[ale] Bob Rankin-tourbus

[Paul Cartwright]

I was reading the tourbus this morning, and clicked the link for his 
linux begginers guide.. He now supports Ubuntu as the default distro 
for beginners...

----------  Forwarded Message  ----------

Subject: TOURBUS - 07 SEP 2006 - Blocking Spam / Firewalls
Date: Wed September 6 2006 10:54 pm
From: Bob Rankin <bob at tourbus.com>
To: ale at ale.org
To: TOURBUS at listserv.aol.com

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            TOURBUS Volume 12, Number 10 --- 07 Sep 2006
           Tourbus Home -- http://www.InternetTourbus.com
  [ For best results view this with a monospace font like Courier. ]
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 TODAY'S TOURBUS TOPICS: Blocking Spam / Firewalls / Linux

 

---------------------
 Linux for Beginners
---------------------

Here's a recent question from a reader:
  > "I've heard a lot of buzz about Linux as a free alternative to
  > Windows, but have hesitated because it seems a little geeky.
  > Can you recommend an easy way to get started with Linux?"

Before I address that question, here's a little background on Linux.

In the early 90s, a geek named Linus Torvalds in Helsinki thought it
would be fun to write a Unix kernel (the core of an operating system)
from scratch.  He called it Linux, and it was cool but pretty much
useless without all the utility programs needed to make it a complete
operating system.  About the same time, Richard Stallman and his pals
at the Free Software Foundation were writing a bunch of freeware Unix
utilities known as the GNU Project.  It was cool but pretty much
useless without a kernel to make it a complete operating system.

What we now know as Linux is a combination of Torvald's Linux kernel,
the GNU Project software, and other nifty software bit and pieces
developed by programmers from all around the world.  Today Linux is a
complete and reliable operating system, with a slick graphical user
interface, making it a viable alternative to Windows or the Mac OS.

So... if you're a Windows user looking for a Linux environment that's
not a radical change from what you're used to, I have some good news
for you.  New Linux variants are trying to dispense with the widely
held notion that Linux is just for geeks.  If you're ready to try a
user-friendly Linux with all the trimming, read on here:

  <a href="http://askbobrankin.com/linux_help.html">
  http://askbobrankin.com/linux_help.html </a>
 

-- 
Paul Cartwright
Registered Linux user # 367800