| Complete Idiot's Guide To Linux, Second Edition, covers: Preparing to install the system, Using shells and online documentation, The X Windows graphical interface, Networking and Internet, Administration, Configuring Linux for multimedia , and A guide to available software and tools. If you have been wanting to get started using Linux, but are not sure how to go about it or have not made deep inroads into your installed system, you'll benefit most from this book. In addition, the step-by-step guide to standard Linux tasks will satisfy your need to utilize the system's capabilities, especially its Internet functions.
This book is a gentle introduction to Linux, and as such, it is not intended as a comprehensive guide. On the contrary, great effort has gone into this book to keep it from becoming yet another comprehensive reference guide. I’ve been selective about covering the topics you are most likely to use early in your Linux hacking career.
One of the interesting things about Linux, and UNIX in general, is that learning new ways and tools is almost an endless task. There are many tools—too many to cover even in several “comprehensive” volumes. Much of the comprehensive and exhaustive reference for Linux is readily available in various forms, some of which will be installed into your computer as part of the installation process.
In contrast, this book focuses on how to make you self-sufficient. It teaches you two ways of working with Linux: using the X graphical environment (with KDE) and using the shell, the command line interpreter so closely associated with UNIX. And, if you are managing your own Linux computer, there are some administrative tasks that you need to learn how to do.
So how is this book organized? Installation and first-time configuration instructions are located in Appendix A, “Linux Installation.” Appendix B, “OpenLinux Compatibility Guide,” provides you with an up-to-date list of the ever-growing and ever-changing list of hardware that is known to be compatible with Linux. While mapping your installation plan, you should verify that your hardware is listed and known to be compatible with OpenLinux.
About the Author
Manuel Alberto Ricart is an engineer for a prominent software development company. He has designed and developed training materials on many developer topics, including Java, JavaBeans, web application development, and distributed computing technologies.. Alberto’s focus is demystifying technology by making complicated and dry topics clear and easy to learn. He is the author of the Apache Server Survival Guide (Sams.net) and the upcoming e-speak: The Definitive Guide for Developers (Prentice Hall). |
