Linux Desktop Pocket Guide

By David Brickner
September 2005
Pages: 198
Series: Pocket References
ISBN 10: 0-596-10104-X | ISBN 13: 9780596101046
(5) (Average of 2 Customer Reviews)

Description

Using Linux doesn't have to be hard. The book introduces you to the five most popular desktop distributions and covers essential topics such as configuring video cards screen resolution, sound, and wireless networking. Laptop issues are covered, too. Explore desktop apps, including browsers, IM, and email clients with the same functionality as those used on Windows.
Full Description

While Mac OS X garners all the praise from pundits, and Windows XP attracts all the viruses, Linux is quietly being installed on millions of desktops every year. For programmers and system administrators, business users, and educators, desktop Linux is a breath of fresh air and a needed alternative to other operating systems.

The Linux Desktop Pocket Guide is your introduction to using Linux on five of the most popular distributions: Fedora, Gentoo, Mandriva, SUSE, and Ubuntu. Despite what you may have heard, using Linux is not all that hard. Firefox and Konqueror can handle all your web browsing needs; GAIM and Kopete allow you to chat with your friends on the AOL, MSN, and Yahoo! networks; and the email programs Evolution and Kontact provide the same functionality as Microsoft Outlook, with none of the cost. All of these programs run within the beautiful, feature-packed, and easy-to-use GNOME or KDE desktop environments.

No operating system truly "just works," and Linux is no exception. Although Linux is capable of running on most any computing hardware that Microsoft Windows can use, you sometimes need to tweak it just a little to make it work the way you really want. To help you with this task, Linux Desktop Pocket Guide covers essential topics, such as configuring your video card, screen resolution, sound, and wireless networking. And laptop users are not left out--an entire section is devoted to the laptop issues of battery life, sleep, and hibernate modes.

Featured customer reviews

A perfect book :), January 31 2009

Rating:

Submitted by Fabio Alessandro Locati [Respond | View]

This is an awesome little book. It speaks about pretty much every main distro and every important program for linux. This is a very completed book :).

An Information Bargin, December 16 2005

Rating:

Submitted by George Mulak [Respond | View]

Linux Desktop Pocket Guide is is a 4 inch by 7 inch book powerpacked with a lot of information and resources. It is very well thought out and organized. Mr. Brickner has taken 5 popular distributions of Linux: Fedora, Gentoo, Mandriva, Suse, and UBuntu and not only compared them generally, but also by their features. For example, he talks about the different package managers and how they install software. He touches on the two popular desktop environments, Gnome and KDE, what they look like, how they work, and how to configure them. There is 4 pages on how to configure Konqueror, the popular file manager/web browser. 3 pages on the KDE control center. There is a good 26 pages in all on application programs and the package management systems of the various distributions. Chapter 7 deals with configuring the different distros, and the edge of the pages on the great index section are highlighted in grey.

If you are looking for an overview of Linux, or you don't know what distro to use, this is a great book. If you don't want to read a 40 pound book, but want something to point the way, to show you where the resources are or to get you started, then this is also a great book. Obviously in 181 pages it is not comprehensive, but it does point the way. Good job!

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Media reviews
"...a concise introduction to the management of Linux in a desktop environment...This is not a reference; it is a compact guide, and very good value."
-- Major Keary, Book News

"Author David Brickner, has written an outstanding mini guide to help you get the most out of your Linux experience...After reading this excellent book, you'll learn all about the graphical programs and desktop environments that run on top of Linux. This book doesn't shy away from difficult topics in Linux; instead, it jumps right in and tells you what you need to know about laptop power management, configuring your graphics card, and setting up sound and networking."
-- John Vacca, Amazon.com

"This is not an extensive technical reference to any of the Linux distributions discussed, but it is a good first resource for common questions and a good introduction to all of them...recommended for the average Linux user and a must-have guide for others who need to know the differences between the various distributions."
-- Harold McFarland, Harold's Bookshelf, Midwest Book Review

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"...a concise introduction to the management of Linux in a desktop environment."
--Major Keary, Book News