Linux Bible, 2008 Edition: Boot up to Ubuntu, Fedora, KNOPPIX, Debian, openSUSE, and 11 Other Distributions [Paperback]

Christopher Negus (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0470230193 | ISBN-13: 978-0470230190 | Publication Date: February 19, 2008 | Edition: 2008

Great Content from a Bestselling Author: The Linux Bible 2008 Edition is the best first Linux book for new or migrating users. By focusing on the building-block nature of Linux, and offering true up-to-date descriptions of Linux technology, the Bible helps the reader learn how to jump headlong into Linux, regardless of the Linux distribution they choose. Descriptions of different Linux distributions helps users choose the Linux distribution that's right for them. Detailed installation instructions, step-by-step descriptions of key desktop and server components, and the actual distributions on CD and DVD, let readers get started using Linux immediately. The Bible will serve a broad range of readers, from those starting with Linux to anyone looking to evaluate different Linux distributions. It also covers broad usage including Linux desktops, servers, and firewall/routers.

New features: Instead of just telling you about how the technology works, new "Bringing Linux In" sections describe how people have implemented Linux in the real world. New sections describe real-life examples, such as how:

• A Small office created an inexpensive Web, print, and file server
• A do-it-yourselfer combined Linux audio and video features to create a home multimedia center
• A school build a computer lab with free educational software
• A large corporation deployed thousands of Linux systems

Unique CD and DVD: No other book on the market includes so many Linux distributions on CD and DVD. Our DVD and CD will include the latest versions of at least the following Linux distributions: Fedora, Ubuntu, Debian, SUSE, KNOPPIX, Gentoo, Slackware, Mandriva, Damn Small Linux, SLAX, BackTrack, GeeXbox, and others.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If you are already a Linux user and want to know more about the technical aspects mentioned above, or want to experiment with other distributions than the one you are familiar with, then this book is for you. It will help you avoid buying a dozen different books with very similar content." (Computing Reviews, October 2010) --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

From the Back Cover

The perfect book to help you make the move to Linux

With Linux, you can start with a full-featured desktop computer and scale up to powerful corporate servers. Get the most out of Linux for your home, small business, school, or corporate computing needs with this comprehensive reference as your guide. You'll walk through 16 different Linux distributions, find step-by-step instructions, and see how other enterprising Linux do-it-yourselfers are creating powerful and inexpensive systems. This is the book you need to succeed with Linux.

• Master Linux for desktops, servers, and workstations

• Find, install, and use tons of free and open source software

• Create your own cool apps with useful programming tools

• Launch all your music, video, images, and documents in Linux

• Browse, e-mail, or chat over the Internet from a Linux desktop

• Set up your own e-mail and Web (LAMP) servers

• Make safe connections with firewalls and other security tools

A total of 16 different Linux distributions are included on the DVD and CD-ROM.

• To try out Linux, boot directly to KNOPPIX, openSUSE, Ubuntu, Gentoo, BackTrack, and other live Linux distributions
• To keep Linux permanently, install Fedora, Ubuntu, openSUSE, Debian, Damn Small Linux, Slackware Linux, and other distributions to your hard disk

What's on the DVD and CD-ROM?

DVD Includes

• Ubuntu Linux (live/install)

• Fedora Linux (install)

• openSUSE (live/install)

• KNOPPIX (live)

• Freespire (live/install)

• Gentoo Linux (install)

• Slackware® Linux (install)

• BackTrack (live)

• Mandriva One (live/install)

CD-ROM Includes

• Debian GNU/Linux (install)

• Damn Small Linux (live/install)

• SLAX (live/install)

• System Rescue CD (live)

• INSERT (live)

• Puppy Linux (live)

• Gentoo Linux (install)

• Coyote Linux (floppy firewall)

System Requirements:
All software built for x86 computers
See chapters on each distribution for system requirements

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 888 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 2008 edition (February 19, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470230193
• ISBN-13: 978-0470230190
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,022,280 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Christopher Negus has been one of the world's leading writers of Linux books for nearly a decade. His Red Hat Linux Bible series has sold more than one-quarter million copies worldwide. Chris also authored or coauthored the books Linux Bible (2005 through 2007 editions), Linux Toys, Linux Toys II, and Linux Troubleshooting Bible for Wiley Publishing. For Prentice Hall, Chris is the editor of the Negus Live Linux Series and author of that series' flagship book, Live Linux CDs. Before becoming a full-time author, Chris Negus worked on UNIX operating system development teams at AT&T Bell Labs, UNIX System Labs, and Novell in the 1980s and 1990s. In particular, Chris worked in the areas of UNIX system administration and networking. When not working on computer books, Chris likes to spend time with his family: Sheree, Seth, and Caleb. Chris also enjoys playing soccer, singing opera (when nobody can hear him), and making things out of old computers.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good choice for the right situation..., February 21, 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: Linux Bible, 2005 Edition (Paperback)

It seems like a lot of the Linux books out there right now pick a single distribution and teach you that one. Wiley's Linux Bible (2005 Edition) by Christopher Negus takes a different approach that may be valuable to you.

