cli mail, finger and talk could be a great initiation to traditional tools! As for the random ubuntu laptops, try to do the dhcp on wifi using a debootstrap of

cli mail, finger and talk could be a great initiation to traditional tools! As for the random ubuntu laptops, try to do the dhcp on wifi using a debootstrap of a minimal debian on a separate partition, then configure wpa_supplicant to start dhcp by systemd dependancy, and detect wifi card to start wpa_supplicant@wifi_card_device_name. This could give you a great introduction to modern tools! (bonus points if you setup a native wayland) Understand the old and the new ways gives a better picture of the overall system, and will help you make education decisions. (And it's not forbidden to setup CLI mail on your modern system, or a systemd-based classic unix! mix and match to your tastes!)