Re: linux

[Wendell Cochran atrypa@xxxxxxxx]

Date: Mon, 24 Feb 2003 10:23:05 -0500
From: Emery Snyder 

>For Linux newbies (like myself) I find the following book really
>useful for basic commands, explaning something about the file
>structure, the basic editors, etc.

>Sobell, A practical guide to Linux


Yes. It's one of the best.

But if you want to start small, try _Learning the Unix
Operating System_ (4e 1998 O'Reilly). It covers about 25
commands -- all you're likely to need for many months. And at 92
pages the book won't intimidate anyone.

Now to supplement sound advice by Paul Breeze. Here's a great
virtue of Linux: its configuration files are in English. Not
binary -- English.

That means you don't need an EE or CS degree to read the files, work
out their meaning, & change them.

On to Robert Holmgren's earlier remarks, about Red Hat 4 or 5 years
ago. I'm sure he was right then, but in the Linux world that's 4 or
5 lifetimes. When I moved from Red Hat 5.2 to 6.2, the improvements
startled me. Then I moved from 6.2 to 7.2 & got another pleasant shock.
I think RH is now in 8.x.

Despite all the bilge from billg, Linux _is_ ready for
run-of-the-keyboard use.

Wendell Cochran
West Seattle

PS _Learning the Unix Operating System_ is now in 5e -- much larger
& more ambitious than before. It'll do, but I'm glad I started
with the _little_ book.