running Ubuntu server with the desktop installed afterwards. I don't like so-called "stable" distributions. To me, "stable" means buggy and backwards and incompatible with current software.
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
In a word NO. Linux can be easier to learn than many other systems because of the CLI and the immediate feedback. So was Basic. If you learn best with visual feedback use the Linux GUIs. The funky names for commands and directories are a barrier at first. Linux-speak converations can be a bit scary to the outsider at first. "What planet are these guys from?" AWK what, grok what, /usr/bin/local/man what. That fades pretty quickly. I have always worked in *NIX and Windows. I am 67 now. Both are great fun. Use and development in either is equally enjoyable. I have had a great time creating in VB, ACCESS, C# or Perl, BASH, Dialog etc. It is never too late - Dive in ....
"Courtesy is the product of a mature, disciplined mind ... ridicule is lack of the same - DPM"
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I'm 59 and just started to do the same thing.. I downloaded 6 different distro's and tried to install them on various machines I have around. i tried..KUbunto 12.04, Ubunto 11 Damn small linux Debian, latest Slax Linux Older Fedora and Redhat versions what I found is that DSL booted on all machines tried. Slax only booted on 1 Ubunto 9-11 booted on all, but didn't configure networks correctly on all. Ubunto 12 is a pig, needs a big machine to run. Debian booted on all, but didn't configure all hardware correctly. So far it's not been pretty, especially since I cut my teeth on building unix disk drivers, so I am not unfamiliar with unix/linux..and certainly not a novice here. fixed the network issues after about 3 hrs of net trolling, easy but docs are all over the place. I thought I would settle on Debian since it seems to have the most stable developer base. I like KDE, but it is slow with a mouse on a 1ghz machine. The zoom features are good for these tired eyes. I don't like Konquerer..not close enough to firefox, my standard, would not even find firefox to install... So far, I have not been able to install any apps I'm interested in on Debian..a brick wall here. I don't like Ubunto with Unity desktop..this is just glitz and crap, can't do real work with this and it's difficult to port any developement tools i use to it. I liked Gnome 2, 3 is so-so, jury still out, but since the dev team is now fractured I'm not sure this will survive.I think it has the best dev support for moving apps over from windows. In the KDE world, I'm not sure reliance on the QT world is a smart idea right now... I wanted to port alot of windows apps I wrote over to Linix, hence the search. Doing ths is a big investment in my time, so I wanted to pick a good platform and UI to start with..So far I am very dissapointed in the state of things and the constant infighting in the Linux community..Where are the adults here? IMHO if Linux is to survive, developers need to spend NO time on glitz and phone apps, this is just stupid. Different platforms require different UI's, you will NEVER merge them into 1, take this on 45+ years of coding and hardware design experience. As hardware evolves this will be impossible to maintain. The first focus should be on a PERFECT app/get/install scenario with a GOOD GUI front end that runs and looks the same on all distributions. All of the apt-get-installs have failed to work properly, can't seem to see the reason why this is Second,a good dev scenario like visua
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ChrisElston wrote:
Wouldn't he better served finding a young mistress?
Now there's a thought!
The best reason for going to Linux would be to save money, a mistress would cost too much.
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
My dad made the switch from Windows to Linux in his 50's and he's so happy he did. We've been using Windows since 3.1 days, and I never would have thought he'd switch to Linux but he's a full convert now and keeps trying to drag me in with him. I keep trying to like Linux, but I suppose i just dont have the time right now with 3 young kids to sit down and use it enough to feel comfortable with it. I guess I'll just around to it, when i'm in my 50's ;-). So, No you're never too old to learn something new.
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
Like others, you're never too old. The value of learning Linux isn't in the GUI layer on top, it's in the CLI layer underneath. Knowing Ubuntu or Red Hat GUI layer isn't what's helping me understand the kindle hacks I've been playing with recently, nor did it help me turn my smartphone into a web server. The CLI layer is very similar under all of them. Recognizing the CLI layer on these devices is what dramatically changes my thinking about what they can, and cannot, do. I've still got my Amiga 1000 :)
We can program with only 1's, but if all you've got are zeros, you've got nothing.
