Knoppix Pocket Reference [Paperback]

Kyle Rankin (Author)

Book Description

Series: Pocket Reference | Publication Date: June 17, 2005

Knoppix is a portable Linux distribution replete with hundreds of valuable programs and utilities -- a veritable Swiss Army knife in bootable CD form. It includes Linux software and desktop environments, automatic hardware detection and hundreds of other quality open source programs.

Whether you're a system administrator or power user, you can use Knoppix for many different purposes. Knoppix boots and runs completely from a single CD so you don't need to install anything to your hard drive. Due to on-the-fly decompression, the CD can have up to 2 GB of executable software installed on it.

What you do need, however, is a comprehensive reference guide so you can benefit from all that Knoppix has to offer. The Knoppix Pocket Reference from O'Reilly fits the bill. This handy book shows you how to use Knoppix to troubleshoot and repair your computer, how to customize the Knoppix CD, running RAM memory checks, recovering data from a damaged hard drive, cloning hard drives, using Knoppix as a Terminal Server, using Knoppix as a kiosk OS, scanning for viruses on a Windows system, editing the Registry of a Windows system, and much more.

If you want more information than the average Knoppix user, Knoppix Pocket Reference is an absolutely essential addition to your personal library.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Kyle Rankin is a system administrator for The Green Sheet, Inc., the current president of the North Bay Linux Users Group, and the author of Knoppix Hacks. Kyle has been using Linux in one form or another since early 1998. In his free time he does pretty much the same thing he does at work--works with Linux.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1 edition (June 17, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596100752
• ISBN-13: 978-0596100759
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 4.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,228,031 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #79 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Computers & Internet > Programming

More About the Author

I am currently a systems architect for QuinStreet Inc., and the president of the North Bay Linux Users' Group (http://nblug.org). I started using Linux in 1998 with Redhat 5.1 and continue to use Linux as my primary desktop and server platform (although these days I use Ubuntu, Debian and Red Hat).

In my free time I do much of what I do at work--play with Linux and computers in general, although these days a good deal of my free time might also be spent writing. When I get a chance I also like going to the local skate park.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice quick reference for using Knoppix as a tool..., July 18, 2005

By 

Thomas Duff "Duffbert" (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Knoppix Pocket Reference (Paperback)

If you've had your eyes opened to the power of Knoppix as a Swiss Army knife of administration tools, Rankin's latest book will be the quick reminder guide of how best to use it... Knoppix Pocket Reference.

Contents: Introduction; Cheat Codes; Special Knoppix Tools; Install Knoppix to the Hard Drive; Image or Erase a Drive; Linux Security Response; Linux System Repair; Windows System Repair; Remaster Knoppix; Experimental Features; Final Words; Acknowledgements; Index

Pocket references are small (this one is less than 100 pages), so they are not good introductory guides to the subject at hand. This one is no different. If you're simply playing with Knoppix in order to see what desktop Linux is all about, you can easily pass on this book. You'll get a bit more out of it if you're looking to run Knoppix a bit more regularly (by installing it on your hard drive or saving configurations between reboots). Still, Knoppix Hacks would probably be a better title to better understand those techniques. Where this book shines is when you decide to use Knoppix as a bootable OS to allow you to administer and repair systems that are no longer working correctly (both Linux *and* Windows). Since you don't have to have a bootable sector on your hard drive to use it, you can get Knoppix up and running from a CD and then use it to repair the underlying hard drive. If you have a virus or rootkit installed, a Knoppix boot will allow you to get a clean system up and running which can then check out the hard drive for repair. Knoppix Pocket Reference will help remind you of the steps you need to take to accomplish some of these tasks. You're only getting the core commands with very little fluff, so you can quickly hone in on the trouble spot.

This is the book I'd recommend as a follow-up purchase to Knoppix Hacks. If you decide to use Knoppix in the ways that the Hacks book reveals, Knoppix Pocket Guide will be the volume that you refer to until the commands are burned into your memory.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very handy quick reference, December 11, 2005

By 

Harold McFarland (Florida) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Knoppix Pocket Reference (Paperback)

A short reference that does away with all the hand-holding detail the Knoppix Pocket Reference is a great guide to how to do almost everything you want to do with Knoppix as well as resolve minor trouble issues. The items covered in this reference include the various startup codes that can be used when booting Knoppix, how to boot the different kernels, booting into different graphic modes, booting without hardware detection, disabling power management, disabling various hardware subsystems, implementing various kernel options, using options to make it run from memory or the hard drive instead of the CD, configuring persistent configuration information between sessions, imaging the hard drive, repairing the filesystem, repairing Windows systems, virus scanning and repair, and remastering Knoppix. When you just need to know how to do something and don't want to drag out the six hundred page book to try to find it you will find the Knoppix Pocket Reference a great investment.

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pocket reference, May 23, 2007

By 

Frank F. Eichman "Frank" (MS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Knoppix Pocket Reference (Paperback)

I expected more of a reference to supplement "Hacking Knoppix," but still worth the price.