Book Recommendations


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Thread: Book Recommendations

  1. #1
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    Book Recommendations

    Instead of asking what Linux distro is best (which just seems like handing out a loaded gun) I would like to know if anybody can recommend a good book on running Linux. I presently have "Running Linux", 4th edition by O'Reilly Publications. It's a bit of a handful, more a book for somebody who knows enough about command lines and how to enter them than an "I'm-a-survivor-of-the-Windows-War". I need something for the complete newbie. Any suggestions?

  2. #2
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    JohnT would probably recommend rute user for the complete newbie:

    http://rute.2038bug.com/index.html.gz
    Need help in realtime? Visit us at #linuxnewbie on irc.libera.chat

    Few of us will do as much for our fellow man as he has done.
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  3. #3
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    LOL Now you're just playing! Anyway, I just found a thread for book recommendations. I guess, according to all the posts, I got a good book. Nothing to do then but read away.

    Funny guy, still a funny guy!

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kntbrat View Post
    LOL Now you're just playing! Anyway, I just found a thread for book recommendations. I guess, according to all the posts, I got a good book. Nothing to do then but read away.

    Funny guy, still a funny guy!
    A little confused here. RUTE -is- a good book to read. It's a little dated, but the basics are mostly the same. Yes it's command line stuff, but it's the basics of Linux. Maybe you're looking for a book that tells you which menus to click on in a windows manager. Then you might go to some place like ubuntu, http://www.ubuntu.com/support , and look around. Which, of course, is not a bad thing to do, and I'm not really knocking that.

    I like the version that is one giant html page though. That way you can search through it easier. I'd have to look around to find that. But I know it's out there. There's also a pdf version.

    What book did you find?
    -------------
    Folding is Fun

    I thought I made a mistake once, but, of course, I was mistaken.

  5. #5
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    I went your route when I first started. But like you I found them a bit of a hand full. I feel they are written more for the geek/guru than for the average Linux newbie or user. At least that's my opinion. Can't remember the titles of the two I purchased years ago but those were the last books I bought.

    I found more info and help cruising forums and Linux news sites than I got from the books I purchased. Oh, and forget the man pages. They never helped me either. Can't understand them any better than the books. Maybe I have a learning disability. Slow learner? Probably so.

    Just jump in and screw up your OS to the max. Reinstall and tweak and screw it up again. Then start all over. And learn from your experience. That's the best way to learn Linux. It's not for everybody, but it has been for me.

    I've always felt that if I could at least access the internet I was ahead of the game. The rest of the tweaking would come with time and dogged determination. And well formed questions to a supportive forum. Remember that if nothing else. Ask your questions properly. Just don't say 'I can't access the Internet'. Folks will help if you give them all the info they need to assist you.

    Pick one distro and stick to it. Yes it's fun hopping around and play with them all. I did it for years. But in the end, focusing on one distro and learn it's ins and outs by trial and error. It's the best way to master Linux. In particular learn it's package manager. That's the key to success in Linux; learning the package manager that comes with it.

    Oh! I do have one book to recommend. The spiral note book. I'd say the 5"x7" would do nicely but what ever you have handy will work. And every time you come across some good tips, write them down. That is the best book I've ever purchased. Don't spend your money on books. Save it and upgrade your hardware. Nothing like a little extra RAM for your PC is there? Maybe a new hard drive? Humm?

    One last thing: Debian, Now and Forever!
    Thanks,
    Loopback48

    Debian fanboy. And only Debian.

    http://www.debiantutorials.org/

  6. #6
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    I LOVE YOUR ADVICE! And I WILL take note (literally) of the tips you offered. Thank you VERY MUCH!

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by bs_texas View Post
    A little confused here. RUTE -is- a good book to read. It's a little dated, but the basics are mostly the same. Yes it's command line stuff, but it's the basics of Linux. Maybe you're looking for a book that tells you which menus to click on in a windows manager. Then you might go to some place like ubuntu, http://www.ubuntu.com/support , and look around. Which, of course, is not a bad thing to do, and I'm not really knocking that.

    I like the version that is one giant html page though. That way you can search through it easier. I'd have to look around to find that. But I know it's out there. There's also a pdf version.

    What book did you find?
    Je fro is teasing me by bringing up that dude because he knows that dude annoyed me. I AM presently checking out RUTE. But I like the idea of just diving in, messing up my OS, reinstalling and messing it up again. They say you can only pick yourself up by the bootstraps! I will NEVER GO BACK TO WINDOWS. I'm trying ot learn the command lines, I believe I am only as good as my command line. I tried Ubuntu but... it's okay. Linux MINT is okay too... still looking for the distro that will "click". Not really looking for books anymore. Thank you for your, 'eh, advice

  8. #8
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    JohnT?? A fine Texan! (I think??)

