[olug] Today's recommendations for a beginner

[Tim Larson]

On 6/6/23 9:01 AM, Jared Bernard wrote:
> As someone who teaches Linux for a living, I think you offered the best
> advice. Your friend should install Linux and live in it. Do everything they
> normally do with a computer but with Linux. They should force themselves to
> do as much as possible in the command line. This will be where most of
> their learning will happen.

I have a different opinion. It depends on the user's need and goals. My 
retired, 75-year-old, substitute-librarian mother is never going to 
touch a command line. For anything. Ever. If you are teaching Linux to 
IT professionals, you could be right. But not everyone is that.

> I have found that one of the biggest struggles for newbies is understanding
> paths and using the correct path with commands. I blame modern GUI file
> managers that hide the paths by default on all platforms.

Again, I'd shift the focus of this. Has your user had trouble using 
OtherSystem™'s facilities? Would an alternate UI work better for them? 
One thing a FOSS environment has is options. Help them identify what 
will do the job they want to get done.

> Having a mentor is also extremely helpful. 



-- 
Tim Larson 📚🔭🎸🏹👨‍💻🇺🇸