Linux All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)) (Paperback)

by Naba Barkakati (Author) "I bet you've heard about Linux..." (more)
Key Phrases: Fedora Core, Apache Web, Window System (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

• Eight minibooks spanning over 850 pages deliver the scoop on the latest versions of seven leading Linux distributions: Fedora Core, SUSE, Debian, Xandros, SimplyMEPIS, Knoppix, and Ubuntu
• The DVD includes the full Fedora Core and Knoppix distributions plus ISO images of the other distributions covered, saving hours of downloading time
• This new edition includes all-new coverage of the SimplyMEPIS and Ubuntdistributions, an added section on the Skype Internet telephone system, and expanded coverage of Firefox, SELinux, and OpenOffice.org applications
• The eight minibooks cover Linux basics, desktops, networking, the Internet, administration, security, Internet servers, and programming
• The Linux share of the operating system market is expected to grow from three to 11 percent in the next four years

Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

From the Back Cover
8 books in 1— your key to success with Linux!

Your one-stop guide to working with various Linux distributions

Linux is hot! It's cost-effective, secure, and comes in a lot of varieties. And with this book to walk you through it, choosing and using a Linux distribution is time-efficient too. Here's the essential scoop on Fedora Core, SUSE, Debian, Xandros, Knoppix, SimplyMEPIS, and Ubuntu, with information on Firefox, SELinux, and more!

Discover how to

• Install and configure Linux
• Work with multimedia and OpenOffice.org
• Set up a LAN
• Explore SELinux security features
• Manage mail and news servers
• Run Internet and FTP servers

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Product Details

• Paperback: 840 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 2 edition (May 8, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471752622
• ISBN-13: 978-0471752622
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #676,908 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Overview, Too Many Distributions, May 14, 2005

By	John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Linux All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)) (Paperback)

I really only have one complaint about this book. Other than that, it's excellect. The book is intended for the almost newbie. That is someone who knows how to turn the machine on, knows that a mouse is a plastic thing with buttons instead of a furry thing in the pantry, and so forth.

The book is divided into eight major subsections, or as the book says, 8 mini books. These are intended to be self standing so that if you want to set up an internet server you really only to read that particular book (but you may want to read a couple of others like the ones on administration and security).

Like a lot of Linux books, this one comes with a DVD disk, filled with lots of software (the DVD can hold a lot more data than a conventional CD). Or for $11 you can order a set of CD's that contain the Fedorea 3 Core distribution.

One point about the book I liked, he tells you how to make a partition to dual boot Windows and Linux. But he also comments that you might want to set up your experimental Linux system on a separate freestanding machine. This is clearly the way to go. I bought a computer at a thrift shop recently - 1 GHZ AMD Athlon - certainly not the hottest iron on the market, but it was only $75, including a 17" monitor. I've seen too many people screw up an installation and wipe out a hard drive to suggest that the newbie do a dual boot.

The problem I have with the book. He includes five flavors of Linux on the disk. In the first part of the book he goes a bit into the various distributions, but he never makes a solid recommendation. (There is a hint that this was the editors recommendation to get one book that would please the fans of any distribution.) If the newbie knows enough to say that he wants Debian or SUSE or Fedora, he probably doesn't need a For Dummies book. And the author does not say the advantages of the particular distributions, merely that they are here and here's how you install them.

By default the DVD loads Fedora, and that's fine. But in the installation section the author has to jump around a lot talking about the way the other distributions do things and it gets confusing. When you read the installation chapter, feel free to ignore what you aren't using.

22 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars WARNING: Author is Manipulating Amazon's Customer Reviews., August 4, 2005

By	Donnacha (Edinburgh, Scotland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)) (Paperback)

Naba Barkakati has written a grand total of 3 Amazon CUSTOMER reviews, all three being for books by... Naba Barkakati! Amazingly, he feels that all three books are worthy of the full 5 stars and each review is enthusiastically entitled "Great reference: Best buy!".

As someone who relies on customer reviews and the accompanying star ratings to help me sort the wheat from the chaf when deciding what books to buy, I resent any author who attempts to cheat the system like this - it lacks style and is, plain and simple, Fraud, especially in the case of books that have made so little impact and garnered so few reviews (other than the author's). One of Barkakati's three books received a single customer rating of 2 out of 5 star. The addition of Barkakati's generous 5 out of 5 brought the overall total up to 3 and a half.

I would also advise readers to cast a somewhat wary eye upon the two (allegedly) non-Bakakati reviews of his other two books; these 5 out of 5 raves may be genuine but it seems more than a little odd that such stunning masterpieces have each attracted only a single non-Bakakati review. If you take the time to look at other Linux books, you'll notice that the most highly-rated attract many reviews - a 5 star rating based on just one or two reviews is an anomaly.

Customer reviews are meant to be written by CUSTOMERS i.e. independent evaluators with no personal, professional or financial interest. Even if Bakakati were a great writer, this sort of shilling undermines his credibility sufficiently for me to avoid his books like the plague - I would rather invest my money in time in books that a decent number of independent customers have adjudged as being worthwhile.

PS I don't know Bakakati and have no personal or financial interest in this area, I'm just a reader annoyed at this sort of spammy abuse of a system that I find useful.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars First-class starter for Linux newbies, May 10, 2006

By	Lawrence (Tokyo, Japan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)) (Paperback)

Clear and well-organised dissection of Linux in its various flavours. Although it leans to GUI usage more than many Linux books, it does not shy away from the command-line approach, which it does in an entirely unintimidating way - in fact, it made it quite enjoyabe.

Included is a CD with several Linux 'distros' and tools, which is all you need to get up-and-running with Linux. A true time-saver for the uninitiated wishing to evaluate the remarkable potential of Linux.