    Anyway, good luck. Once you dive in, you might find yourself referring to RUTE.

    -------------
    Folding is Fun

    I thought I made a mistake once, but, of course, I was mistaken.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by bs_texas View Post
    JohnT?? A fine Texan! (I think??)

    And I'm sure he is, he just doesn't have a whole lotta patience. Something I think is needed when trying to help other people, especially newbies.

    And thank you! I WILL keep my "Running Linux, 4th edition" from O'Reilly Publications on hand. I think I just like getting my hands dirty!

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kntbrat View Post
    And I'm sure he is, he just doesn't have a whole lotta patience. Something I think is needed when trying to help other people, especially newbies.

    And thank you! I WILL keep my "Running Linux, 4th edition" from O'Reilly Publications on hand. I think I just like getting my hands dirty!
    The keyword in the post you are reffering to is "Maybe"....study modal verbs before you make the assumption I was being rude. Rude comments are not my nature, You need help here....state it! It's not productive or necessary to produce a tirade of your bad experiences on other forums to gain help here. ......and RUTE would be my recommendation for reference......don't forget Google! The right search terms and you can find the answer to any Linux problem.
    Last edited by JohnT; 11-17-2009 at 07:52 PM.
    "I was pulled over for speeding today. The officer said, "Don't you know
    the speed limit is 55 miles an hour?" And I said, "Yes, but I wasn't going
    to be out that long."

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  11. #11
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    My all time favorite: "Linux Administration Handbook" by Nemeth, Snyder & Hein.
    Next would be "The Debian System" by Krafft
    Honorable mention: Linux in a Nutshell.
    $whatis microsoft
    microsoft: nothing appropriate

  12. #12
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    Rute always stops me cold in chapter 1 with the stuff about Hexidecimal numbers and whatnot. I recommend "The Linux Cookbook" by Carla Schroder. It mentions in the "About the Author" blurb that Ms Schroder never used a computer before she was forty. She's got the outside view. She knows what it's like to not know this stuff. We've got lots of books written by computing experts, but she's an expert in not being an expert.

    http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596006402

    Careful, there's another book with the same title. That's not bad, but it's not the book I'm recommending.
    Last edited by blackbelt_jones; 11-17-2009 at 01:27 AM.

  13. #13
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    There was an Ubuntu book reviewed on slashdot not too long ago (a few months maybe) - I'd get the title and ISBN for you but my copy is out on loan at the moment

  14. #14
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    linux for dummies

    The linux for dummies series seems really nice for beginners. You can find the 8th edition as a free ebook online. It is from 2007, and discusses fedora core specifically, but is useful for any distribution.

    The most recent edition I could find (9th) is even more generic, covering the Ubuntu, Fedora, and gOS distributions, and is again useful for most distributions, as beginners use a pretty standard set of packages and desktop environments which are common to all distributions. The dummies series teaches using the GUI much more than other tutorials, although it also shows you how to work from the command line and create simple scripts. It takes a very hands-holding approach and tries to keep things humorous, which is nice for a beginner who may become frustrated at first.

    It stresses every day tasks for the common desktop user:

    http://ebookw.net/2009/10/31/linux-f...h-edition.html

  15. #15
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    Here's something you can try.

    Download my live CD, Read my blog. and ask me questions.

    As far as I know, you'd be the only person reading my blog, so until that changes, you can probably expect me to spend a lot of time addressing what you want to know.

    Also, if you have the time, you can hang out in the irc chat room for justlinux, located at #linuxn00b @ irc.freenode.org. It's a very informal place, so you can just hang out and shoot the shinola. If you like to get drunk, that's a plus, but I'm a teetotaler for ten years now, and I've managed. If you pump these guys for information, they'll resent it, but if you hang out enough, you start having conversations. There are some really really smart people in here, pros, and the best way to get them talking about Linux is to wait for it to happen. There was a time when these convesations were the source of everything I knew.

    (Uh oh I am stuck in advice mode. Somebody open a window...)

    The biggest myth about the command line is that you have to memorize it, like it's the multiplication tables. That's nonsense. You practice the command line. You learn how to look things up, you take notes... and pretty soon, you start remembering the commands you use a lot, and that's the beauty of it. You learn what you need.

    The command line is part of the Desktop. IMO, the way to be a power user is to be able to use both tools, seperately and together. Eventually, you start to use those same bourne-compatible commands to program your desktop. Every desktop environment and window manager that's worth using has a way of using shell commands to extend the GUI, to create custom launchers and keyboard shortcuts. People have this mentality, it dates back to the eighties, when the popular idea of computing moved from all CLI to all GUI. People thing there's a competition, a rivalry, and that's nonsense. It's not about 1 tool being better than another tool! It's about two tools being better than one tool!

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