Linux in a Nutshell [Paperback]

Ellen Siever (Author), Stephen Figgins (Author), Robert Love (Author), Arnold Robbins (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0596154488 | ISBN-13: 978-0596154486 | Publication Date: September 29, 2009 | Edition: Sixth Edition

Everything you need to know about Linux is in this book. Written by Stephen Figgins, Ellen Siever, Robert Love, and Arnold Robbins -- people with years of active participation in the Linux community -- Linux in a Nutshell, Sixth Edition, thoroughly covers programming tools, system and network administration tools, the shell, editors, and LILO and GRUB boot loaders.

This updated edition offers a tighter focus on Linux system essentials, as well as more coverage of new capabilities such as virtualization, wireless network management, and revision control with git. It also highlights the most important options for using the vast number of Linux commands. You'll find many helpful new tips and techniques in this reference, whether you're new to this operating system or have been using it for years.

• Get the Linux commands for system administration and network management
• Use hundreds of the most important shell commands available on Linux
• Understand the Bash shell command-line interpreter
• Search and process text with regular expressions
• Manage your servers via virtualization with Xen and VMware
• Use the Emacs text editor and development environment, as well as the vi, ex, and vim text-manipulation tools
• Process text files with the sed editor and the gawk programming language
• Manage source code with Subversion and git

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is one desktop companion which confident Linux users simply cannot be without." Linux User, November 2003 "The best way to sum this book up is with the original reviewer's words: "If you don't lock your office, this will be the first thing that a techie colleague will steal!"." Linux Format, September "...anyone serious about Linux programming and administration needs this book...The authors are to be congratulated for the scope of coverage, as here's enough here about both the vi and Emacs editing systems, desktop set-ups and packages, as well as a nod to multimedia use. " - Gary Flood, IT Training, October 2004 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Ellen Siever is a writer and editor specializing in Linux and other open source topics. In addition to Linux in a Nutshell, she coauthored Perl in a Nutshell. She is a long-time Linux and Unix user, and was a programmer for many years until she decided that writing about computers was more fun.

Stephen Figgins honed many of his computer skills while working as O'Reilly's book answer guy. A life long learner with many interests, Stephen draws on many resources to make difficult topics understandable and accessible.

Now living in Lawrence, Kansas, he administrates Linux servers for Sunflower Broadband, a cable company. When not found working with computers, writing, or spending time with his family, you will likely find him outdoors. Stephen teaches wilderness awareness and living skills.

Robert Love has been a Linux user and hacker since the early days. He is active in--and passionate about--the Linux kernel and GNOME desktop communities. His recent contributions to the Linux kernel include work on the kernel event layer and inotify. GNOME-related contributions include Beagle, GNOME Volume Manager, NetworkManager, and Project Utopia. Currently, Robert works in the Open Source Program Office at Google.

Robert is the author of Linux Kernel Development (SAMS 2005) and the co-author of Linux in a Nutshell (2006 O'Reilly). He is also a Contributing Editor at Linux Journal. He is currently working on a new work for O'Reilly that will be the greatest book ever written, give or take. Robert holds a B.A. in Mathematics and a B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Florida. A proud Gator, Robert was born in South Florida but currently calls home Cambridge, MA.

Arnold Robbins, an Atlanta native, is a professional programmer and technical author. He has worked with Unix systems since 1980, when he was introduced to a PDP-11 running a version of Sixth Edition Unix. He has been a heavy AWK user since 1987, when he became involved with gawk, the GNU project's version of AWK. As a member of the POSIX 1003.2 balloting group, he helped shape the POSIX standard for AWK. He is currently the maintainer of gawk and its documentation. He is also coauthor of the sixth edition of O'Reilly's Learning the vi Editor. Since late 1997, he and his family have been living happily in Israel.

Product Details

• Paperback: 944 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; Sixth Edition edition (September 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0596154488
• ISBN-13: 978-0596154486
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #44,330 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #20 in Books > Computers & Technology > Operating Systems > Unix
  • #34 in Books > Computers & Technology > Operating Systems > Linux

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Reference Manual, May 6, 2004

By 

Robert L. Stinnett (Boonville, MO) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Linux in a Nutshell (Paperback)

How many times have you been trying to find a particular command but just can't remember what it was called. How many times have you been typing in a command and forgot the options available?

Through this book, the author has taken many of the substaintial commands for users, admins, networking and programming and rolled them into a dictionary of sort for Linux users.

Sure, you can find out a lot about any command through the online man pages, but the author has taken the somewhat cryptic man pages and broken them down into simple, to the point, references laid out much like you would expect to find in a dictionary.

In addition, you'll find handy reference manuals for common utilities, such as emacs, vi, CVS, sed and awk. While each of these could fill a book in themselves, the author has broken them down to the bare basics to help you get up and running and understand basic operation of each.

All in all, a wonderful reference manual that will compliment more in-depth manuals on actual use and administration of a Linux system.

49 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Is just what is should be, November 9, 2004

By 

Benjamin Rossen "Benjamin" (Netherlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux in a Nutshell (Paperback)

If you understand what "in a nutshell" means, then you shall be pleased with this book. It is not a tutorial, it is not a beginners' guide, it is not a theory book... it is a reference book, featuring entries that are succinct, to the point, sparse in places, but complete in breadth and indispensable.

I don't use Linux for my work station (Mac OS X) or for my servers (BSD UNIX) and so when I need to do something on a Linux box the UNIX commands at my fingertips sometimes don't work; then I turn to this book. Very handy.

40 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Your IT tool box would be empty without it, August 19, 2003

By 

Norman V. Bauer "I hope my reviews help you d... (Easton, Maryland, US of A) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Linux in a Nutshell (Paperback)

I have used Linux (nearly every major and some minor distributions) and I cannot tell you how many times this book has saved me. It is also great because a huge percentage of the commands covered also work just fine in UNIX (though I recommend UNIX in a nutshell too. I also have never bought a book from O'Rielly that was less than top notch. If you are a newbie or want to learn Linux in general BUY THIS BOOK WITH ANOTHER BOOK. Like all of the ....in a nutshell books it's reference book not a read cover-to-cover book....