@MarshallJFlinkman I definitely remember NetWare, but I never had to use it - here’s why: 1) I worked at General Motors, in their telecommunications division, followed by Digital Equipment, also in their telecommunications division. At GM, we tried MCI, microwave technology, Ethernet, and everything else that was available in the seventies and eighties. That’s where I first started to explore C programming and UNIX systems. Though Digital was big on VAX/VMS in the eighties, their telecommuincations organization sold products and services to AT&T and all of the Bell Operating Companies, plus MCI, Northern Telecom, Siemens, etc. My UNIX experience was considered an asset, even though UNIX wasn’t their #1 priority. Needless to say, multi OS configurations then became a focus for me, and also system integration was more important to me than being a huge programming expert, though I had a bit of each. NetWare was a bandaide until systems including built-in networking; the TCP/IP stack and software integrated with it changed the entire landscape as we of course realize; all that was changing in the eighties and nineties of the previous century!
@Brian_Masinick , you have tinkered with quite a list of technologies. That was an impressive career. 
I started in IT when NetWare was introducing NDS (Novell Directory Services) and ZENworks. NDS preceded Microsoft’s Active Directory by a few years, and having a good grasp of NDS prepared me for AD. Unfortunately, Novell probably priced themselves out of the market.
ZENworks holds a special place for me. ZENworks combined their own application packaging with Windows user policies and computer policies to create an easy-to-use way to easily deploy software to locked-down workstations. I entered that job finding a wild west where anything goes, nothing was consistent, and every quirky thing could happen. I left that job with standardized workstation images, standardized application packages, and policies that made it next to impossible for users to break anything. Admittedly, the users begrudgingly accepted the changes in the beginning, but after a few months they began to realize that everything was working so much more smoothly for them…and for me. I accepted a job where everything was a one-of-a-kind emergency, and changed it into a job where things ran like a well-oiled machine. I have changed jobs a couple of times since then, but ZENworks brings back fond memories.
@MarshallJFlinkman you have a very good experience level too. I’ve not done a think with ZENworks or NetWare, though as someone who at least READS, I’ve seen them mentioned. My limited usage of Windows and Windows Server (limited to when I was working, (which is now getting closer and closer to a DECADE - 2018 just after the beginning of the year, so REALLY 2017, was my last full year of employment.
Classic telecom stuff is what I know fairly well - for example, do any of you know what signalling network protocols are in place? I don’t know if Signalling System 7 (VII) has been updated or replaced, but it was just coming into recognition when I was on the T1Q1 (Quality of Network Services) committee, representing Digital Equipment Corporation. I also got to go to a major computer symposium with networking vendors and computer companies in downtown Phoenix. Got to see David Copperfield (magician) at an evening entertainment event sponsored by IBM (I believe). That was cool; I saw through his trick by looking directly under the stage prop. Smoke and lights obscurred what was going on and they intended to DISTRACT. I ADMIT that I can get easily distracted, but I was ready for that one; he emerged - within seconds - probably from a door on the back of the BOX he was supposedly LOCKED in! Computers and computer EVENTS can be fun! 
I am not in the telecom realm of things, but from what I have read, SS7 remains in use to this day, regularly being exploited by nation states.
I did a lot of installing and never-using throughout the years but didn’t get serious until probably August of 2025. These days I’m rarely going into Windows for anything unless I need to copy a file to Linux. Really nice to not be constantly attacked by Norton with the extremely friendly reminders for this, that, and the other. I have a couple of desktop computers and a server, all running Linux. Happy as a clam.
According to Whatever Happened to SS7 in Telecommunications? "For decades, Signaling System No. 7 (SS7) was the backbone of telecommunications, enabling everything from call routing and SMS delivery to mobile roaming and number portability. Developed in the 1970s, SS7 was a breakthrough, allowing telecom networks to efficiently manage calls and services across carriers worldwide.
