10 years of linux, or how you can waste time slowly

Lich · 2009-10-09 16:44:58

So, not that many of you would care, but this month I have a rather odd anniversary: it was 10 years ago that I laid eyes on my first Linux ditribution, and it was the thing that "started it all" for me. I was in the 9th grade, still using Windows, but I had access to a Redhat box, and I loved it. I remember playing Sokoban a lot on it, and I seem to remember Netscape. I also remember BitchX, but that was years after.
Any man would consider this a happy occasion, but I do not. Why? Because apart from some stuff that you learn as you go on, stuff that you need to learn in order to maintain your system in working condition, apart from that I feel like I've learned nothing. It's not Linux's fault, but my own, simply because I've spent years making sure that my box looks " bitchin' ", and spent alot less time actually learning what I was supposed to in the first place.

So, what do I have after 10 years?
I suck at firewall-ing, I'm certaintly more pro-efficient with Ubuntu's Firestarter frontend, or even with ZoneAlarm on Windows, than I am with, let's say, PF. I'm ashamed to say that I've always chosen the easy path: no open ports on my main box, rather than learning how to configure a secure machine.
I can make Gnome look 10 times better than Vista, but I don't think I've spent more than 10 minutes inside GConf. I have used ALL mainstream aswell as less known window managers, and learned how to configure them all. All this just to be back at my first love (used Kde/Gnome before): Ratpoison!
I have made atleast 1000 different font configurations, just to fall back to Monospace which I simply love (apart from the damn # beeing italic and the @ beeing horizontally squashed instead of a nice round shape!).
I have edited so many different xinitrc's and xorg.conf's that I could print an alternative Bible in 8 point font.
I have probably written so many Xdefaults color schemes that could easily fill an alternative New Testament in the forementioned Bible.
I have changed so many wallpapers that I could cover my city in A4 paper if I were to print them.
I have switched/reinstalled distros so many times that I could make a whole happy relationship out of the spare time I wasted.
I have read and written the word "theme" so many times that I could probably do a `find /` and i'll still get less characters.
And last but not least, this was not only a waste of time, but a waste of good health. I spent time in a hospital because of the lost nights, junk food and the freaking tons of Cola drinks.

Do I feel sad about these past years? Yes and no. Yes because I wasted them instead of learning, and no because I love *NIX and I don't see myself leaving "the scene" in the near future. All I need to do is stop doing useless stuff, and I beg of you to consider doing the same.

Don't sit for hours infront of your computer setting useless stuff up, like conky bars, window manager configs and the likes. All you have to gain from this is a few thanks and a few "WOW!'s" in the Screenshot's section. That's all! You may be as ignorant as to say that you do that because "you like a nice looking box", but Linux is all about the learning. Leave the configuring as your last "TODO", or as a first only if you intend to leave it like that, because you could end up like me, with nothing to show for after 10 years. Out of experience I can say that no matter how much work you put into a theme/style/setup, you will always find something in someone else's setup that you like, and start setting stuff up again. This never ends!
I'm not that idiotic as to think that you are ALL like me, maybe some of you actually do learn stuff and don't just set stuff up, but the rest, take my advice, and use `man` as often as you can.

What I have learned is programming. I started programming in the 4th grade on a Spectrum clone, but I started doing "hardcore" programming like..6 years ago. I'm only a medium sized coder, simply because, as with Linux, I've wasted time learning a lot of different programming languages instead of concentrating on one, then moving on. That's all that I (kinda) have to show for. Why "kinda"? Because none of my codes look "professional". Sure, they work, but they lack in the efficiency/optimisation department (have a look at BareWM...lolage on me!)

I don't exactly expect any replies, this was my way of "releasing the load", but feel free to say anything you like, be it advice or sharing your own experiences.

Last edited by Lich (2009-10-09 16:57:08)

Allan · 2009-10-09 16:47:44

tl;dr

Lich · 2009-10-09 16:49:13

Allan wrote:

tl;dr

Doesn't matter, I can asure you it needs no moderation

dyscoria · 2009-10-09 17:02:54

In the last 2 years i've gone through a voyage of discovering linux, followed by endless tinkering (also known as time wasting), followed by where i'm at now: spending a reasonable amount of time at my computer. I no longer find the need to try every single distro, DE, WM, wallpaper, theme, font or application. I no longer find the need to make my own PKGBUILDS for everything outside of [base] just to cut down on dependencies (saving all of 1mb in HDD space) or because I think it hasn't been compiled in the most ideal manner.

