How old are we?

[therunnyman]

Blessings on your house, before I proceed...

That done, I ask how old we are because when I first started with Ubuntu, I knew what a command line was. That's something, I realize in retrospect, I took for granted. If you were introduced to computers after 1995, you may very well have never used a command line to do anything, let alone configure your system on first boot.

I propose this: a little sticky about Terminal, and what it's all about. As I leafed through the other (wonderful) stickys, I saw mention of a command line, and this crazy thing called Terminal, but nothing on how to get one.

If I'm wrong, disregard, or, alternatively, flame. I'm going to drink my cocoa now, and read Deuteronomy.

therunnyman

[nalmeth]

Someone wrote an excellent guide into learning the terminal in ubuntuforums, but don't have the exact link. There are many out there, though there are a lot of question's here about the terminal.
The hope is that we can get this distro going with as little terminal work as possible, but it seems to be unavoidable at times. I for one think that even a little basic terminal knowledge goes a long way.

[therunnyman]

I for one think that even a little basic terminal knowledge goes a long way.

Excellent statement.

therunnyman

[PriceChild]

haven't read it thoroughly yet, though i really should: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=73885

Pricey (18 btw)

[steve.horsley]

I don't hold with this new-fangled GUI stuff. It's not real computing. You can't get a GUI on a teletype.

[erniewinner]

i remember the command line... so i bought an atari st as even gem was better than being stuck with dos. i see ubuntu's command line though as an iprovement on that. it's the first time i've been able to grap these things but i thank god for a gui, even in brown! :D

[Jedeye]

I am just starting to pick the command line up a little now... my biggest obstacle was to stop just copying and pasting, and start reading it!

[PriceChild]

I am just starting to pick the command line up a little now... my biggest obstacle was to stop just copying and pasting, and start reading it!

Ha ha yeah i second that! I'm only just starting to install downloaded debs, and use apt-get on the command line without having to look it up each time :)

Slowly but surely :)

Pricey

[nalmeth]

Ha ha yeah i second that! I'm only just starting to install downloaded debs, and use apt-get on the command line without having to look it up each time :)

Slowly but surely :)

Pricey

apt-cache search
is a great utility. I don't think I've installed many - if any - programs with synaptic.
just apt-cache search possible_name

[stoeptegel]

video.google.com has some command-line vids when you search for ubuntu or edubuntu.

We should hava some own movies made with istanbul. (unfortunately my english speaking is not good enough)

[therunnyman]

video.google.com has some command-line vids when you search for ubuntu or edubuntu.

We should hava some own movies made with istanbul. (unfortunately my english speaking is not good enough)

There's an idea! I'm ugly, and have the raspy voice of imminent death, so I can't do it.

By the way, stoeptege, your English is better than any language that I'm supposed to know how to speak. For example:

Yo tengo un lapiz. Mi lapiz es amarillo.
Ach! Meine katzen sind schmutzig!
Est-ce que vous travailliez?

Ciao,

therunnyman

[PriceChild]

apt-cache search
is a great utility. I don't think I've installed many - if any - programs with synaptic.
just apt-cache search possible_name

That's a nice one :) Still, you can search the description when searching for packages than in synaptic, so will stick to the gui on that one :)

[pbaehr]

The command line interface is exactly what drew me to Linux recently. I have fond memories of working with the command line back in the days when PCs ran DOS and later Windows on top of DOS. Once Windows became the primary OS the command line feature was reduced to a footnote in the "Accessories -> System Tools" folder on the start menu.

I came to Ubuntu because I missed the endless tinkering I did in the 80's and early 90's writing batch files and customizing my computer. I was not intimidated by a command line because it's where I started out, but I never knew how powerful a command line could be until I came to Linux.

Yeah, the GUI is nice for day to day use but I always drop back out to a good ol' fashion white on black system prompt whenever I need to do any configuration or set up new programs.

btw, to answer your original question, I'm 25.

