Need help with learning linux and how to put it on my mac.

bigMAC28 · Jan 30, 2013

I want to be able to boot linux from my mac. I would like to use the OPT key on startup to decide which to boot from. I am having speed issues with my mac so i plan on doing a clean install this weekend. the way i would like my 500gig harddrive setup would be

75% OSX ML
25% Ubuntu ( or other version of linux depending on the best one, Suggestions)

I am very new to linux, and would like to learn more about it to further my career. Hence, why I am installing linux. I know there is a way that you download a special app that runs on startup that you have the option on which OS you want to boot from. I don't want to do that. I tried googling this issue and it seems WAY too confusing. Any help would be appreciated.

-Mike

TonyC28 · Nov 16, 2022

I like resurrecting old threads as long as the topic is relevant. This is definitely the oldest I'm bringing back to life.

I'm 41 and recently went "back to school", which is to say I am taking classes online to better prepare myself for the future. I'm in my second class now and it's learning Linux. I am feeling pretty lost but am starting to grasp the basics. Certainly my biggest problem is I don't use Linux ever, except for the class. I have a brand new Windows laptop sitting in a box so I was thinking of putting Linux on it to tinker, if that's even possible. So, does anyone know of things a person can do with Linux to learn it? What can a person even do to tinker and learn as they go?

millerj123 · Nov 16, 2022

TonyC28 said:
I like resurrecting old threads as long as the topic is relevant. This is definitely the oldest I'm bringing back to life.

I'm 41 and recently went "back to school", which is to say I am taking classes online to better prepare myself for the future. I'm in my second class now and it's learning Linux. I am feeling pretty lost but am starting to grasp the basics. Certainly my biggest problem is I don't use Linux ever, except for the class. I have a brand new Windows laptop sitting in a box so I was thinking of putting Linux on it to tinker, if that's even possible. So, does anyone know of things a person can do with Linux to learn it? What can a person even do to tinker and learn as they go?

Since MacOS is certified Unix, why not just use the command line?

You're taking a class, so that's a start, but what do you hope to accomplish? Linux is great both server side and embedded, but your Mac can usually do the same thing with less effort since it's already running.

Also, great zombified thread

TonyC28 · Nov 16, 2022

millerj123 said:
Since MacOS is certified Unix, why not just use the command line?

You're taking a class, so that's a start, but what do you hope to accomplish? Linux is great both server side and embedded, but your Mac can usually do the same thing with less effort since it's already running.

Also, great zombified thread

Essentially my job is slowly being replaced by automation and technology. So it’s time to make myself valuable for the inevitable future. But for the moment what I really hope to accomplish is passing this class and knowing Linux well.

Can the MacOS command line do what Linux does?

millerj123 · Nov 16, 2022

TonyC28 said:
Essentially my job is slowly being replaced by automation and technology. So it’s time to make myself valuable for the inevitable future. But for the moment what I really hope to accomplish is passing this class and knowing Linux well.

Can the MacOS command line do what Linux does?

So, no. It is its own certified Unix, Linux is not, but does other things. What this means is that if you want to learn Unix, MacOS is good. If you want to learn Linux and all it’s quirks, you need to learn your specific version and distro.

TonyC28 · Dec 3, 2022

millerj123 said:
So, no. It is its own certified Unix, Linux is not, but does other things. What this means is that if you want to learn Unix, MacOS is good. If you want to learn Linux and all it’s quirks, you need to learn your specific version and distro.

I’ve actually found that for some of the basics, like file system navigation, Terminal is pretty close to Linux. I’ve started playing there and it helps for learning.

millerj123 · Dec 4, 2022

TonyC28 said:
I’ve actually found that for some of the basics, like file system navigation, Terminal is pretty close to Linux. I’ve started playing there and it helps for learning.

I’m getting confused. Terminal is one application to get to the command line. One application is nothing like an operating system. Now, you can run all the built-in applications, and many of them will be close enough that if you are following a Linux primer of some sort, it should generally work, but you will eventually start running into version issues where the guide says “use flag -f” and the Mac version only supports flag -F.

You’ll find the same things if the versions are different even on a Linux install.

What guide are you using to learn?

TonyC28 · Dec 4, 2022

millerj123 said:
I’m getting confused. Terminal is one application to get to the command line. One application is nothing like an operating system. Now, you can run all the built-in applications, and many of them will be close enough that if you are following a Linux primer of some sort, it should generally work, but you will eventually start running into version issues where the guide says “use flag -f” and the Mac version only supports flag -F.

You’ll find the same things if the versions are different even on a Linux install.

What guide are you using to learn?

Oh I’m not saying Terminal is Linux, just that you can practice very basic Linux 101 stuff in Terminal.

millerj123 · Dec 4, 2022

TonyC28 said:
Oh I’m not saying Terminal is Linux, just that you can practice very basic Linux 101 stuff in Terminal.

