Start off the new year with a new skill or improve your existing skill. Why not learn Linux? Here’s why you should. According to the Linux Foundation, Linux job postings have grown 80% in the last five years with a 50% increase last year alone. Starting in March the Linux Foundation is offering free Linux webinar training by renowned Linux developers. You’ll need to register for the free webinar. First up is “How to Contribute to the Linux Community” with Jon Corbet. Take advantage of the free education. Who knows, a job opportunity may come out of it.

Credit: Stanford University

For those of you who want to become a millionaire creating nothing but iPhone apps (*cough*), Stanford University might just be what you need to succeed. The school is offering a 10 week iPhone application developer course for free via iTunes U. You will be given the same materials as the Stanford students, just not the credits upon completion of the class. This is a great way to get on the iPhone app building bandwagon, though I wouldn’t quit my day job for this (not just yet anyway).

YouTube

Universities like MIT, University of California Berkeley, Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, and Yale, to name a few, are offering Free online courses on practically any subject on the most well known video portal out there – Youtube. Learn for free! This is just as great if not better than the Open Courseware Consortium, which provides educational materials from institutions such as some of the above noted. Times are tough and school may not be the best option for some of us thus take advantage of these free videos and course materials to keep the brain fresh and churning.