Brad Rodriguez at Goodbye, Microsoft notes
I just got word of this, from LifeHacker[1]:
Intro to Linux is normally a $2,400 course from the Linux Foundation, but it's being offered for free now on edX. If you've ever wanted to learn how to use the open source operating system, there's no better time than now.
The free course starts on August 1st, but to get the best experience from the class, you should install Linux on your computer before it starts. The Linux Foundation has a helpful guide [Ed's Note: Link unreliable, PDF] for doing just that so you can hit the ground running when the course starts in a couple of days.
The class is designed to give you a good working knowledge of Linux over 40 to 60 hours of course work. It's taught by Dr. Jerry Cooperstein, who oversees all the training content at the Linux Foundation. There's no syllabus for the course yet, but it promises to teach experienced computer users with little or no previous experience with Linux the ins and outs of the OS, from both a command line and graphical perspective.
The edX course is here.
Related Stories
The Linux Foundation reports
We've focused a lot of attention in recent years on making Linux learning materials more accessible to more people. This year, for example, together with our partner edX, we were able to offer our Intro to Linux course for free to nearly 300,000 people from all over the world.
While the United States ranks first in the number of students taking Intro to Linux, it only represents about 30 percent of all class participants. The top geographies include the U.S., India, United Kingdom, Brazil, and Spain. Linux attracted more people with this one course than the number of people who attended all seven games of the recent World Series combined.
What's even more overwhelming is that our Intro to Linux course saw one of the highest enrollments of any class offered on edx.org this year. It's also worth noting that while MOOCs have a reputation for low completion rates among registrants, the Linux course is ranking well above the industry average. This enthusiasm and participation bodes well for the future of Linux and the many individuals getting involved.
Related:
Free Intro to Linux Course
The Linux Foundation partnership with edX platform is expanding, and users will now get the Essentials of Linux Systems Administration (LFS201) online course.
[The Linux Foundation's courses] that help people make a career out of Linux [...] are provided in different ways, but now they are also available on edX, which is a nonprofit online learning platform launched in 2012 by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The first course was Introduction to Linux (LFS101) and the Linux Foundation says that it has been accessed by 400,000 students, which is actually a very big number. In fact, LFS101 is the biggest course on the edX platform and that says quite a lot.
"The new course, which is appropriate for those who have completed LFS101 and want to take the next step, as well as individuals who have worked in IT positions but not directly with Linux, will be offered for a fee of $499, which includes a Linux Foundation Certified System Administrator exam attempt, a $300 value which includes one free retake if not passed on the first attempt. The course will be offered at an introductory price of only $399 [until June 17]," reads the announcement for The Linux Foundation.
Related: New Linux Foundation Self-Paced Sysadmin Course to Prep you for Certification
"We Want Linux" Say 300,000 edX Students
Free Intro to Linux Course
Original Submission
(Score: 3, Funny) by Horse With Stripes on Friday August 01 2014, @11:59AM
This looks like it might be a nice, professionally presented refresher course for those of us who learn everything by putting out fires and flying by the seat of our pants. My apologies to Matt Groening:
LifeHacker: A new and better Linux awaits you at edX.
Homer: [reads link] Hmm. Makes Sense.
LifeHacker: We're having a free get-acquainted class at edX starting this Friday.
Homer: How much is this free class?
edX: It's free.
Homer: And when is this Friday?
edX: It's this Friday.
Homer: Uh-huh. And how much does it cost?
edX: Um, it's free.
Homer: I see. And when is it?
edX: It's this Friday.
Homer: And what are you charging for this free class?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @12:23PM
How much is the class and when does it start?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @12:38PM
Is this course free as in beer, or free as in speech? :-)
(Score: 3, Interesting) by strattitarius on Friday August 01 2014, @05:21PM
When I do need to work on the Linux servers it ends up being a lesson in google-fu!
Slashdot Beta Sucks. Soylent Alpha Rules. News at 11.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Thexalon on Friday August 01 2014, @12:02PM
1. Download and burn LiveDVD.
2. Insert LiveDVD into a drive and reboot/turn on the computer.
3. Wait for a while for it to get started up. You may have to tell it what language you speak and what kind of keyboard you have.
4. Try stuff out. The screen will look a little different than you're used to, but not all that different.
That's really where desktop Linux is these days - it in fact Just Works for a wide variety of uses. It's a less jarring transition from Windows or OS X to Linux than it is from Windows 7 to Windows 8.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: -1) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @12:19PM
Well, I think you are ommiting certain stuff.
