Hey, I've looked through your questions; and I thought I'd be reading really basic questions, but I have to say, I like your curiosity, and boy do I have a lot to say. I've been running linux on my laptop for a couple years now, and I've learned a lot, so if you're interested I'd love to talk about your questions or anything linux-related.
Off topic note: If you're starting to learn shell scripting I'd recommend you install some sort of linux, where a single script can automate more or less anything.