Hello, and thank you for stopping by!

My name is Chris Gilland, and I have been a Linux user off and on since 2002.

When I first discovered Linux—what it was and that it was even somewhat accessible—things were very different. You had to know technical terminology like partitioning, swap partitions, kernels, boot loaders, BIOS, boot parameters, and much more. Simply put, it was a nightmare!

On top of everything else, you had to learn difficult commands typed into the terminal. (Smirk?)

The worst part was that while the Linux community strived to be helpful, there was an unspoken agreement that if you were even thinking of diving into Linux, you already possessed a certain level of knowledge. If you didn’t, why were you even enthusiastic about installing it? Consequently, many new users were met with unhelpful comments like, “Just read the manual.” While most omitted the expletive, the sentiment was clear. It wasn’t a welcoming environment.

For this reason, most people, myself included, struggled alone, trying to learn independently. Asking for help was discouraged unless you were truly stuck and had exhausted every option short of throwing your computer out the window. Many of us simply gave up.

Over the years, the Linux community has become much more helpful and friendly, but it can still be challenging for someone who is visually impaired.

While this website primarily targets those who are visually impaired, sighted individuals can absolutely learn from and benefit from this resource.

This website will grow over time, but currently offers a blog (accessible via the navigation menu) and guides explaining BIOS and EFI, creating bootable USB media, a general explanation of screen readers, booting from USB media, and more.

Essentially, I want this to be a friendly, respectful place where people genuinely want to learn but have either felt unheard in other communities or don’t know where to begin. I want this to be the resource I wish I had when I started: someone who could patiently guide me and explain what I needed to know to get up and running enjoyably.

I would love to hear from you. Please use the contact form in the navigation area to reach out and share how you’re doing, even if it’s not Linux-related. I enjoy making new friends!

Thank you for visiting, and I hope you have a wonderful day.