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<div class="gmail_quote">On Fri, Jun 18, 2010 at 12:44 PM, Brian Pitts <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:brian@polibyte.com">brian@polibyte.com</a>></span> wrote:<br>
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<div class="im">On 06/17/2010 05:50 PM, Lenaud Hughes wrote:<br>> I'm completely new to Linux and open source software in general. Where<br>> should a novice, like myself, start in learning about the Linux OS and<br>
> participating in open source projects.<br><br></div>What are your goals? The answer to your question will vary radically<br>depending on them. It might help to talk a little about your background<br>and and what you currently do with your computer(s).<br>
<br>--<br>All the best,<br><font color="#888888">Brian Pitts</font></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="PADDING-LEFT: 1ex; MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; BORDER-LEFT: #ccc 1px solid"><font color="#888888"><font color="#000000">I want to thank everyone for their willingness to share information. With all the options available through Linux; it was becoming overwhelming trying to pick which distro to focus on. So, the responses really helped me narrow my scope.</font></font></blockquote>
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<div> Some members brought up the concept of professional vs. personal aspirations. So as Brian suggested, I'm including a little background to clarify my interest. I'm a college student. Prior to entering college I had no experience ( or interest) in coding or anything related to it. In my first semester I took an entry level course that used Java to explain different concepts and techniques within the computer science field. I fell in love with it; the problem solving, the ability to create something out of nothing, the entire process of going from problem to algorithm to code to solution.</div>
<div>I immediately changed my major to computer science and began delving into the world of software. I came across an article by Joel Spolsky spelling out the deficiencies of what he referred to as the "Java school" student. That article led me to a Paul Graham article which led me to a "How to be a Hacker" article which led me to Linux.</div>
<div>So at this point in my "career"; I'm not too worried about whether my focus will be on a commercially-viable distro or otherwise. I more concerned with just "digging in" and learning as much as I can. I'm sure once I start learning I'll be able to determine whether I need to stick with my first choice or change course.</div>
<div>Thanks again for everyone's assistance.</div>
<div> - Lenaud</div>
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