I mean, I've been trying to use Linux for about 20 years now. And the problems keep coming and evolving, up to the point that I can't barely see much difference between that good old Redhat 5.1 I installed on a Pentium 100 that ended corrupting the hard disk for no good reason and the last versions that don't recognize my notebook video card, can't remember the position and rotation of my screens at the desktop, can't use my RME sound card, the weird mouse acceleration that forces me to kill it with a script at load time, etc.
That is where desktop Linux is these days, why Valve is struggling so much with Steam OS (at this point, they are probably regretting the decision to use Linux) and why nearly nobody uses it.
(Score: 4, Informative) by cafebabe on Friday August 01 2014, @01:53PM
It seems like you've been digging yourself into a proprietary hole for 20 years. A quick sanity check of "Will this piece of hardware work on another OS?" would have given you portability between operating systems. It also provides a high level of upward compatibility even if you don't switch operating system.
1702845791×2
(Score: 4, Interesting) by Blackmoore on Friday August 01 2014, @03:14PM
I'll bite the troll.
While I have seen issues with older editions of Linux and antiquated hardware; it's unrealistic to think that EVERY piece of hardware will work with *any* given OS. You wouldn't expect DOS to run on a tablet. I can find graphics cards that work perfecty fine under Linux - and i dont have to hunt for them either. So strawman #1 is disposed.
for argument #2 - "your OS doesn't do X (with the graphical manager) when i want it to" - that's a somewhat valid argument; Windows does a number of behaviors as standard. but I can just as simply argue that Win 8 defaults to a graphical interface that i too can not use; or correct it's behavior. since i have never used it; or taken the time to figure it out. Multi-screen setups under Linux are still a little screwy -depending on the graphical interface software you happen to be running. Still - they get better every month.
(Score: 1) by Freeman on Friday August 01 2014, @04:35PM
No, but I do like my DOSBox.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
(Score: 2) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @05:59PM
The public school system of Brazil uses exclusively Linux.
World's largest Linux deployment (500,000 seats in 2011). [googleusercontent.com] (orig) [lwn.net]
Millions of kids use Linux every day (and don't ever use a EULAware OS).
Too bad you're so inept.
Let me guess: You had an NTFS drive.
ntfs-3g was working perfectly by the end of 2007.
Did RedHat not include that in 5.1? (Don't know; not a RH fan.)
I'm also guessing that when you bought your lawnmower and it didn't specifically say "Fingernail trimming not supported", you went ahead and tried that.
-- gewg_
(Score: 2) by Thexalon on Friday August 01 2014, @08:13PM
No it didn't, because RedHat 5.1 was released in 1998.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 02 2014, @03:02AM
That explains a lot.
Note to self: You'll appear less foolish if you look beyond the date on the first item Google shows. [google.com]
-- gewg_
(Score: 1) by TheB on Saturday August 02 2014, @06:11AM
or trying to share a usb drive on a network.
Every year or two I have to google how to do this.
In the last 5 years I haven't noticed any improvement in Linux.
Have noticed Windows UI take a giant step backwards though.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @08:39PM
If you use BitTorrent to get your ISO file, you're golden (self-checking); otherwise, a verification of the file's checksum is advised.
Luke Pascoe's MD5Summer will even work under Windoze 9x.
There are many other choices. [alternativeto.net]
Once you have verified that what you have is NOT a pile of broken bits, tell your burner app to burn to the plastic disc AS AN IMAGE
N.B. Some software is so brain-dead that it doesn't understand *.iso; you may have to change the extension to .img.
Some software is even more brain-dead than that and you have to locate the tickbox for **do -NOT- make this a -data- disk**.
Make sure you burn at the SLOWEST speed that your rig allows.
If you have a blank thumbdrive and want to save a plastic disc, use the app UNetbootin to make your USB drive a bootable Linux instance.
-- gewg_
(Score: 1) by pogostix on Friday August 01 2014, @12:13PM
A $2500 value. Yours free! Call now :P
The stated value seems high for an online course that doesn't have a syllabus.
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @12:27PM
Introduction
Linux Philosophy and Components
Graphical Interface
System Configuration from the Graphical Interface
Command-line Operations
Finding Linux Documentation
File Operations
User Environment
Text Editors
Network Operations
Manipulating Text
Printing
Bash Shell Scripting
Advanced Bash Shell Scripting
Processes
Common Applications
Local Security Principles
Conclusion
4 days of course work enables you to manipulate files, use a text editor, and print things. No wonder Linux isn't Grandma's OS of choice yet.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @01:18PM
More like no wonder so few grandmas are sysadmins... Also I guess this is the first computer related course you've seen as they're all the same.
