First Exposure to Linux

My first exposure to Linux came from a dear friend by the name of Raul R. Edwards who first told me about Linux back in the early 90s. For many years I knew a little about Apple, and most of my experience up to that time was limited to Microsoft Windows 3.1 believe it or not. The year would have been 1994 and Windows 95 was supposed to be the "big deal." I was excited about it at the time, seeing that I never had it on my home PC. Then it happened. While giving me a ride home, my friend Raul told me about "Linux" and assured me that I don't "have to" use Windows for everything. At the time I thought my buddy was crazy, until he informed me that Linux is another operating system similar to UNIX, which can run from a "Live CD." The thought of "get outta here" swept through my mind, as I thought "There's another operating system outside of Microsoft?"


Into my hands Raul gave me a box and Live CD for Red Hat Linux. The version was so old at the time I don't even remember what it was. All I know is, I'm running a real operating system from a dog gone cd, and it worked. No Blue Screen of Death, no viruses, adware, malware, no spyware, just a clean operating system that had the ability to get on the internet, and do all sorts of things. In the beginning I was simply trying to learn how to install Linux. After some time spent with Red Hat, I then toyed around with Fedora Core, SUSE Linux and a few other distros. For the rest of my life, I will forever appreciate the time that Raul took to introduce me to Linux, and the internet. My life would never be the same without this positive exposure.