I'm now using KDE from the repo, with a practically default desktop, with the default wallpaper, default theme, and the only things I have self compiled are mplayer and the kernel. Wow, times have changed!

Not a completely useless journey... I did learn BASH along the way!

Lich · 2009-10-09 17:05:22

dyscoria wrote:

In the last 2 years i've gone through a voyage of discovering linux, followed by endless tinkering (also known as time wasting), followed by where i'm at now: spending a reasonable amount of time at my computer. I no longer find the need to try every single distro, DE, WM, wallpaper, theme, font or application. I no longer find the need to make my own PKGBUILDS for everything outside of [base] just to cut down on dependencies (saving all of 1mb in HDD space) or because I think it hasn't been compiled in the most ideal manner.
I'm now using KDE from the repo, with a practically default desktop, with the default wallpaper, default theme, and the only things I have self compiled are mplayer and the kernel. Wow, times have changed!
Not a completely useless journey... I did learn BASH along the way!

I wish I hadn't spent 10 years to get to where you got in 2, that's all. Congrats on realising what should be obvious: useless is useless still.

Last edited by Lich (2009-10-09 17:06:12)

Ghost1227 · 2009-10-09 17:43:02

Hmm... I'm not sure what to say given that I don't remotely agree with our outlook on the situation. That said, congratulations on 10 years (whether you want it or not). I remember my ten year mark, I guess it really wasn't that long ago. No life changing revelations for me though. Even now, several years beyond that, I still insist on trying every new/improved DE/WM (although I still stick with Openbox as my favorite). While I don't try every theme available, I certainly do create enough of them. I've never been one to try every new application (although I do have a weakness for command line apps), and although I do create quite a few of my own PKGBUILDs I believe it's excusable given that I'm a TU. Finally, while I did the same thing as you, hoping around from language to language, I wouldn't say that it has been a complete waste. True I'm not a true master of any language (although I'm pretty good with a few), but I would say I'm a jack of all trades!

Lich · 2009-10-09 17:48:00

I didn't say the language hopping was a waste, only that I could have learned less but better. That's one of the few things I'm grateful for..the fact that I can code some stuff. Also my lament has nothing to do with life changing revelations, this is strictly related to my "computer life". Apart from that I have a job that's not related to programming, but it is related to computers, I'm in a loving relationship (still ), it's all fine. My problems are related to the time wasted for useless stuff computer/Linux-wise, the rest of my life went ok along the way (apart from the hospital trip)

Last edited by Lich (2009-10-09 17:49:42)

Jamie · 2009-10-09 17:56:22

Congratulations on ten years with Linux Lich. 2009 marks ten years for myself also. It's been fun.
I've basically covered it all in the last ten years. The high spots for me have been Slackware, which I ran for several years until Ubuntu came out, and FreeBSD (funny as Slackware & FreeBSD are similar). I've ran Ubuntu since it first came out. I don't hate Ubuntu or anything but I have a lot of "faults" with it. About a month ago I discovered Arch and can say it's everything I've ever wanted in Linux and has ended my distribution search. It's simple, minimal, current, and non-branded for the most part. Everything I want.
I don't "tinker" with my system the way I've always done for years now. I do a bit of game programming and a lot of music recording and just the basic emailing, surfing, etc. that you do with a computer.
I don't feel like I've wasted any time in the last ten years. I've learned a lot about *NIX and learned that it's, by far, my favorite OS .

Last edited by Jamie (2009-10-09 18:02:33)

Gen2ly · 2009-10-09 17:57:10

Ah, we all learn. There's no really helping that. I'm guessing you learned what you didn't expect to. The human being grows in ways we cannot understand for what is best for us. I'm not particularly good at one thing. I design a bit and can do ok. Learning bash scripting which I like alot but is going slow. But I'm enjoying the journey. Hopefully the summation of my teachings/exercises will matriculate into something useful but I have no hope of that. It either does or it doesn't.

