My Unix Story

I am definitely what you call a "UNIX zealot". I first became interested in UNIX back in 1991, when I had to learn it at work (I was working on a help desk at the time). As I began using UNIX more and more, I began realizing how great it was! Remember, in those days, the leading PC operating system was MS-DOS.

In about 1993 or so I joined the OKC.Forum, the Oklahoma City Unix User's Group. Part of the reason was for the internet access (hard to come by in those days!) but I was also very interested in learning more about Unix.

In early 1994 I installed the Slackware Linux distribution on my 486/50 PC. I was AMAZED at how fast it performed! Eventually it got to the point that the only time I booted into MS-DOS/Windows was to either play video games or do my finances in Quicken. As a software developer, I really appreciated the flat memory model that Linux (and UNIX in general) provides. If you've ever had to write C or C++ programs under MS-DOS you can probably sympathize with me...remember all those stupid different memory models?

Anyway, I moved to Houston in 1996, where I was pretty active in the Linux community there for a while, by helping found the Hardcore Linux User's Group of Houston. HLUG is a non-profit organization whose mission is basically to spread the word and preach the gospel of Linux!

Nowadays I prefer to run the Mandrake Linux distribution, and I have got it installed just about everywhere I can!

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Last modified: 27-Aug-2002 14:21 CDT