Linux Universe: Installation and Configuration

This second edition has been completely revised, expanded, and improved, to allow users to take full advantage of all the latest Linux applications. The CD-ROM contains kernel versions up to 1.3.X and is fully configured for easy installation. The accompanying manual explains how to administer and operate Linux as well as its implementation in running an Internet site - complete with reference material on installing Web browsers such as Netscape. It also addresses how to install Linux on a hard drive without reformatting the whole disk. Further features include even easier Internet access via SLIP/PPP, the use of the new ELF format (System V Executable and Linking format), provision of a complete C/C++ development environment and a CD-ROM smart cache that speeds up access to files.

In Linux Universe: Installation and Configuration, the medium and the message become one. Even though Linux itself is free, this book/CD-ROM combination is well worth its modest price. You not only get the convenience of having all the software (plus source code) for version 2.0 on two CD- ROMs, but you'll get clear and detailed guidance to help you install it. The book covers partitioning the disk, installing software and device drivers, configuring the boot manager, setting up the X-Window manager, administering users, and setting up TCP/IP networking. For those new to Unix, it also provides much-needed orientation, a primer of essential commands, and a useful command reference.

This is not a project for a computing novice, but if you're comfortable partitioning a drive, installing device drivers, and working from a command line, you'll have the necessary skills. By the time you finish, you'll have gained a good working understanding of Unix system configuration and administration. You'll need at least a 386 PC with 16 MB RAM, about 200 MB of disk space to spare, and a CD-ROM drive. The book assumes that your system has a DOS partition and is already running DOS, Windows, or Windows 95. A boot manager makes it possible to keep your current operating system installed if you wish.

Author Stefan Strobel has coauthored a companion volume, Linux: Unleashing the Workstation in Your PC, which delves more deeply into Linux system administration. Both books are also available in a single package, The Complete Linux Kit.

Linux is a free 32-bit multitasking operating system for 32-bit Intel and other industry-standard processors that closely resembles Unix. It supports multiple users, TCP/IP networking, and much of the peripheral hardware found on today's systems. Originally written by Linus Torvalds, Linux is now the product of a global community of interested programmers and is licensed through the Free Software Foundation.