Last edited by Gen2ly (2009-10-09 17:58:38)

Lich · 2009-10-09 18:06:51

@Jamie: well happy "birthday" to you too then . I may have been a bit harsh on myself, I have learned stuff, but not nearly enough as one might expect from someone that's been tinkering with Linux for 10 years...I just realised I miss my first distro, hopefully I can get my hands on a Redhat 5.1 iso and make a VM out of it for nostalgia's sake.
@Gen2ly: http://tldp.org/LDP/abs/abs-guide.pdf << does wonders

Last edited by Lich (2009-10-09 18:07:30)

Ashren · 2009-10-09 18:18:02

Tinkering with Linux is not useless at all. I just got a trainee position as a Linux/HP-UX/AIX admin for a major enterprise setup.

Had I not spent the last 3-4 years tinkering with Linux (and mainly Arch Linux) I would never have gotten where I am now, since my educational background has absolutely nothing to do with computing (the interest has always been there, though).

Linux tinkering time is (can be) time well spent - in my opinion.

Lich · 2009-10-09 18:33:43

Ashren wrote:

Linux tinkering time is (can be) time well spent - in my opinion.

It most certaintly can be well spent, but I haven't done that enough. I will stop playing with my setups and actually learn some stuff. Hopefully Arch treats me well and I won't switch for years to come ( I had a relapse a few months ago ). Distro hopping is another thing I'm sick of.

Jamie · 2009-10-09 18:41:15

Lich wrote:

Distro hopping is another thing I'm sick of.

I agree with you totally there.
I think one has to hop until they find one they really, and I mean "really" like. Then, let it go, "use" what you have. I've found through the years that I could never really get anything "done" for erasing, reformatting, installing something new, ended up being junk, etc. Was a horrible cycle for a long time.
Now, all I'm interested in is setting my box up (which it is) with a distribution I love (thank you Arch) and "using" it. Now let the game programming and music recording flow .

Last edited by Jamie (2009-10-09 18:42:53)

tomk · 2009-10-09 20:21:56

Allan wrote:

tl;dr

ditto - and also, get a blog... please!

Lich · 2009-10-09 20:24:49

tomk wrote:

Allan wrote:
tl;dr
ditto - and also, get a blog... please!

Nah, I despise blogs

ataraxia · 2009-10-09 21:16:39

Lich wrote:

I will stop playing with my setups and actually learn some stuff.

Playing with setups, if you play with the right things, can prepare you well for employment as a sysadmin. All my formal education was for development, but I now work as a sysadmin, based solely on my 12 years of hacking around on my own boxes.

Anikom15 · 2009-10-09 21:23:16

Lich wrote:

tomk wrote:
Allan wrote:
tl;dr
ditto - and also, get a blog... please!
Nah, I despise blogs

THEN WHY DO YOU BLOG ON MAH INTERWEBZ?

linkmaster03 · 2009-10-09 21:41:50

It is definitely easy to waste time perfecting a theme, or trying out WMs.

I think a lot of my learning has come from projects that I come up with. When there is something I think would make common tasks easier/faster to complete, or something I want to provide for other people, I commit myself to it. These projects are also how I've been learning Python.

I recently thought up an idea for a small website. When I wanted dynamic content, I learned some basic Apache configuration for running Python files, and how to use Python to display a web page. I built on my very basic HTML/CSS knowledge designing the simple, yet sleek interface. (I also learned to hate IE even more, as anyone developing for the web will.) There is even a little bit of fancy AJAX. Today or tomorrow, I'll be switching a Debian system over to Arch and setting up InspIRCd. After that I plan to learn a little bit of iptables to secure the box for the web.

Programming projects keep me learning new things every day. I learn a lot, and end up with a great product.

Last edited by linkmaster03 (2009-10-09 21:43:06)

Themaister · 2009-10-09 23:37:52

I've found my "theme". I always come back to Shiki Colors for GTK+ and HandelGotDLig for font. It simply reeks of perfection in my eyes. :V Well, with the 1.5 years I've had with Arch, I've learned alot about networking, Linux in general, and how to see solutions when it comes to computing. If you had fun tweaking themes, it's not wasted time :')

Last edited by Themaister (2009-10-09 23:38:17)

jasonwryan · 2009-10-09 23:45:48

If constantly tweaking the appearance of your setup leads you to start trying to figure out how stuff actually works, then that has to be a good thing, right?

However you get into it is cool. Not everyone will feel comfortable with iptables or esoteric scripting. The important thing is that they are free to do what they want; even if, after 10 years, they feel they have wasted a lot of that time. I mean, it is yours to waste as you see fit, after all...