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Friday August 01 2014, @02:23PM
I love anti-Linux trolls who still pretend that desktop Linux is less usable than desktop Windows. Hell, I may even write a few of my own in the future --
But what's really silly is the $2400 price-tag for the course (yeah, I know it's free now, but still). You could take the exact same course at a community college. The course is typically called "Intro to Operating Systems" but almost always features Linux as the operating system and goes over all those items you posted.
Here in California it's a 3-4 semester-unit class and the resident tuition is $46 bucks a unit, which means that you can take the class for around 200-250 bucks including fees and a textbook.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @03:14PM
Using an OS is something you should know before entering high-school, not take remedially in community college.
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Friday August 01 2014, @04:51PM
Yes, in the sense that they should know how to point and click on stuff, or use simple DOS commands. When I was of pre-highschool age, only upper middle-class and rich kids had PCs at home to fuck with, but kids with lives and basic social skills played outside with other kids instead of staring at a monitor typing commands all day.
Now, thanks to the internet and cheap hardware, as well as it being illegal for kids to play outside unsupervised, there are 13 year old kids writing encrypted botnets and scientific solvers who are also building robots. All the power to them. But when I was their age, the adrenaline rush from backyard wrestling and jumping bikes was a vastly superior alternative to, say, tedious typed trial and error just to make the screen or audio blip and beep. Whoop-dee-God-damn-doo!
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Friday August 01 2014, @02:05PM
There's more.. like NetBSD, OpenBSD, FreeBSD and DragonflyBSD etc.
(Score: 3, Informative) by meisterister on Friday August 01 2014, @03:44PM
The BSDs are looking really good right now. They (or at least NetBSD) run on just about anything, are extensively user configurable, (again, I will say NetBSD because that's the one I tried) use very little system resources, don't have SystemD or any of that other secretly-proprietary-but-masquerading-as-open-source crap...
I really think that I'll go with NetBSD again when Debian adopts SystemD.
(May or may not have been) Posted from my K6-2, Athlon XP, or Pentium I/II/III.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @05:52PM
Too bad BSD ain't free.
Explaining Why We Don't Endorse Other Systems [gnu.org]
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Friday August 01 2014, @07:02PM
If binary firmwares are bad. Then the network card is also bad because I don't have its ASIC layout at hand. I would say that as soon as the kernel has to be compiled with consideration for binary drivers etc.. like with NVidia. Then you have a real problem. Now open firmware would be nice. But somewhere you have to draw a line.
The only real problem with BSDs I think is that large corporations may copy the source codes and use them in proprietary commercial offers without anything in return except compatibility by natural causes until the code bases diverge.
The problem with Linux is the messed upp order of files etc and a lot of several incompatible ways of doing the same thing. That also likes to be mutaly exclusive on the same system. And if you make a commercial product the GPL will complicate things. While with BSD you just focus on the result and then give back sanitized source code.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @03:36PM
does it require adobe flash?
can one not just sit in without registering?
is it going to be "recorded" as in "can i read it later?"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @05:19PM
Video presentations are on Youtube, so you have to be able to watch videos on Youtube, or use a "frequently available" download link. I do not know whether Flash is required, or if the videos are/can be played in HTML5.
No. You can register for edX and audit a course, though.
Maybe. The edX FAQ [edx.org] says that "many" course are archived for later use.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 02 2014, @02:01PM
Thank you : )
(Score: 2, Informative) by richtopia on Friday August 01 2014, @04:03PM
I've audited some edX classes. It takes some time but most of them allow you to download all lectures in x264 files, which you can then play in VLC or on a portable device without internet.
From my experience, unless I am really driven to learn the new topic, I try to pick classes that are less technical. That way I don't need to actively watch the whole time, and I can treat the lectures more like a television show. I really enjoyed the history of architecture class, and am currently watching the next generation infrastructure class.
I might try this Linux class similarly; I doubt I will need to sit and actively take notes but watching casually might teach me a few tricks.
(Score: 1) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 01 2014, @05:25PM
The class page doesn't say when it ends. Has anyone signed up and found out how many days/weeks/months the course lasts? 40-60 hours in four weeks is a lot different from 40-60 hours over twelve weeks.
(Score: 3, Informative) by strattitarius on Friday August 01 2014, @05:43PM
I am going to audit the course. If it actually seems like good material there is a small chance I will upgrade to the verified ID cert, just to put a recent, formal Linux training line item on my resume. That will set you back $250.
For those wondering, the $2500 number is for an instructor led course, not the online course. And you need to have a webcam and ID to verify your identify for the $250 cert.
Slashdot Beta Sucks. Soylent Alpha Rules. News at 11.