A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux (Versions 8.10 and 8.04) (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Praise for the First Edition of A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux®

 

“I am so impressed by how Mark Sobell can approach a complex topic in such an understandable manner. His command examples are especially useful in providing a novice (or even an advanced) administrator with a cookbook on how to accomplish real-world tasks on Linux. He is truly an inspired technical writer!”

–George Vish II, Senior Education Consultant, Hewlett-Packard Company

 

“Overall, I think it’s a great, comprehensive Ubuntu book that’ll be a valuable resource for people of all technical levels.”

–John Dong, Ubuntu Forum Council Member, Backports Team Leader

 

“The JumpStart sections really offer a quick way to get things up and running, allowing you to dig into the details of the book later.”

–Scott Mann, Aztek Networks

 

“Ubuntu is gaining popularity at the rate alcohol did during Prohibition, and it’s great to see a well-known author write a book on the latest and greatest version. Not only does it contain Ubuntu-specific information, but it also touches on general computer-related topics, which will help the average computer user to better understand what’s going on in the background. Great work, Mark!”

–Daniel R. Arfsten, Pro/ENGINEER Drafter/Designer

 

“I read a lot of Linux technical information every day, but I’m rarely impressed by tech books. I usually prefer online information sources instead. Mark Sobell’s books are a notable exception. They’re clearly written, technically accurate, comprehensive, and actually enjoyable to read.”

–Matthew Miller, Senior Systems Analyst/Administrator, BU Linux Project, Boston University Office of Information Technology

 

“I would so love to be able to use this book to teach a class about not just Ubuntu or Linux but about computers in general. It is thorough and well written with good illustrations that explain important concepts

for computer usage.”

–Nathan Eckenrode, New York Local Community Team

 

“Overall, A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux® by Mark G. Sobell provides all of the information a beginner to intermediate user of Linux would need to be productive. The inclusion of the Live DVD of the Gutsy Gibbon release of Ubuntu makes it easy for the user to test-drive Linux without affecting his installed OS. I have no doubts that you will consider this book money well spent.”

–Ray Lodato, Slashdot contributor, www.slashdot.org

 

“This is well written, clear, comprehensive information for the Linux user of any type, whether trying Ubuntu on for the first time and wanting to know a little about it, or using the book as a very good reference when doing something more complicated like setting up a server. This book’s value goes well beyond its purchase price and it’ll make a great addition to the Linux section of your bookshelf.”

–Linc Fessenden, Host of The LinuxLink TechShow, tllts.org

 

“The author has done a very good job at clarifying such a detail-oriented operating system. I have extensive Unix and Windows experience and this text does an excellent job at bridging the gaps between Linux, Windows, and Unix. I highly recommend this book to both ‘newbs’ and experienced users. Great job!”

–Mark Polczynski, Information Technology Consultant

 

“When I first started working with Linux just a short 10 years or so ago, it was a little more difficult than now to get going. . . . Now, someone new to the community has a vast array of resources available on the web, or if they are inclined to begin with Ubuntu, they can literally find almost every single thing they will need in the single volume of Mark Sobell’s A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux®.

 

 “I’m sure this sounds a bit like hyperbole. Everything a person would need to know? Obviously not everything, but this book, weighing in at just under 1200 pages, covers so much so thoroughly that there won’tbe much left out. From install to admin, networking, security, shell scripting, package management, and a host of other topics, it is all there. GUI and command line tools are covered. There is not really any wasted space or fluff, just a huge amount of information. There are screen shots when appropriate but they do not take up an inordinate amount of space. This book is information-dense.”

–JR Peck, Editor, GeekBook.org

 

Praise for Other Books by Mark G. Sobell

 

“I currently own one of your books, A Practical Guide to Linux®. I believe this book is one of the most comprehensive and, as the title says, practical guides to Linux I have ever read. I consider myself a novice and I come back to this book over and over again.”

–Albert J. Nguyen

 

“Thank you for writing a book to help me get away from Windows XP and to never touch Windows Vista. The book is great; I am learning a lot of new concepts and commands. Linux is definitely getting easier

to use.”

–James Moritz

 

“I have been wanting to make the jump to Linux but did not have the guts to do so–until I saw your familiarly titled A Practical Guide to Red Hat® Linux® at the bookstore. I picked up a copy and am eagerly looking forward to regaining my freedom.”

–Carmine Stoffo, Machine and Process Designer to pharmaceutical industry

 

“I am currently reading A Practical Guide to Red Hat® Linux® and am finally understanding the true power of the command line. I am new to Linux and your book is a treasure.”

