So part of the whole Ubuntu move has also involved migrating my predominantly MS-based programming skillset into something *else*. As it is, i am studying part-time to complete a B.Sc Applied Mathematics, so this year will be a little slower at times on the technology front, but it proceeds, nonetheless.
So far, i’ve managed to learn a little Python and PHP. Turbogears, Django, CakePHP and Zend all occupy my headspace at the moment. The one thing they (the frameworks) have in common though is MVC, so once you have that covered, getting to grips with the semantics of each framework is a little easier.
In the process though, i’ve ended up learning a lot about my Ubuntu installations (server and desktop), managing Apache2, user rights and managing those on the system, network interfaces, MySql and Sqlite, a lot of “notepad” editing (ala nano, vi and gedit)… actually, come to think of it, i’ve learned more about *nix this year than Windows and i’ve had a whole lot more fun too 😀
Of course, i could have spent the time learning Linq, WPF, WCS, etc.. etc… but you can tell from my enthusiasm, i’ve been getting a little jaded with all the MS hype that just turns out to be the same ol’, only with more hoops. To be fair though, i did enjoy some of the .NET porting to Mono.
And that’s been the difference: the fun factor. Learning is fun. When it’s not fun, it’s not learning. It’s cramping.