But in today’s world of VoIP, 5G, and cloud-based communications, SS7 is rarely discussed outside of cybersecurity circles. So, what happened to SS7? Is it still in use, or has it been entirely replaced?
The Rise of VoIP, SIP, and Diameter Protocols - With the shift from circuit-switched (PSTN) to packet-switched (IP-based) networks, SS7 became less relevant. Instead, modern networks use:
SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) – The preferred signaling protocol for VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), cloud-based phone systems, and unified communications. Diameter Protocol – The successor to SS7 in 4G LTE networks, handling authentication, billing, and roaming. HTTP/2 and REST APIs – The backbone of 5G core networks, completely replacing SS7 for modern mobile communications.
Simply put, SS7 was built for a legacy world, while SIP, Diameter, and IP-based signaling are designed for today’s digital-first infrastructure."
Compared to Windows, Linux is pure serenity with the lack of notifications, pop-ups, up-sells, and general enraging nuisances.
First love never forget eheh 
After 8 years I’m still in Debian
Xandros on a CD I bought from DistroWatch. I had no idea how to do anything but did get it installed as a dual boot with XP. Updates came as tarballs I had no idea how to extract or install. I tried to install both .deb and .rpm apps which didn’t work. Also LILO was the boot loader and kept disappearing so I had to keep reinstalling. My wife got mad about that so I finally gave it up.
But hating Windoze I kept looking and trying and Linux advanced quickly in that time. I played with a live PC Linux on a CD. Then I found Zorin 5 and installed it and loved it, but which it immediately became obsolete because I had no idea about LTS releases. Still I kept at it I installed Ikey’s first and second try at Solus which he both shut down overnight. Theyn I found Point Mate Linux and it was everything Debian should have been but was not. The one man developer shut that down too because he just ran out if time.
Being a die hard I finally found Ubuntu Mate and have been on it ever since.
My first Linux was Debian (TUI/CLI only). I used it as TCP/IP router near the end of the last century.
My first Linux experience was SuSE in 1999. A beautiful boxed set with a number of CDs accompanied by a very very good book.
I think it was on kernel 2.2 or 2.4 or something (can’t remember exactly)
I grew a bit bored with it because everything worked rock solid 
I still was looking for something to replace Windows 
A few years later, after some distrohopping (Gentoo, Vector, Slackware, Fedora CCRMA) I settled on Ubuntu 6.06
When 12.04 came around and demanded video hardware acceleration, I switched to Linux Mint 
, but some time later Ubuntu-MATE appeared (14.10) 
( I also used Arch on some very ancient pieces of hardware but since they dropped the i686 support I don’t have a usecase for it anymore. On those devices I use Porteus-MATE for the moment as replacement. )
Mine was 20 years ago, Ubuntu 6.06 (Dapper Drake). Wanted to leave Windows behind so I’ve been reading about a few distros that were popular back then, until I finally tried one of them. It was hard for me at first, so it was like a little bit on Ubuntu and whole lot on Windows, for a couple years.
A few months after 8.04 was released, I got back into it but this time I was looking for a lighter alternative as I was on an old computer, so I found Xubuntu 8.04 and that was the beginning of a relationship that is still going on today although on a different way.
Since then, I spent most of my time on Xubuntu, a few times on Ubuntu, and 4 and a half years on Ubuntu MATE.
A little more than a month ago I switched to Linux Mint. Downloaded XFCE Edition, it was the obvious choice as Xubuntu (XFCE) was always good to me, never had an issue. Loved it, found it faster and more resopnsive than Xubuntu.
A few days ago I installed MATE Desktop on top of my Mint XFCE Edition, and so far I’m loving it.
Ah, Xandros! I DID use that for a little while; it was once of the best early easy to use Debian-based alternatives, one of two really good Canadian efforts; another one was Libranet, a great Linux distribution; it was commercial, but I got a few freebies when I was doing tech writing for a few extra bucks.