Linux bible 2010 edition

Hat Linux Bible all editions, CentOS Bible, Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Bible, Linux Troubleshooting Bible, Linux Toys and Linux Toys II.. 703 Running Bootable Linux Distribution

Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

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Hat Linux Bible (all editions), CentOS Bible, Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Bible, Linux Troubleshooting Bible, Linux Toys and Linux Toys II Recently, Chris co-authored several books for the new Toolbox series for power users: Fedora Linux Toolbox, SUSE Linux Toolbox, Ubuntu Linux Toolbox, Mac OS X, and BSD UNIX Toolbox

For eight years Chris worked with the organization at AT&T that developed UNIX before ing to Utah to help contribute to Novell’s UnixWare project in the early 1990s When not writing about Linux, Chris enjoys playing soccer and just hanging out with his family

mov-Currently, Chris is employed by Red Hat, Inc as a Linux instructor He teaches classes and gives exams to those seeking Red Hat Certifi ed Engineer (RHCE) and Red Hat Certifi ed Technician (RHCT) certifi cations

I

the thousands of people who give their time and code to support Linux So, thanks to you all!

I’d like to acknowledge several contributors for their participation in previous editions Wayne Tucker originally wrote the chapters on Debian, LAMP servers, and mail servers Bill von Hagen has contributed updates to the SUSE, Yellow Dog, and Ubuntu chapters Warren Wyrostek served as technical editor to this edition Thanks to the folks at Wiley for helping me press through the proj-ect Sara Shlaer did an excellent job helping me stay on track as I balanced my work on this book with my new full-time job with Red Hat Katie Wisor shepherded the book through the production process Thanks to Margot Maley Hutchison and Maureen Maloney from Waterside Productions for contracting the book for me with Wiley

And fi nally, special thanks to my wife, Sheree There’s no way I could do the work I do without the solid support I get on the home front I love you, and thanks for taking such good care of Seth, Caleb, and me

Starting with LinuxChapter 1: .3

Linux Projects, Activities, and CareersChapter 2: .15

Part II: Running a Linux Desktop 33

Getting into the DesktopChapter 3: 35

Playing Music and VideoChapter 4: .83

Working with Words and ImagesChapter 5: 121

E-Mailing and Web BrowsingChapter 6: 151

Gaming with LinuxChapter 7: 185

Part III: Learning System Administration Skills 211

Installing LinuxChapter 8: 213

Running Commands from the ShellChapter 9: 245

Learning Basic AdministrationChapter 10: .295

Getting on the InternetChapter 11: .349

Securing LinuxChapter 12: 373

Part IV: Setting Up Linux Servers 421

Running a Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP (LAMP) ServerChapter 13: .423

Running a Mail ServerChapter 14: .445

Running a Print ServerChapter 15: .463

Running a File ServerChapter 16: .487

Part V: Choosing and Installing Different Linux Distributions 523

Running Ubuntu LinuxChapter 17: .525

Running Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise LinuxChapter 18: .545

