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Transcript
Note: Script used when recording the video. Actual words spoken may differ slightly.
Welcome to Linux for Everyone!
So, why Linux, and why now?
Let’s start with why now:
It’d be easy to point to Microsoft’s decision to impose additional hardware requirements in Windows 11 as perhaps one of the main reasons people like you might look for alternatives, particularly for existing computers that don’t check all the Windows 11 boxes.
While that’s certainly very real, there’s more to it than that.
There’s also a growing frustration with the Microsoft ecosystem. From unnecessary and unfriendly changes, to technologies like OneDrive, CoPilot, and more being forced on Windows users, Microsoft seems to be leaving the average consumer behind. Microsoft seems more concerned with their agenda and their bottom line than they are with the actual needs and desires of folks like you and I.
The good news is that Windows isn’t nearly as required as it once might have been. So many things we do and take for granted have moved online that the operating system running on your PC has become less and less relevant. And many of the tools we still want to run on our PCs have alternatives that don’t require Windows at all.
So, why Linux?
In part because it’s not Windows, of course. But more importantly, it’s a very powerful, mature operating system that will run on your existing Windows PC, leaving you, and not some faceless corporate, in control.
Once you start using it, you’ll find it quite comfortable, since so many of the concepts and techniques are common. You’ve got the ideas and skills down because you’re already using them.
In Linux for Everyone I want to show you exactly how reasonable a switch to Linux can be.
- Here’s what we’ll cover.
- Lesson 1: Linux – We’ll start with an overview of just what Linux is, why some people switch, and why some people don’t.
- Lesson 2: Distros – We’ll cover Linux “distributions” or “distros”, the various version of Linux available and which one you might want to use.
- Lesson 3: Live USB – Before we commit, we’ll run Linux without changing your machine at all, so you can see what it is and how it runs before making any commitments.
- Lesson 4: Back Up – Of course before we make any commitments we’ll back up your existing machine completely. I’ll walk you through it, so even after you “commit” you can still change your mind.
- Lesson 5: Installation – After we’ve prepared, we’ll install our chosen Linux distribution and boot your computer free of Windows.
- Lesson 6: Welcome to Linux – We’ll spend some time examining just what it is you have! That includes where things are, how to open apps, system tray, finding settings, and so on
- Lesson 7: Default applications – Next we’ll look at which programs replace, or are equivalent to the basic programs you’re used to running in Windows, like your web browser, email, word processing, photos viewing and more. We’ll look at where you get applications and how to install them.
- Lesson 8: “How do I…?” – We’ll review “every day tasks” in more depth, like browsing the internet, managing your email, using office applications.
- Lesson 9: Hardware – We can’t forget hardware! Plugging in USB devices, printers, and other common peripherals.
- Lesson 10: Updates – Yes, it’s important to keep Linux up to date, but it’s in your control and on your schedule.
- Lesson 11: a 30 Day Plan – 4 weeks to take your time and poke around.
- Lesson 12: Help! – Of course we’ll cover what to do with things go wrong — where to get help as well as dealing with common issues.
- Lesson 13: Undo – And yes, after all that, if you decide Linux isn’t for you we’ll walk through how to use that backup we started with as the ultimate “undo”, returning you to Windows.
I’ll also add lessons as we learn more about what’s important, what folks struggle with, or — perhaps most likely — what curveball Microsoft throws at us that makes us want to investigate the Linux alternative!
As with all my courses, once you purchase it’s yours for life (mine or yours), and you’ll get prioritized response to your questions and any support issues.
I hope to see you in the first lesson, an Overview of Linux.