–Juan Gonzalez

 

The Most Complete, Easy-to-Follow Guide to Ubuntu Linux

 

Mark Sobell’s A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux®, Second Edition, isn’t just the most thorough and up-to-date reference to installing, configuring, and working with Ubuntu. It also provides comprehensive server coverage you won’t find in any other Ubuntu book.

 

The fully updated JumpStart sections help you get complex servers running quickly. Whatever your questions may be, the completely revamped index gives you even faster access to the answers you’re searching for. And a brand new chapter on Perl programming teaches you the basics of this powerful system administration language.

 

Sobell walks you through every feature and technique you’ll need, from installing Ubuntu to working with GNOME, Samba, exim4, Apache, DNS, NIS, LDAP, ufw, firestarter, and iptables. His exceptionally clear explanations demystify everything from system security to Windows file/printer sharing. You’ll find full chapters on running Ubuntu from the command line and GUI, administering systems and security, setting up networks and Internet servers, and much more. 

 

Along the way, you’ll learn both the “hows” and the “whys” of Ubuntu. Sobell knows every Linux nook and cranny: He’s taught hundreds of thousands of readers–and never forgets what it’s like to be new to
Linux. Whether you’re a user, administrator, or programmer, this book gives you all you need–and more.

 

The world’s most practical Ubuntu Linux book is now even more useful!

 

This book delivers

• Hundreds of easy-to-follow, easy-to-use examples
• Updated JumpStarts for setting up Samba, Apache, Mail, FTP, NIS, OpenSSH, DNS, and other complex servers
• Deeper coverage of the command line, GNOME GUI, and desktop customization
• Coverage of crucial Ubuntu topics such as sudo and the Upstart init daemon
• More detailed, usable coverage of Internet server configuration, including Apache, exim4, and DNS/BIND
• More state-of-the-art security techniques, including firewall setup using ufw, firestarter, and

About the Author

Mark G. Sobell is President of Sobell Associates Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in UNIX/Linux training, support, and custom software development. He has more than twenty-five years of experience working with UNIX and Linux systems and is the author of many best-selling books, including A Practical Guide to Red Hat® Linux®, Fourth Edition; A Practical Guide to Linux® Commands, Editors, and Shell Programming; and A Practical Guide to Linux® for Mac OS® X Users (coauthored with Peter Seebach), all from Prentice Hall, and A Practical Guide to the UNIX System from Addison-Wesley.

Product Details

• Paperback: 1272 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall PTR; 2 edition (January 9, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0137003889
• ISBN-13: 978-0137003884
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.3 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #39,008 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 1 in The A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars comprehensive and well organized, May 5, 2009

By	Zach Attack - See all my reviews

I'm new to linux so having this as an introduction has been a life saver in many respects.

Pros:
Great table of contents. For instance when I wanted to look up a command in the chapter pertaining to the terminal I found many of the basics utilities listed right there in the table of contents with a BRIEF blurb on what they individually did. The material is also easy to follow in most cases and I have no complaints so far.

Cons:

It's kinda big lol

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most comprehensive and complete book for Ubuntu (8.10) , March 5, 2009

By	Edmon Begoli (Knoxville, TN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I recommend Practical guide to Ubuntu Linux, 2nd ed. to all interested in understanding and running the Ubuntu Linux on their home, school or work machines.

It is written by Mark Sobell whose book on Linux Commands, Editors and Shell Programming is one of my favorite IT titles of all.

Book covers all topics you can think of - from a novice tutorial on the guided installation of the system to intermediate/advanced tasks such as shell scripting and installation of the server components such as Apache, DNS or mail server.

Specifically, subjects covered are:

Installation, overview of Linux, Linux file system, the shell and shell programming, utilities, networking, remote access, printing, server components, building the kernel, ...

Appendices are excellent. There is Appendix on regular expressions, security, finding help, free software.

Books is most suitable for beginners and intermediate users.

7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Large Guide to Ubuntu Linux, March 11, 2009

By	Eric Jain (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Despite it's length, this book avoids (for the most part) degenerating into a concatenation of man pages. The text is concise and accurate, as far as I can tell, and examples are short and to the point.

I was a bit surprised that even though such a large book wouldn't seem attractive for beginners, some of the basics (e.g. file systems) are discussed in great detail, but without much technical depth.

The book also spends a lot of space re-documenting various tools, instead of focusing more on giving a good overview of what tools are available for what purpose, and how to choose the most appropriate one.

For example, I don't need a comprehensive discussion of Apache configuration directives (can go to the Apache documentation for that or read another, more specialized, book). But I do want to know Ubuntu-specific configuration file locations (discussed), and why I would be using Apache rather than e.g. lighthttpd (not discussed).

In summary, the main audience for this book must be people who are not too familiar with Linux yet, but have just accepted an admin position on a remote island without Internet (or just have an aversion to reading documentation online).