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Marc Clifton wrote:
FP languages like Python
Python is not an FP language (assumming you mean Functional Programming) - it is a dynamic, mixed-paradigm language with some functional features, but really is more of a classic procedural object-oriented language for the most part.
"If you don't fail at least 90 percent of the time, you're not aiming high enough." Alan Kay.
Rob Grainger wrote:
Python is not an FP language
I stand corrected - I have seen it used like a true FP language, in fact, it was promoted at my previous job as an FP language, but I never really looked into it, so thank you for correcting my ignorance. :) Marc
Testers Wanted!
Latest Article: User Authentication on Ruby on Rails - the definitive how to
My Blog -
Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
So you are a young pup then... I am 56 and back in school to get my Bachelor degree. I started before there were PCs (about a year before the Altair) and used CP/M, MS-DOS, Windows 386, and yes the Amiga OS. BTW - The Amiga OS was not in any way UNIX-based. I had the original 1000 model and a 3000. It was where I taught myself C programming, which I later used when I started using UNIX (SYSV.2) at work. You may have thought it was UNIX-based because a lot of open source utilities from the UNIX world were ported to it, like Emacs and GNU C, but a few utilities does not an OS make. I will stop learning when I die, or get Alzheimer's, whichever comes first. Mike
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
Hi, First question is why? (never too old to learn ... moving to a new country and learning the culture and language may be more fun) I am in my 50's having started with computers in 1966 (IBM 1401,IBM 1410 & IBM 360-50) I (with 2 others) wrote a multi-user virtual memory operating system and a FORTRAN 4 compiler for a mini computer system since any available system at the time sucked (worse than dos) Suggest looking into the current marketplace such as IOS, Android, window8(phone/tablet etc). Lots of tools available, some free Write some apps and maybe make some or even a lot of money.
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Joan Murt wrote:
If you want suffering you can always go to debian.
Or, if you want true hell, go to Gentoo. Of course, you will have to cancel all your plans in the foreseeable future so you have time to maintain it.
I started on Ubuntu at 46; I was also retraining myself from an imaging/bio/C programmer to a software generalist. I now have double the wage and double the fun. From Ubuntu, I've gone to building OS's from scratch(heavily mutated LFS), and delving into the minds and experience of very much more experienced Linux specialists. At work.(We use a lot of windows too). At home I run Ubuntu throughout(apart from being one of the lucky people to pick up a HP Touchpad in the fire sale with Web OS). I've even been adventurous and built systems which are outside the Ubuntu/Linux hardware comfort zone. So, no, it's not too late, but the sooner the better. The only problem you will face is trying to keep a straight face when somebody is talking about windows, and not swearing too much when windows swallows resources(the little man goes out back to fetch another box of electrons, don't bother ringing the bell again, he'll be back as soon as he can with your GUI.)
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Rob Grainger wrote:
Python is not an FP language
I stand corrected - I have seen it used like a true FP language, in fact, it was promoted at my previous job as an FP language, but I never really looked into it, so thank you for correcting my ignorance. :) Marc
Testers Wanted!
Latest Article: User Authentication on Ruby on Rails - the definitive how to
My BlogWhat a welcome change, I'm getting used to vociferous opposition when I correct something on the intertubes. Thank you.
"If you don't fail at least 90 percent of the time, you're not aiming high enough." Alan Kay.
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
If you are used to windows start with Linux Mint with MATE. Nice familiar desktop interface. (In MATE 1.6 to get windows key to bring up applications menu use dconf-editor, go to settings for org > mate > Marco > global-keybindings and set panel_main_menu to be Super_L )
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Having used all the flavours of Windows since Windows 3.1 right up to Windows 8 and having used Amiga OS 1.3 to 3.9 before then I'm wondering if it's time to try a Linux distro. What I'm wondering is, have I left it too late at the age of 50 to start to get into the intricacies of Linux and which distro would be a good one to start with? I don't mind getting my hands 'dirty' with writing scripts and using a CLI as I've done this before on the Amiga (which was Unix based) and on Wind :-O ows. Any thoughts?
I would suggest MINT and dual-boot. It's painless.