Running Debian Chapter 19: GNU/Linux 569

Running SUSE and openSUSE LinuxChapter 20: .593

Running KNOPPIXChapter 21: .607

Running Yellow Dog LinuxChapter 22: 627

Running Gentoo LinuxChapter 23: .639

Running Slackware LinuxChapter 24: .661

Running PCLinuxOSChapter 25: 679

Running Mandriva

Chapter 26: .689

Running a Linux Firewall Router Chapter 27: 703

Running Bootable Linux Distributions Chapter 28: 731

Part VI: Programming in Linux 751

Programming Environments and Interfaces Chapter 29: 753

Programming Tools and Utilities Chapter 30: 785

Appendix A: Media 817

Appendix B: Linux History and Background 827

GNU General Public License (Version 2) 849

Index 855

Starting with Linux

Chapter 1: .3

Taking Your First Step 4

What comes in Linux systems? 4

What do you need to get started? 5

Starting right now 6

Understanding Linux 10

What’s So Great About Linux? 13

Summary 14

Linux Projects, Activities, and Careers Chapter 2: 15

Making Things with Linux 16

Linux in outer space 16

Linux in gadgets 17

Linux in projects 19

Getting Involved with Linux 21

Joining a Linux User Group 22

Joining Linux communities 22

Companies and groups supporting Linux 22

Keeping Up with Linux 23

Major Linux projects 24

Exploring Linux distributions 26

Linux in the Real World 27

Linux in schools 27

Linux in small business 28

Linux in the enterprise 30

Becoming a Linux Professional 30

Summary 31

Part II: Running a Linux Desktop 33 Getting into the Desktop Chapter 3: 35

Understanding Your Desktop 35

Starting the Desktop 36

Boot to the desktop 36

Boot to graphical login 37

Boot to a text prompt 39

K Desktop Environment 40

Using the KDE desktop 41

Managing fi les with Dolphin and Konqueror 45

Using the Dolphin fi le manager 45

Using the Konqueror Web browser/fi le manager 50

Managing the KDE desktop 53

Confi guring the desktop 55

The GNOME Desktop 57

Using the Metacity window manager 60

Using the GNOME panels 61

Using the Nautilus fi le manager 66

3D effects with AIGLX 68

Changing GNOME preferences 71

Exiting GNOME 72

Confi guring Your Own Desktop 72

Confi guring X 73

Choosing a window manager 77

Choosing your personal window manager 80

Getting More Information 80

Summary 81

Playing Music and Video Chapter 4: 83

Playing Digital Media and Obeying the Law 84

Copyright protection issues 84

Exploring codecs 86

Playing Music 88

Using sound systems in Linux 88

Adjusting sound with PulseAudio 89

Setting up audio cards 90

Choosing an audio CD player 92

Using MIDI audio players 99

Performing audio fi le conversion and compression 99

Recording and Ripping Music 102

Creating an audio CD with cdrecord 103

Ripping CDs with Grip 104

Creating CD labels with cdlabelgen 106

Working with TV, Video, and Digital Imaging 107

Watching TV with tvtime 108

Video conferencing with Ekiga 109

Watching Movies and Video 111

Watching video with xine 112

Using Totem movie player 116

Using a Digital Camera 117

Displaying images in gThumb 117

Using your camera as a storage device 118

Summary 119

Working with Words and Images Chapter 5: 121

Desktop Publishing in Linux 122

Using text editors and notepads 122

Using word processors 122

Transitioning documents from Windows 129

Building structured documents 132

Doing page layout with Scribus 136

Working with Graphics 138

Manipulating images with The GIMP 138

Creating vector graphic images with Inkscape 141

Acquiring screen captures 143

Viewing images 144

Displaying PDF and PostScript Documents 145

Using the ghostscript and gv commands 146

Using Adobe Reader 146

Using Scanners with SANE 148

Web Publishing 148

Summary 150

E-Mailing and Web Browsing Chapter 6: 151

Using E-Mail 151

Choosing an e-mail client 151

Getting here from Windows 153

Getting started with e-mail 154

Tuning up e-mail 156

Reading e-mail with Thunderbird 156

Managing e-mail in Evolution 163

Reading e-mail with SeaMonkey Mail 166

Working with text-based e-mail readers 167

Choosing a Web Browser 169

Exploring the SeaMonkey Suite 170

Using Firefox 171

Setting up Firefox 173

Securing Firefox 177

Tips for using Firefox 179

Using Firefox controls 179

Improving Firefox browsing 180

Doing cool things with Firefox 181

Using Text-Based Web Browsers 182

Summary 184

Gaming with Linux

Chapter 7: 185

Jumping into Linux Gaming 185

Overview of Linux Gaming 187

Basic Linux Gaming Information 188

Choosing Gaming Hardware for Linux 190

Running Open Source Linux Games 191

GNOME games 192

KDE games 193

Games in Fedora 194

Commercial Linux Games 201

Getting started with commercial games in Linux 202

Playing commercial Linux games .203

id Software games 203

Playing TransGaming and Cedega games 205

Loki Software game demos 207

Summary 210

Part III: Learning System Administration Skills 211 Installing Linux Chapter 8: 213