Chapter List:
Part 1 - Linux First Steps: Starting With Linux; Running Commands from the Shell; Getting into the Desktop
Part 2 - Running The Show: Learning Basic Administration; Getting on the Internet; Securing Linux
Part 3 - Choosing and Installing a Linux Distribution: Installing Linux; Running Fedora Core and Red Hat Enterprise Linux; Running Debian GNU/Linux; Running SUSE Linux; Running KNOPPIX; Running Yellow Dog Linux; Running Gentoo Linux; Running Slackware Linux; Running Linspire; Running Mandrakelinux; Running a Linux Firewall/Router; Running Bootable Linux Distribution
Part 4 - Running Applications: Paying Music and Video; Working with Words and Images; E-Mailing and Web Browsing; Gaming Alone and Online
Part 5 - Running Servers: Running a Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP (LAMP) Server; Running a Mail Server; Running a Print Server; Running a File Server
Part 6 - Programming in Linux: Programming Environments and Interfaces; Programming Tools and Utilities
Appendix A: Media; Appendix B: Entering the Linux Community; Index

The main difference I see in this book is the lack of focus on a particular distribution. The different chapters (with the exception of Part 3) are all designed to teach you the basics of Linux apart from any flavor. This allows you to learn core skills that can transfer between whatever distribution you might be using at any given time. Part 3 gives a short coverage of each major distribution available on the market. If you're wondering about the pros and cons of each, this section of the book will help you decide where you want to start your specific distribution-specific learning.

Like all Bible titles, this is pretty big (800+ pages). While there's a lot of useful information, I don't know that I'd recommend this to be your *only* Linux book. 200+ pages deal with the distribution information, which leaves considerably less room for core Linux information. The other chapters cover the gamut of Linux software (server, desktop, productivity, internet, games, etc.), so there's not a lot in in-depth coverage on any one particular area. I'd probably position this as a very good entry level book to teach the reader about Linux and help them decide what distribution to pick. From there, I'd pick a book specific to my distribution of choice and continue my learning.

If your the right audience and in the right situation, this book will work well for you...

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for the beginner, perhaps..., October 12, 2005

By 

David L. Manning (Norman, OK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Linux Bible, 2005 Edition (Paperback)

The back of the book claims it's recommended "Beginner to Advanced." That's a bit of a stretch. This is probably a good book for someone new to the glories of Linux who wants to be told what and when to type. It also provides a decent overview of what specific applications are out there. This book answers questions like, "Are there any applications that'll let me hook up my digital camera?" If you're looking for a tome-like reference book that'll be there when you need to find out how to configure some obscure daemon or interpret cryptic dmesg output, then you should probably look elsewhere. (And if you find it elsewhere, let me know!)

The book comes with alot of linux distros on a DVD and CD, but most of these are several versions out of data at this point and you'll probably end up downloading newer ISO's and burning your own CD's anyway. If you already know which distrubution you're going to use, get a book specific to it.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, even while out of date., January 22, 2006

By 

Max (Olympia, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux Bible, 2005 Edition (Paperback)

While the Linux world develops by the day, and new advances and Kernels are constantly being updated, this book remains a helpful and near essential tool for a beginning Linux user. From the absolute basics to a moderately advanced approach, this book offers a huge amount of tips as to which direction to approach Linux. I would suggest that anyone reading this book actually download and install the most recent distributions rather than installing the outdated ones on the disks.

The author definitely has a strong presence throughout the book, giving a tone of guidance necessary to those new to the operating system.

Though this book is excellent in it's own respect, never rely solely upon it, and stock up on Linux books. This book seems to wax over the command line, among other small facets of Linux that need to be explored in greater detail, so I would Suggest Linux in a Nutshell, or any of the other fantastic O'Reilly books as a companion to this book

Content: 4/5
Exploration: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Completeness: 5/5
Overall: 5/5