Linux Box

I am an advanced web-programmer (learned basic C++, very comfortable with OOP, etc) but I have no experience in developing full-fledged standalone applications, especially in Linux.
I am very interested in contributing to the community but not sure how to apply my programming/design knowledge to Linux. What are some good resources to learn/tips?

Thanks!
Try code project, [...]

Okay, this is not the first time I have had this problem. I decided to install OpenSuse 11.0 on top of Windows dual boot, and the Linux OS won’t connect to the Internet but Windows will. Any ideas?
OpenSUSE is a built more for corporate use, I’d really recommend getting Ubuntu if you don’t wish to [...]