In the Works

Here at The Daily Kernel, I'm not exactly living up to my name. For one thing, I've been preoccupied with setting up my new computer, but even with that obsessive task (maybe) out of the way, it's still going to take me some time to get started. What I'm planning on here is using Twitter to provide readers with easy continuous access to a blog that breaks up linux information to be as easily digestible as possible, and assume the perspective of a desktop user, instead of a programmer. I came to Linux without any technical background, barely able to use windows. I'm now comtent at running my system but my true experise is on not being an expert. I think this means I have something of value to bring to Linux education, but it also means I'm going to need help and occasional correction.

Most of the information will be about using Linux/Unix Shell Commands, not only in shells such as BASH and ZSH, but in keyboard shortcuts, desktop launchers, menus, and scripts. Often, the same command that power the shell can be used to customize your desktop GUI to an extent not dreamed of by guys who love to bitch about how "the command line is dead." For these free thinkers, to paraphrase a great old Bea Arthur zinger from Maude, I have just "two words, a verb and a pronoun".

A beginning desktop user of Linux may be wondering if he or she really wants to learn how to use the command line. Take this simple test.

1. Are you interested in using Linux?

2. Are you a putz?

If the answer to question 1 is yes, and question 2 is no, trust me, you want to learn how to use the command line. These days, I think you can probably get by without the Command Line, but you will have more fun if you use have the option to use the CLI when it suits you. More fun is the number one reason to make the effort. I could say that the CLI saves time, but I spend as much time at the computer as I ever did, I just spend more of it doing stuff that I enjoy.

It's less effort than you think, I assure you. It took me two years to work up the initiative to learn the the command line-- and then it took me a couple of hours to step accross the threshold. Certain people have spent more effort arguing with me about why the Command Line is necessary than I spent learning it. And I didn't even have someone like me to help me.

#2 Don't Sweat it!

Relax. The Linux tips & tweetorials are cyclical. If you don't get it or aren't in the mood, it'll be coming around again. And again.

See how that works? It's not homework; you don't have to "keep up with it". Trust me, I know how hard it is force yourself to study computer documentation. Just let the tweets flow over you. Ask me questions if you have any. If you miss a few days, don't worry about getting caught up. If you already understand what's in the tweetorial, ignore it.

I'm trying to create an environment where the chances of the right information reaching you at the right moment are maximized. The current plan is to post a dozen tweetorials or so, then retweet them over, adding a few more each time.

#1 How to get the run application dialogue

#1 On most GNU/Linux Desktops, Alt+F2 opens a "run application" dialogue box by default. Good to know if there's a problem with your mouse.

The Run application dialogue is a window that allows you to open any desktop application (including terminal windows like Konsole, Gnome-terminal, and Xterm), simply by typing the name of the application into the window.



I find that using a keyboard shortcut to open the dialogue, and then typing the name of the application into the window is generally a lot faster than than searching for the application in the menu with the mouse. Many run application dialogue programs use tab completion.

Of course, while Alt+F2 is the default keybinding for the run application dialogue in most desktops, you can always replace that with a custom command if you prefer.