Choosing a Linux Distribution 214

Linux at work 214

Other distributions 215

Getting Your Own Linux Distribution 215

Finding another Linux distribution 216

Understanding what you need 216

Downloading the distribution 217

Burning the distribution to CD 218

Exploring Common Installation Topics 219

Knowing your computer hardware 219

Upgrading or installing from scratch 221

Dual booting and virtualization 221

Using installation boot options 223

Partitioning hard drives 224

Using LILO or GRUB boot loaders 232

Confi guring networking 242

Confi guring other administrative features 243

Installing from the Linux Bible CD or DVD 243

Summary 244

Running Commands from the Shell Chapter 9: 245

Starting a Shell 246

Using the shell prompt 246

Using a terminal window 247

Using virtual terminals 248

Choosing Your Shell 248

Using bash (and earlier sh) shells 249

Using tcsh (and earlier csh) shells 250

Using ash 250

Using ksh 250

Using zsh 250

Exploring the Shell 251

Checking your login session 251

Checking directories and permissions 252

Checking system activity 254

Exiting the shell 255

Using the Shell in Linux 255

Locating commands 256

Rerunning commands 259

Connecting and expanding commands 265

Creating Your Shell Environment 268

Confi guring your shell 268

Using shell environment variables 272

Managing background and foreground processes 275

Working with the Linux File System 277

Creating fi les and directories 280

Moving, copying, and deleting fi les 287

Using the vi Text Editor 287

Starting with vi 288

Moving around the fi le 291

Searching for text 291

Using numbers with commands 292

Summary 293

Learning Basic Administration Chapter 10: 295

Graphical Administration Tools 296

Using Web-based administration 296

Graphical administration with different distributions 298

Using the root Login 302

Becoming root from the shell (su command) 303

Allowing limited administrative access 304

Exploring Administrative Commands, Confi guration Files, and Log Files 304

Administrative commands 305

Administrative confi guration fi les 306

Administrative log fi les 310

Using sudo and Other Administrative Logins 310

Administering Your Linux System 313

Creating User Accounts 314

Adding users with useradd 314

Setting user defaults 317

Modifying users with usermod 319

Deleting users with userdel 320

Confi guring Hardware 321

Managing removable hardware 322

Working with loadable modules 325

Managing File Systems and Disk Space 327

Mounting fi le systems 330

Using the mkfs command to create a fi le system 338

Adding a hard disk 339

Checking system space 342

Monitoring System Performance 344

Doing Remote System Administration 345

Summary 347

Getting on the Internet Chapter 11: 349

Connecting to the Network 350

Connecting via dial-up service 350

Connecting a single wired Ethernet card 351

Sharing a network connection with other computers 352

Connecting servers 354

Connecting other equipment 355

Using Ethernet Connections to the Internet 356

Confi guring Ethernet during installation 357

Confi guring Ethernet from the desktop 357

Using Network Confi guration GUI in Fedora 358

Identifying other computers (hosts and DNS) 360

Understanding your Internet connection 362

Using Dial-Up Connections to the Internet 364

Getting information 364

Setting up dial-up PPP 365

Creating a dial-up connection with the Internet Confi guration Wizard 366

Launching your PPP connection 368

Launching your PPP connection on demand 369

Checking your PPP connection 370

Checking that your modem was detected 370

Connecting to the Internet with Wireless 371

Summary 372

Securing Linux Chapter 12: 373

Linux Security Checklist 374

Finding distribution-specifi c security resources 377

Finding general security resources 378

Using Linux Securely 379

Using password protection 379

Choosing good passwords 379

Using Log Files 383

The role of syslogd 386

Redirecting logs to a loghost with syslogd 386

Understanding the messages log fi le 388

Using Secure Shell Tools 389

Starting the ssh service 389

Using the ssh, sftp, and scp commands 390

Using ssh, scp, and sftp without passwords 391

Securing Linux Servers 392

Controlling access to services with TCP wrappers 392

Understanding attack techniques 395

Protecting against denial-of-service attacks 396

Protecting against distributed DoS attacks 399

Protecting against intrusion attacks 404

Securing servers with SELinux 407

Protecting Web servers with certifi cates and encryption .407

Using Security Tools from Linux Live CDs 417

Advantages of security live CDs 418

Using INSERT to check for rootkits 418

Summary 419

Part IV: Setting Up Linux Servers 421 Chapter 13: Running a Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP (LAMP) Server 423

