I have been an avid computer hobbyist since I was 12 years old.  Joined the navy and worked as an IT for 5 years.. and currently work for the Defense Information Systems Agency as a Senior Systems Administrator.  

I know all forms of Windows, and most Linux and Unix distributions - from installing, managing or configuring .. I've done quite a bit.  

I've made my own personal distro by following the LFS and FHS.. made a custom package manager that was easy for me to use... never published it though.  

I'm still learning tons.. and am by no means an expert.  Just offer my opinions and experience where I think they may be useful.