Well, ok. Unix is the standard, Linux is a hybrid. If you want to learn Linux, cool, but it will be its own beast. If you want to learn Unix, there something else again. I can help, but need specifics: what distro, version, etc.

popup · Dec 4, 2022

Well, they say "If you want to learn Red Hat use Red Hat, if you want to learn Linux use Slackware". There are many Linux distros and many desktop environments. It depends on what you want to achieve by learning Linux. One common thing between almost all Linux distros (also BSD, MacOS etc.) is the shell. Command line utilities are standard with some (minor) differences . In the majority of Linux distributions Bash is the default shell and in MacOS since 2019 the default shell is zsh. If you know your way around CLI, then you will make it in any DE.
Linux From Scratch is a hard way to learn Linux but you will learn the very basics.

cyb3rdud3 · Dec 4, 2022

TonyC28 said:
I like resurrecting old threads as long as the topic is relevant. This is definitely the oldest I'm bringing back to life.

I'm 41 and recently went "back to school", which is to say I am taking classes online to better prepare myself for the future. I'm in my second class now and it's learning Linux. I am feeling pretty lost but am starting to grasp the basics. Certainly my biggest problem is I don't use Linux ever, except for the class. I have a brand new Windows laptop sitting in a box so I was thinking of putting Linux on it to tinker, if that's even possible. So, does anyone know of things a person can do with Linux to learn it? What can a person even do to tinker and learn as they go?

If you have a Windows Laptop just enable WSL2, Windows Subsystem for Linux. The Microsoft App Store has ready distribution that you can install.

Things to do with Linux to learn it? Hmm nah, you are going wrong about it. It is just an operating system, what is it that you want to do? Now, think about that that the majority of servers around the world run Linux....If you don't know what servers are and what use cases they serve (pardon the pun) then that is likely where you should start...

salamanderjuice · Dec 5, 2022

millerj123 said:
Well, ok. Unix is the standard, Linux is a hybrid. If you want to learn Linux, cool, but it will be its own beast. If you want to learn Unix, there something else again. I can help, but need specifics: what distro, version, etc.

Unix WAS the standard. Linux now IS the standard. There's a reason it's a class on Linux and not Unix.

Theres definitely similarities between the two but there's also a lot subtle differences that are likely to get you burned. Things like the GNU utilities having different options than the BSD versions Apple ships, Zsh vs. BASH scripting, file system layout, systemd vs launchd.

Easiest way to learn Linux is to use it. Not all laptops run Linux equally well. Most distros have what is called a Live CD/USB where you can test what works before you install, make sure stuff like the brightness keys works, wifi, Bluetooth etc.

Arctic Moose · Dec 5, 2022

I'll echo what others have already said.

Where to start will vary greatly depending on your goals. If you want to become a fullstack LAMP developer you will start at one end, if you want to play first-person shooters you will start somewhere else, if you want to be a penetration tester you would probably start by installing Kali and if you want to get into home automation you could start with Home Assistant and work backwards from there to choose a suitable distro.

millerj123 · Dec 5, 2022

salamanderjuice said:
Unix WAS the standard. Linux now IS the standard. There's a reason it's a class on Linux and not Unix.

Theres definitely similarities between the two but there's also a lot subtle differences that are likely to get you burned. Things like the GNU utilities having different options than the BSD versions Apple ships, Zsh vs. BASH scripting, file system layout, systemd vs launchd.

Easiest way to learn Linux is to use it. Not all laptops run Linux equally well. Most distros have what is called a Live CD/USB where you can test what works before you install, make sure stuff like the brightness keys works, wifi, Bluetooth etc.

Which Linux is the standard?

salamanderjuice · Dec 5, 2022

millerj123 said:
Which Linux is the standard?

Which UNIX is the standard? Different vendors had/have changes between them. Some have multiple like Apple. There stopped being a UNIX standard the moment there was more than one vendor.

Linux distros aren't much different. There's more similarity between Fedora and Ubuntu than Ubuntu and MacOS.

millerj123 · Dec 5, 2022

salamanderjuice said:
Which UNIX is the standard? Different vendors had/have changes between them. Some have multiple like Apple. There stopped being a UNIX standard the moment there was more than one vendor.

Linux distros aren't much different. There's more similarity between Fedora and Ubuntu than Ubuntu and MacOS.

Made me look. https://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/293396/is-there-a-linux-distro-thats-unix-certified

Gerdi · Dec 6, 2022

cyb3rdud3 said:
If you have a Windows Laptop just enable WSL2, Windows Subsystem for Linux. The Microsoft App Store has ready distribution that you can install.

To elaborate on this. Just open a PowerShell, and type "wsl --install". This gets you a Linux kernel along with Ubuntu 20.04 installed ready to use.

cyb3rdud3 · Dec 6, 2022

Gerdi said:
To elaborate on this. Just open a PowerShell, and type "wsl --install". This gets you a Linux kernel along with Ubuntu 20.04 installed ready to use.

Or in the latest Windows 11 you can even just install it straight from the App Store and get Ubuntu 22.04, don't even need to enable wsl manually etc. Although for this purpose it is a good exercise to also get familiar with Powershell and what is actually required to make this work. Good suggestion...

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