Hi Jim,
Although not exactly tutorials, from some of your posts I was wondering if you may find The Mathematica Book helpful? It is a free download. It was produced for Mathematica 5.2 (2005), and as far as I'm aware was the language's last 'linear' documentation . Although much has been added to Mathematica since, the principles are still the same, you may well find the book relevant and interesting. I certainly found it beneficial to read through.
Regards,
Rob
