millerx Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 I have recently applied for a job as a systems analyst (entry level) with a company that uses Linux as their OS. I have never had any hands-on experience with it and was wondering what to expect? Is it difficult to learn? What would be the learning curve? Is their any advice you could give? Any places I may want to visit to ed-u-micate myself to this OS? I'm really excited about the opportunity this job holds and would appreciate any assistance from those here at the huddle? As I stated, I have absolutely no experience with it, but I am a quick learner and I am expecting at least some on-the-job training. Can anyone give me a few pointers that may help make me at least sound knowledgeable in the interview? My interview will be coming up on Monday, and any assistance would be greatly appreciated. P.S. I don't know what version they use, but is there major differences between versions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polksalet Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 I am not a real computer nerd I just use Linux because it is easy. A friend of mine has a retarted neice and they put it on her machine and it took her about five minutes to start surfing the web with it. Now I know there are differences but this is a very easy tool. Download Mepis 6.5 burn it, reboot, wait 45 seconds and everything is working. It i sjust like windows without malware and crashes and hackers, and everything bad that windows has. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABearWithFurniture Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 What version of Linux are they running? Is it a back-end solution or front-end? If it's just at a bash level on the server end, they are probably using Redhat, Suse, or possibly even SLES. You'll need to learn the basics, especially with running scripts, vi, and grep. You can build a decent cheat sheet as you go along. If you have any DOS or Unix skills they will come in handy. If it's a front-end GUI version of Linux than it's really not that much different than a windows level system...just a bit different feel. Linux and Unix intimidate a lot of folks but once you get the hang of a few commands it's really not that difficult... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
millerx Posted June 18, 2008 Author Share Posted June 18, 2008 I am not a real computer nerd I just use Linux because it is easy. A friend of mine has a retarted neice and they put it on her machine and it took her about five minutes to start surfing the web with it. Now I know there are differences but this is a very easy tool. Download Mepis 6.5 burn it, reboot, wait 45 seconds and everything is working. It i sjust like windows without malware and crashes and hackers, and everything bad that windows has. I hope it's that easy. I've heard you sing Linux's praises before (that's why I called you out). Is Mepis what you use? And you say it is just like Windows? the more help the better.... What version of Linux are they running? Is it a back-end solution or front-end? If it's just at a bash level on the server end, they are probably using Redhat, Suse, or possibly even SLES. You'll need to learn the basics, especially with running scripts, vi, and grep. You can build a decent cheat sheet as you go along. If you have any DOS or Unix skills they will come in handy. If it's a front-end GUI version of Linux than it's really not that much different than a windows level system...just a bit different feel. Linux and Unix intimidate a lot of folks but once you get the hang of a few commands it's really not that difficult... Good questions...I really don't have the answer to at this moment. I don't know what version they run. Are the versions similar? I have a very basic knowledge of DOS, but like I said, this entry level and I am hoping for OTJ training. However, the reason I even have this interview is because of having a connection with one of the higher ups in the IS department. Because of your input, I will be able to ask her those questions. I told her going in that I knew nothing of Linux, but I would like to WOW her (and them) with what I may be able to learn from now until Monday. Any other things I may need to consider? Are their any good educational sites I may use? Are all Linux versions comparable to each other, or are there major differences (i.e. Personal vs Professional)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtomicCEO Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 (edited) Red Hat does some on-line training through their website. I taught myself the basics of command line Linux, and then I've googled anything else I've needed. DOS to Linux isn't too bad. The big difference is all the file permissions stuff, and the way it mounts drives and devices basically like folders and files. If it's an entry level position, I'm sure they'll give you time to get up to speed. But my company does give a very basic Linux quiz to new hires. It couldn't hurt to know some of the basics. This page lists all of the commands I use most often: http://blog.lxpages.com/ultimate_linux.html P.S. All this is if they expect you to be a command line user of the system. You might not need to be. Ordinary users of Linux probably wouldn't. Edited June 18, 2008 by AtomicCEO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiggieFries Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 It might also help us to know what your job will entail. You said you're going for the systems analyst position. What exactly would you be doing? But using Atomic's links would probably be enough for you as I doubt you'll ever need to mount anything or upgrade kernels, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kid Cid Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 I guarantee that if you are doing anything with Linux from a system support standpoint (as opposed to just a user) you will want to learn vi. vi is a command line text editor. Once you get the hang of it, it is scads faster to open a command prompt, cd to teh proper directory, and vi the the file you need to change. Especially if it's just one line in a config file. Here is an excellent place to start learning vi: Mastering the VI editor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtomicCEO Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 I guarantee that if you are doing anything with Linux from a system support standpoint (as opposed to just a user) you will want to learn vi. vi is a command line text editor. Once you get the hang of it, it is scads faster to open a command prompt, cd to teh proper directory, and vi the the file you need to change. Especially if it's just one line in a config file. Here is an excellent place to start learning vi: Mastering the VI editor vi is a powerful tool. If you don't need to harness it's awesome power, I prefer pico. It's much more simple to grasp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonorator Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 retarted neice so does this mean she was once loose and then came back to the lifestyle? pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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