[djsroknrol]

Does a Timex Sinclair ZX80 date me?...:)...the command line is very easy for me.....

[davebgimp]

I recall hiding in my basement programming my own text games with my Commodore Vic20 and a tape drive (aka a glorified tape recorder). I was copying straight from a book, so my knowledge was slim. High tech programming was getting my name to print out over and over, filling up the monitor screen ;) . It's good to think I've progressed slightly.

Hey, I owned the original Pong! Just think, a device as big as today's Xbox, but all it did was play one game!

[PriceChild]

Hey, I owned the original Pong! Just think, a device as big as today's Xbox, but all it did was play one game!

I would defo swap my xbox for that lol! But only cuz i'm the proud owner of a 360 ;)

[zerhacke]

Does a Timex Sinclair ZX80 date me?...:)...the command line is very easy for me.....
Only as much as my Tandy TRS-80 dates me. Which *STILL* runs, mind you.

[gr0kzer0]

Here are a few clues to my age: my 1st computer was a ZX Spectrum, xmas gift from my dad. Before that, i wanted a ZX81 when they first came out. After school i'd go to the library to mess with their TRS80. Oh, the joys of PEEKing and POKEing! At school, we were taught Computer Studies on BBC-B micros. This was in the UK. I got grade B in my Computer Studies GCE O-level.

[Papa-san]

I remember going into the University Nevada Reno computer lab when I was in fifth grade. My best friend's father worked there, and we used to play games that would blow away 'Pong'! But considering the fact that we had 45 tons of hardware at our disposal, that wasn't surprising... I think I have the same computing power, if not more sitting in my lap right now...

I'm pushing forty... :rolleyes:

BTW... Command line scares me silly... However, I wouldn't hesitate to tinker with the vasculature within the confines of your thoracic cavity!

[garner_nc]

My first computer was a TI-4A. Learned my first programming on it and saved everything to a cassette drive. I spent many wonderful days hacking away on that thing. Never pursued programming as a career. It's still just a hobby.
I got started on Linux through a book from "Workgroup Solutions" which came packaged with CD's for a Slackware based install. Kernel 1.2.13. Had to hand configure the Xfree86 config file.
As of Monday I'm 46.

All the Best,
Doug White

[therunnyman]

Hi all,

I had an Amiga! And then a 95 box. All I wanted to do was write, so it was one of those, "Dude, you think Hemmingway modded his typewriter out? Heck no! With a worse word than 'heck' yet!" Little did I know I'd be sitting atop a pile of articles and books about computers in 2006.

So, yeah, I'm gonna rephrase. Someone really needs to put a tiny sticky about the command line/Terminal up there. Even just: "The terminal is located in Applications-->Accessories. You wil use this quite a bit, so get comfy, and type something."

therunnyman

[IYY]

I'm 19, but I do remember using DOS on my old 286. Of course, I couldn't do much (what do you expect, 7 years old at the time): could type the commands to run games, could delete and move files, and use norton commander.

[dcstar]

Does a Timex Sinclair ZX80 date me?...:)...the command line is very easy for me.....
Yep, it sure does..... (that membrane keyboard and the 1K of RAM were a bit of a limitation, though.......) ;)

I now wish I'd kept the software for my Osbourne Executive, it still boots up but I can't do anything with it! (and I think my current digital watch has more processing power.........)

Ahhh, CP/M 3, now there was a powerful operating system.........

[Basu]

My first computer at home was a p3 with 64 RAM and crappy win98. Before that I used DOS once a week at school comp classes, although all we did was play silly math and letter games. I'll be 18 in july,

[jethro10]

Does a Timex Sinclair ZX80 date me?...:)...the command line is very easy for me.....
Yep, remember them. It had a big lump on top didn't it. This was removed for the ZX81.

[RRS]

I had a semester of "programming" in high school, learned (a little) about Basic while the advanced students were learning Fortran and Cobal.

Finally decided to join the twentieth century about a year and a half ago and purchased my first home PC. Still catching up :)