Army · 2009-10-10 00:38:09

Lich wrote:

Apart from that I have a job that's not related to programming, but it is related to computers, I'm in a loving relationship

You are WAY too hard to yourself! You are in a loving realtionship! Many people cannot say this about themselves! Try to keep this, spend time for it.
The only thing that matters is, ARE YOU HAPPY RIGHT NOW? If not, then you still have the chance to do something about it. If yes, then maybe all you did in the past lead to exactly this. Just think about it, if you are happy now, fuck the past and go on. Simple as that. We aren't on this planet to make things worse than they actually are. We are here to be good to each other, to love, share, help, ... If you are kinda addicted to sitting in front of the computer, go out there and do sports or find something else which makes you feel alive. Live your life, no matter what's in the past, live it until it's over. If you regret everything you did, then it is already.

I have found my perfect desktop, openbox, no borders, no title, nothing, simply openbox with a small conky on the bottom (about 16 pixels high). That's it. I use many cli apps in urxvt, which is transparent and shows people I love. I see this background almost always and it's pretty nice to sit on the computer. But no more configuring, compiling, ... I'm kinda happy that I cannot code. I'm pretty proud that I can do a little (LITTLE!!) shell scripting, which helps from time to time, and a little bit of C. But that's it, I really want to USE my laptop and now I have the perfect surface for it.

skottish · 2009-10-10 01:12:23

The title of this thread is classic. And it's just like me. Since I've started using Arch, I've gotten down to about 1% actual productivity. The rest of the time is tinkering. I don't even know what I'm trying to accomplish anymore. I just know that nothing's quite right and I have to do something about it.

Xyne · 2009-10-10 01:16:51

skottish wrote:

The title of this thread is classic. And it's just like me. Since I've started using Arch, I've gotten down to about 1% actual productivity. The rest of the time is tinkering. I don't even know what I'm trying to accomplish anymore. I just know that nothing's quite right and I have to do something about it.

Have you considered a career in politics?

zowki · 2009-10-10 04:20:37

Thank you for writing this. You have really inspired me. I realized how much time I myself have been wasting and now I'm going to seriously start learning linux and programming instead of messing with cool themes!

Lich · 2009-10-10 04:57:00

@Army: As I said, this thread reffers only to my computing life. This dissapointment has not reflection in my real life whatsoever. I don't spend nearly as much time on the computer as I used to, I try to keep the miss happy, keep me happy, and above all, I try to take care of my health. Having a job helps my "addiction" anyway, since I can dedicate that time to Linux. When I come home, apart from some casual forum browsing and email checking I don't do anything computer related.
@zowki: Well, this wasn't intended to go so far as to inspire people, but I'm glad it helped you. All I did is share my story, if you feel that it helps your ways, then you're really welcomed
@skottish: Sarcasm?!

Last edited by Lich (2009-10-10 05:05:09)

Arch Linux

#1 2009-10-09 16:44:58

10 years of linux, or how you can waste time slowly

#2 2009-10-09 16:47:44

Re: 10 years of linux, or how you can waste time slowly

#3 2009-10-09 16:49:13

Re: 10 years of linux, or how you can waste time slowly

#4 2009-10-09 17:02:54

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#5 2009-10-09 17:05:22

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#6 2009-10-09 17:43:02

Re: 10 years of linux, or how you can waste time slowly

#7 2009-10-09 17:48:00

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#8 2009-10-09 17:56:22

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#9 2009-10-09 17:57:10

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#10 2009-10-09 18:06:51

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#11 2009-10-09 18:18:02

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#12 2009-10-09 18:33:43

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#13 2009-10-09 18:41:15

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#14 2009-10-09 20:21:56

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#15 2009-10-09 20:24:49

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#16 2009-10-09 21:16:39

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#17 2009-10-09 21:23:16

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#18 2009-10-09 21:41:50

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#19 2009-10-09 23:37:52

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#20 2009-10-09 23:45:48

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#21 2009-10-10 00:38:09

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#22 2009-10-10 01:12:23

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#23 2009-10-10 01:16:51

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#24 2009-10-10 04:20:37

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#25 2009-10-10 04:57:00

Re: 10 years of linux, or how you can waste time slowly

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