Running Linux, Third Edition

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Running Linux, Third Edition

By: Matthias Kalle Dalheimer, Lar Kaufman, Matt Welsh
Publisher:: O'Reilly Media
Released:: August 1999
Pages:: 760

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Please consider the latest edition.

Description

This book has all the information you need to understand, install, and start using the Linux operating system. It includes an installation tutorial, system maintenance tips, document development and programming tools, and guidelines for network, file, printer, and Web site administration. New topics in the third edition include KDE, Samba, PPP, and revised instructions for installation and configuration (especially for the Red Hat, SuSE and Debian distributions).

Full Description

Once a little-known productivity boost for personal computers, Linux is now becoming a central part of computing environments everywhere. This operating system now serves as corporate hubs, Web servers, academic research platforms, and program development systems. All along it's also managed to keep its original role as an enjoyable environment for personal computing, learning system administration and programming skills, and all-around hacking. This book, now in its third edition, has been widely recognized for years in the Linux community as the getting-started book people need. It goes into depth about configuration issues that often trip up users but are glossed over by other books. A complete, UNIX-compatible operating system developed by volunteers on the Internet, Linux is distributed freely in electronic form and at a low cost from many vendors. Developed first on the PC, it has been ported to many other architectures and can now support such heavy-duty features as multiprocessing, RAID, and clustering. Software packages on Linux include the Samba file server and Apache Web server; the X Window System (X11R6); TCP/IP networking (including PPP, SSH, and NFS support); popular software tools such as Emacs and TeX; a complete software development environment including C, C++, Java, Perl, Tcl/Tk, and Python; libraries, debuggers, multimedia support, scientific and database applications, and much more. Commercial applications that run on Linux range from end-user tools like word processors and spreadsheets to mission-critical software like the Oracle, Sybase, Informix, and IBM DB/2 database management systems. Running Linux has all the information you need to understand, install, and start using the Linux operating system. This includes a comprehensive installation tutorial, complete information on system maintenance, tools for document development and programming, and guidelines for network, file, printer, and Web site administration. New topics in the third edition include:

KDE, a desktop that brings the friendliness and ease-of-use of Windows or the Macintosh to Linux
Samba, which turns Linux into an office hub that serves files and printers to Microsoft systems
PPP, the most popular software for logging into remote systems over phone lines
Revised instructions for installation and configuration, particularly covering the Red Hat, SuSE and Debian distributions