Components of a LAMP Server 424

Apache 424

MySQL 424

PHP 425

Setting Up Your LAMP Server 426

Installing Apache 426

Installing PHP 426

Installing MySQL 428

Operating Your LAMP Server 428

Editing your apache confi guration fi les 429

Adding a virtual host to Apache 431

User content and the UserDir setting 433

Installing a Web application: Coppermine Photo Gallery 433

Troubleshooting 437

Confi guration errors 437

Access forbidden and server internal errors 439

Securing Your Web Traffi c with SSL/TLS 440

Generating your keys 442

Confi guring Apache to support SSL/TLS 443

Summary 444

Running a Mail Server

Chapter 14: 445

Internet E-Mail’s Inner Workings 445

About the System and the Software Used 447

Preparing Your System 447

Confi guring DNS for direct delivery 448

Confi guring for retrieval from a mail host 449

Installing and Confi guring the Mail Server Software 450

Installing Exim and Courier 450

Installing ClamAV and SpamAssassin 452

Testing and Troubleshooting 454

Checking logs 454

Common errors (and how to fi x them) 455

Confi guring Mail Clients 458

Confi guring Fetchmail 459

Confi guring web-based mail 460

Securing Communications with SSL/TLS 460

Summary 462

Running a Print Server Chapter 15: 463

Common UNIX Printing Service .464

Setting Up Printers 465

Using Web-based CUPS administration 466

Using the Printer Confi guration window 468

Working with CUPS Printing 476

Confi guring the CUPS server (cupsd.conf) 476

Starting the CUPS server 477

Confi guring CUPS printer options manually 478

Using Printing Commands 479

Printing with lpr 480

Listing status with lpc 480

Removing print jobs with lprm 481

Confi guring Print Servers 481

Confi guring a shared CUPS printer 482

Confi guring a shared Samba printer 483

Summary 485

Running a File Server Chapter 16: 487

Setting Up an NFS File Server 488

Getting NFS 490

Sharing NFS fi le systems 490

Using NFS fi le systems 495

Unmounting NFS fi le systems 501

Other cool things to do with NFS 502

Setting Up a Samba File Server 502

Getting and installing Samba 504

Working with Samba fi les and commands 515

Using Samba shared directories 518

Troubleshooting your Samba server 519

Summary 522

Part V: Choosing and Installing Different Linux Distributions 523

Running Ubuntu Linux Chapter 17: 525

Overview of Ubuntu 526

Ubuntu releases 526

Ubuntu installer 527

Ubuntu as a desktop 528

Ubuntu as a server 528

Ubuntu spin-offs 530

Challenges facing Ubuntu 531

Installing Ubuntu 532

Getting Started with Ubuntu 537

Trying out the desktop 538

Adding more software 539

Getting More Information about Ubuntu 542

Summary 543

Running Fedora and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Chapter 18: 545

Digging into Features 547

Red Hat installer (Anaconda) 547

Custom spins, install sets, and Live CDs 548

RPM Package Management 549

Latest desktop technology 549

System confi guration tools 551

Going Forward with Fedora 551

Growing community support for Fedora 552

Joining Fedora special interest groups 552

Forums and mailing lists 553

Fedora Comes of Age 553

Installing Fedora 556

Choosing computer hardware 556

Choosing an installation method 557

Choosing to install or upgrade 558

Beginning the installation 559

Running the Fedora Firstboot 567

Adding cool stuff to your Fedora desktop 567

Summary 567

Running Debian GNU/Linux Chapter 19: 569

Inside Debian GNU/Linux 570Debian packages 570Debian package management tools 571Debian releases 573Getting Help with Debian 573Installing Debian GNU/Linux 574Hardware requirements and installation planning 574Running the installer 575Managing Your Debian System 580Confi guring network connections 580Package management using APT 583Package management using dpkg 587Installing package sets (tasks) with tasksel 589Alternatives, diversions, and stat overrides 590Managing package confi guration with debconf 592Summary 592

Running SUSE and openSUSE Linux Chapter 20: 593

Understanding SUSE Linux Enterprise and openSUSE 595What’s in SUSE Distributions? 595Installation and confi guration with YaST 596RPM package management 599Automated software updates 600Managing software with zypper .600Getting Support for SUSE Linux Enterprise and openSUSE 601Installing openSUSE 601Before you begin 602Starting installation 603Starting with openSUSE 605Summary 605

Running KNOPPIX Chapter 21: 607

KNOPPIX Features 608Understanding KNOPPIX 608Looking inside KNOPPIX 608What’s cool about KNOPPIX 610Examining challenges with KNOPPIX 611Seeing where KNOPPIX comes from 612Exploring uses for KNOPPIX 613Starting KNOPPIX 614Getting a computer 614Booting KNOPPIX 615Correcting boot problems 615

Using KNOPPIX 620Getting on the network 624Installing software in KNOPPIX 625Summary 626

Running Yellow Dog Linux Chapter 22: 627

Understanding Yellow Dog Linux 628Going Forward with Yellow Dog 629Digging into Yellow Dog 629Installing Yellow Dog Linux 631Hardware support 632Installing Yellow Dog Linux on a PowerStation 633Updating Yellow Dog Linux 635Support Options 637Summary 637

