Geared to casual users who want to install Linux on a personal machine--in other words, hobbyists--Linux for Dummies walks the reader through installing, configuring, tuning, and using each version of Linux. While the book includes a useful comparison of various Linux distributions, the companion CD-ROM holds Red Hat Linux 5.0 and the book uses that distribution in its examples.
This clearly written text begins by helping you prepare your system for Linux, going so far as to recommend you get it a special hard disk. The authors then show you how to install the system--including the mechanics of selecting file systems and setting up hardware--and then help you log on for the first time.
Next, Linux for Dummies explains elementary commands, including those used to traverse directories and to copy and move files. The book then explores storage issues, detailing how to install and configure a new hard drive in excellent detail. Shells, such as bash and X Windows, get cursory coverage (but adequate, considering the purpose of the book). Linux for Dummies also includes information on certain applications (including vi and emacs) and a guide to tuning and customization that sadly lacks much about shell programming. Internet services, including WAIS, FTP, and Gopher, get their due, but the Apache Web server gets slighted. Overall, this is the best user-lever Linux guide available.
Previous editions of Linux For Dummies have garnered rave reviews. However, there's one scary term applied to them--outdated! The 6¯th Edition remedies that with easy-to-understand information on the latest version of the most popular Linux distributions, including Fedora Core, SuSE, Mandrake, Xandros, Linspire, and Knoppix. This guide walks you though installing, configuring, tuning, and using each version of Linux, the low-cost, secure alternative to expensive operating systems. You'll discover how to:
* Prep your computer for Linux
* Boot and stop Linux
* Connect to the Internet, e-mail, surf the Web, and access and use cool Internet tools
* Manage files and directories
* Do word processing and more with Open Office.org
* Updated material includes:
* Info on the wireless Internet connection
* Coverage of the new SELinux infrastructure, an important new security feature
* Updated GNOME and KDE coverage
Written by Dee-Ann LeBlanc, award-winning author of numerous books and articles and author or coauthor of the popular previous editions of Linux For Dummies, this edition not only guides you step by step, it also includes an appendix of common Linux commands and a comprehensive index so you can find what you need to know without taking extra steps.
The bonus DVD includes:
* The full, installable version of Fedora Core 3 and Knoppix
* ISO images (that will save hours of downloading time) for SUSE live, Mandrake full version, Xandros Open Circulation version, and Linspire full version
If you want to explore the different distributions of Linux, this is the guide for you!