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction to Linux
1. About This Book
2. A Brief History of Linux
3. Who's Using Linux?
4. System Features
5. Software Features
6. About Linux's Copyright
7. Open Source and the Philosophy of Linux
8. Differences Between Linux and Other Operating Systems
9. Hardware Requirements
10. Sources of Linux Information
11. Getting Help
Chapter 2 Preparing to Install Linux
1. Distributions of Linux
2. Preparing to Install Linux
Chapter 3 Installation and Initial Configuration
1. Installing the Linux Software
2. Post-Installation Procedures
3. Running Into Trouble
Chapter 4 Basic Unix Commands and Concepts
1. Logging In
2. Setting a Password
3. Virtual Consoles
4. Popular Commands
5. Shells
6. Useful Keys and How to Get Them to Work
7. Typing Shortcuts
8. Filename Expansion
9. Saving Your Output
10. What Is a Command?
11. Putting a Command in the Background
12. Manual Pages
13. File Ownership and Permissions
14. Changing the Owner, Group, and Permissions
15. Startup Files
16. Important Directories
17. Programs That Serve You
18. Processes
Chapter 5 Essential System Management
1. Running the System
2. Booting the System
3. System Startup and Initialization
4. Single-User Mode
5. Shutting Down the System
6. The /proc filesystem
7. Managing User Accounts
Chapter 6 Managing Filesystems, Swap, and Devices
1. Managing Filesystems
2. Managing Swap Space
3. Device Files
Chapter 7 Upgrading Software and the Kernel
1. Archive and Compression Utilities
2. Upgrading Software
3. Using RPM
4. Building a New Kernel
5. Loadable Device Drivers
6. Loading Modules Automatically
Chapter 8 Other Administrative Tasks
1. Making Backups
2. Scheduling Jobs Using cron
3. Managing System Logs
4. Managing Print Services
5. Setting Terminal Attributes
6. What to Do in an Emergency
Chapter 9 Editors, Text Tools, Graphics, and Printing
1. Editing Files Using vi
2. The Emacs Editor
3. Text and Document Processing
4. Graphics
5. Printing
Chapter 10 Installing the X Window System
1. X Concepts
2. Hardware Requirements
3. Installing XFree86
4. Configuring XFree86
5. Filling in Video Card Information
6. Running XFree86
7. Running Into Trouble
Chapter 11 Customizing Your X Environment
1. Basics of X Customization
2. The fvwm Window Manager
3. The K Desktop Environment
4. X Applications
Chapter 12 Windows Compatibility and Samba
1. Sharing Files
2. Sharing Programs
Chapter 13 Programming Languages
1. Programming with gcc
2. Makefiles
3. Shell Programming
4. Using Perl
5. Programming in Tcl and Tk
6. Java
7. Other Languages
Chapter 14 Tools for Programmers
1. Debugging with gdb
2. Programming Tools
Chapter 15 TCP/IP and PPP
1. Networking with TCP/IP
2. Dial-up PPP
3. PPP over ISDN
4. NFS and NIS Configuration
Chapter 16 The World Wide Web and Electronic Mail
1. The World Wide Web
2. Electronic Mail

Appendix A Sources of Linux Information
1. Online Documents
2. Linux Documentation Project Manuals
3. Linux News and Information Sites
4. General Software FTP Sites
5. Requests For Comments
Appendix B The GNOME Project
1. What Is GNOME?
2. A Brief History of the GNOME Project
3. The GNOME Desktop: A User's Point of View
4. Some GNOME Applications
5. GNOME as a Development Platform
6. Getting and Installing GNOME
7. The Future of GNOME
8. How Can You Help with GNOME?
Appendix C Installing Linux on Digital/Compaq Alpha Systems
1. Alpha History and Status
2. The Linux Port
3. Identifying Your Alpha System
4. Collecting System Hardware Information
5. Preparing for Installation of Linux Alpha
6. Installing Linux
7. Tuning and Post-Installation Considerations
Appendix D LinuxPPC: Installing Linux on PowerPC Computers
1. Compatible Hardware
2. Kernel and Library Issues
3. Preparing to Boot LinuxPPC
4. Using the Red Hat Installer
5. Post-Installation: Setting Up the BootX Software
6. Getting Hardware to Do What You Want It to Do
Appendix E Installing Linux/m68k on Motorola 68000-Series Systems
1. Software Versions
2. Supported Hardware
3. Distributions
4. Installation
5. Registration
6. For More Information
Appendix F Installing Linux on Sun SPARC Systems
1. Supported Hardware
2. System Libraries
3. Installation Differences from Intel
4. Installation from a Serial Console
5. SPARC-specific Issues After Installation
6. Bootable Devices and Consoles
Appendix G LILO Boot Options
1. Global Options
2. Image Options
3. Kernel Options
4. lilo Command Options
Appendix H Zmodem File Transfer
1. Getting RZSZ
2. Sending and Receiving Files
3. Summary of rz and sz Options
4. Some Zmodem Usage Notes
5. Other Interesting Packages
Bibliography
Colophon

Product Details

Title:

Running Linux, Third Edition

By:

Matthias Kalle Dalheimer, Lar Kaufman, Matt Welsh

Publisher:

O'Reilly Media

Formats:

Print
Safari Books Online

Print Release:

August 1999

Pages:

760

Print ISBN:

