[scubazealous]

I am curious what your background or specialization is, but I can confirm the skills you learn from Linux, backups, and networking will be applicable now and in the future. The only thing they can do is help make you a better engineer.

[dash2]

I'm an outsider. But sometimes they see things insiders don't, or don't want to. I'm an economist, and in my reading of economic history, I have yet to hear of a skill that always stayed applicable.

[graemep]

How long is always?

Being able to do various forms of maths (e.g. geometry) has been a useful skill for literally millennia.

Being able to drive has been a useful skill for about a century. The number of people who need this skill has probably peaked in developed countries, but is rising globally.

A lot of basic computer and networking technologies have been around since the 70s or even earlier and the pace of change has slowed a lot since then.