Date: Sat, 4 Jul 1998 16:45:44 +0000 From: "Frank Pawlak" <fpawlak@execpc.com> To: Wes Peters <wes@softweyr.com>, caldwell_david@hotmail.com, grog@lemis.com Cc: chat@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Beginning user's OS (was: Here is a really odd question!!!) Message-ID: <980704164544.ZM2472@darkstar.connect.com> In-Reply-To: Wes Peters <wes@softweyr.com> "Re: Beginning user's OS (was: Here is a really odd question!!!)" (Jul 3, 11:53pm) References: <19980703124514.H358@freebie.lemis.com> <199807040553.XAA02368@softweyr.com>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
On Jul 3, 11:53pm, Wes Peters wrote: > Subject: Re: Beginning user's OS (was: Here is a really odd question!!!) > David Caldwell recently asked: > > > I would like to know if this is a "good" operating system to start a > > young mind in learning to use a computer? > > > > I have a9 year old daughter and an 8 year old son who both have more > > curiosity about "how does your computer work Dad???" than I did when I > > bought my first TRS-80 model 3.My son at this moment is having some > > difficulty with his reading skills and doesn't really try that hard when > > I try to coax him into reading to me,so I thought that I would use his > > "want to know about a computer" to good use and set him up with a crash > > box 486 and a totally different operating system than the windows unit > > that he sees me working with. > > > > My theory is that UNIX and operating systems that work like it will > > never die and they are fairly complex to understand,they require a fair > > amount of reading to be done before trying to make additions or changes > > and the rewards for working at it can be immense. > > > > So we will kill several birds with one stone:his reading will improve,he > > will learn to type,he will know more about a computer (satisfying his > > curiosity),and the knowledge that he gains and the skills he learns will > > give him confidence. > > So far, your reasoning seems flawless to me, if he will do it. Some > brain-dead PC dwweb "industry pundit" once described UNIX as the largest adventure > game ever created. If your children are curious about how a computer really > works, and are willing to poke around and look for themselves, a UNIX system > could be a really great start for them. > > > Anyone can use DOS and Windows but it take a fair amount of brains to > > use UNIX and not crash it while maneuvering thru it. > > This is a common misconception for those who don't know UNIX. If you don't > give your children access to the root, or super-user, account, it will be > nearly impossible for them to crash it, ESPECIALLY FreeBSD. Short of hitting > the power switch or the reboot button, there isn't much they can do. That > would be a good challenge for them: figure out how to break into the system > and force it to reboot without resorting to hardware, like the reset button. > > > Am I barking up the wrong tree or should I go for it....any input would > > be most helpful and from more than one source would be > > appreciated...especially one with kids. > > I am at a loss as far as my daughters math skills but any suggestions > > there would be helpful. > > I had a couple of computer programming classes in high school and one in > college, all based on batch-oriented systems. Then I regained my senses, > moved back home, and started taking classes at the local state college, now a > mid-sized university. They had a wonderful array of interactive computers, > including a DEC-10. I changed my major to computer science, and the computer > science department dutifully fulfilled my destiny by buying a very early > UNIX-based microcomputer. > > To me, learning UNIX was never hard in the same way that learning to sail was > never hard. There were (and are) an immense number of things to learn, but > there was always a logical next step to learn. I encountered this system only > a few months after teaching myself C using a freeware compiler on a DEC > machine at the college. You just cannot imagine my delight in learning that > all of the programming interfaces for the system were exposed by reading the > header files in /usr/include, and by looking through the on-line man pages. > > If your son is genuinely interested in how a computer works, giving him access > to a UNIX system WITH THE SOURCE CODE ON-LINE is going to satisfy any amount > of curiosity he may have. > > > I do, however, have another suggestion: have you considered getting a copy of > Minix, along with the textbook associated with it? I ask only because Minix > was designed by its author, Dr. Tanenbaum, to be an operating system suitable > for teaching about operating systems. It is not (nearly) as functional as > FreeBSD, but it is also significantly smaller and therefore easier to > comprehend. Minix does come with full source code for the operating system > and all of the utilities except the C compiler, which is distributed in binary > only. > > I do not know if Minix and the related text, "Operating System Design and > Implementation" if memory serves, are currently in print or not, but it bears > looking into. It should run just fine on your 486; my introduction to Minix > came on "turbo-XT" class machines with 8 and 10 Mhz 8088s. ;^) > It is still available in a second addition that includes Minix on a CDROM. See <www.amazon.com>. There is also a Minux web site, can't recall the URL but a quick search will get it for you. Minix has a small footprint, doesn't require much in the way of resources, and I believe that there are some downloadable apps available on the web page. Good luck Frank > > My hidden microphone recorded Greg Lehey (grog@lemis.com) replying: > > % Interesting question. I gave up with my daughter (I just didn't have > % the time and patience to explain every detail). Still, she seems to > % be getting the hang of it. > % > % About the biggest thing I'm realizing from having a house full of > % computer semi-literates is that the biggest stumbling block is the > % ability to work with files, including editing. I'd recommend that > % your kids learn those concepts early on. > > This is a good point. One of the traditional hurdles to UNIX acceptance has > been the lack of editors, or the plethora of editors, depending on who you > ask. Pick one that seems simple, teach both of your children how to write a > simple letter using it, and let them go on their own from there. > > I will go so far as to suggest that there are a couple of editors based on the > X Window System that are somewhat more approachable than command-oriented > editors in UNIX. In particular, aXe (an X editor) is quite simple, and > reasonably fast on limited hardware like your 486. > > The X Window System release that comes on the FreeBSD CD-ROMs, XFree86, is > quite good - it's stable, fast, and relatively easy to configure. That, along > with a simple default configuration, may go a long way towards taking the > scare out of editing UNIX files. ;^) > > -- > "Where am I, and what am I doing in this handbasket?" > > Wes Peters Softweyr LLC > http://www.softweyr.com/~softweyr wes@softweyr.com > > > > > To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org > with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message >-- End of excerpt from Wes Peters To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?980704164544.ZM2472>