978-1-56592-469-7

| ISBN 10:

1-56592-469-X

Customer Reviews

About the Authors

Lar Kaufman

Lar Kaufman is a documentation consultant living in Concord, Massachusetts. He began writing about UNIX in 1983 and since then has written on System V, BSD, Mach, OSF/1, and now Linux. His hobbies include interactive media as art/literature, homebuilt and antique aircraft (he's a licensed aircraft mechanic), and natural history. Formerly a BBS operator, in 1987 Lar founded the Fidonet echoes (newsgroups) Biosphere and BioNews. He is currently leading a project to establish a global biological conservation network, using a Linux host as the mail, news, and file server.

View Lar Kaufman's full profile page.
Matt Welsh

is a computer scientist with research interests spanning many aspects of complex systems, including operating systems design, distributed systems, networking, and parallel computing. Matt is a long-time Linux advocate and developer, a role in which he has fielded questions from thousands of Linux users over the years. He was the original coordinator of the Linux Documentation Project and author of the original Linux Installation and Getting Started guide. He completed his Ph.D. at UC Berkeley and is currently a researcher at Intel Research Labs in Berkeley, and will be joining the faculty of the Computer Science department at Harvard University in July 2003.

View Matt Welsh's full profile page.

Colophon

The image on the cover of Running Linux, Third Edition is a rearing horse. A horse will rear often to avoid going forward-as a way to avoid either further work or a frightening object. Other factors may include poorly fitted tack or an overly aggressive rider. For some horses, rearing is a learned behavior. Often a very difficult vice to correct, rearing is not a very common problem with most reasonably trained horses, and it is not breed-specific or discipline-specific. Rearing is an unsettling, difficult move to ride, not to mention dangerous. When a horse rears, its rider must lean forward on the horse's neck, to avoid shifting the weight and flipping the horse over backwards.

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O'Reilly Books & Videos

Running Linux, Third Edition

Chapter 1 Introduction to Linux

About This Book

A Brief History of Linux

Who's Using Linux?

System Features

Software Features

About Linux's Copyright

Open Source and the Philosophy of Linux

Differences Between Linux and Other Operating Systems

Hardware Requirements

Sources of Linux Information

Getting Help

Chapter 2 Preparing to Install Linux

Distributions of Linux

Preparing to Install Linux

Chapter 3 Installation and Initial Configuration

Installing the Linux Software

Post-Installation Procedures

Running Into Trouble

Chapter 4 Basic Unix Commands and Concepts

Logging In

Setting a Password

Virtual Consoles

Popular Commands

Shells

Useful Keys and How to Get Them to Work

Typing Shortcuts

Filename Expansion

Saving Your Output

What Is a Command?

Putting a Command in the Background

Manual Pages

File Ownership and Permissions

Changing the Owner, Group, and Permissions

Startup Files

Important Directories

Programs That Serve You

Processes

Chapter 5 Essential System Management

Running the System

Booting the System

System Startup and Initialization

Single-User Mode

Shutting Down the System

The /proc filesystem

Managing User Accounts

Chapter 6 Managing Filesystems, Swap, and Devices

Managing Filesystems

Managing Swap Space

Device Files

Chapter 7 Upgrading Software and the Kernel

Archive and Compression Utilities

Upgrading Software

Using RPM

Building a New Kernel

Loadable Device Drivers

Loading Modules Automatically

Chapter 8 Other Administrative Tasks

Making Backups

Scheduling Jobs Using cron

Managing System Logs

Managing Print Services

Setting Terminal Attributes

What to Do in an Emergency

Chapter 9 Editors, Text Tools, Graphics, and Printing

Editing Files Using vi

The Emacs Editor

Text and Document Processing

Graphics

Printing

Chapter 10 Installing the X Window System

X Concepts

Hardware Requirements

Installing XFree86

Configuring XFree86

Filling in Video Card Information

Running XFree86

Running Into Trouble