Running Gentoo Linux Chapter 23: 639

Understanding Gentoo 640Gentoo’s open source spirit 640The Gentoo community 641Building, tuning, and tweaking Linux 641Where Gentoo is used 643What’s in Gentoo 643Managing software with Portage 644Finding software packages 644Gentoo features 645Installing Gentoo 646Getting Gentoo 646Starting Gentoo installation from a live CD 647Starting Gentoo installation from a minimal CD 650Getting software with emerge 658Summary 659

Running Slackware Linux Chapter 24: 661

Getting into Slackware 661Characterizing the Slackware Community 663The Slackware creator 663Slackware users 665Slackware Internet sites 665Challenges of Using Slackware 666Using Slackware as a Development Platform 667Installing Slackware 667Getting Slackware 667New features in Slackware 13 668

Hardware requirements 668Starting installation 669Starting with Slackware 675Summary 677

Running PCLinuxOS Chapter 25: 679

Starting with PCLinuxOS 680Checking what you can do 680Adding more applications 681Installing PCLinuxOS 683Starting the install 683Confi guring after installation 685Remastering PCLinuxOS 685Summary 688

Running Mandriva Chapter 26: 689

Mandriva Features 689Exploring Mandriva 691Mandriva installer (DrakX) 692RPM package management with RPMDrake 693Mandriva Linux Control Center 694The Mandriva Community 695Installing Mandriva Limited Edition .696The right hardware for Mandriva 696Installing Mandriva with the DrakX installer 697Summary 701

Running a Linux Firewall Router Chapter 27: 703

Understanding Firewalls 704Protecting Desktops with Firewalls 705Starting your fi rewall in Fedora 705Confi guring a fi rewall in Mandriva 707Using Firewalls with iptables 709Starting with iptables 709Using iptables to do SNAT or IP Masquerading 715Adding modules with iptables 716Using iptables as a transparent proxy 716Using iptables for port forwarding 717Making a Coyote Linux Bootable Floppy Firewall 718Creating a Coyote Linux fi rewall 718Building the Coyote Linux fl oppy 719Running the Coyote Linux fl oppy fi rewall 725Managing the Coyote Linux fl oppy fi rewall 726Using Other Firewall Distributions 728Summary 729

Running Bootable Linux Distributions Chapter 28: 731

Overview of Bootable Linux Distributions 732Trying a Bootable Linux 733Showcasing Linux from a live CD 734Security and rescue bootables 735Demonstration bootables 740Multimedia bootables 740Tiny desktops 743Special-Purpose Bootables 747Customizing a Bootable Linux 747Building a live CD with Fedora 749Summary 750

Part VI: Programming in Linux 751

Programming Environments and Interfaces

Understanding Programming Environments 754Using Linux Programming Environments 754The Linux development environment 755Graphical programming environments 763The command-line programming environment 769Linux Programming Interfaces 770Creating command-line interfaces 770Creating graphical interfaces 777Application programming interfaces 779Summary 783

Programming Tools and Utilities Chapter 30: 785

The Well-Stocked Toolkit 785Using the GCC Compiler 787Compiling multiple source code fi les 789GCC command-line options 791Automating Builds with make 792Library Utilities 795The nm command 796The ar command 797The ldd command 798The ldconfi g command 799Environment variables and confi guration fi les 799Source Code Control 800Source code control using RCS 800Source code control with CVS 804

Debugging with GNU Debugger 808Starting GDB 808Inspecting code in the Debugger 811Examining data 812Setting breakpoints 814Working with source code 815Summary 815

Appendix A: Media 817 Appendix B: Linux History and Background 827 GNU General Public License (Version 2) 849 Index 855

of us who have been bitten by the Linux bug, you won’t ever look back

Linux Bible 2010 Edition is here to open your eyes to what Linux is, where it came from, and

where it’s going But, most of all, the book is here to hand you Linux and help you get started

Because Linux is the operating system of free speech and free choice, Linux Bible gives you

choices in selecting the Linux that is right for you

On the DVD and CD that come with this book are 18 different Linux distributions that you are free to install, try out, and keep You learn how those distributions are alike or different, and the book leads you through the basics of installing and setting up your Linux system as:

A desktop computer user

 —You have a full range of offi ce, music, gaming, graphics, and other applications to use

A Linux system administrator

 —Learn how to install software, use shell commands, confi gure system services, and secure your computers and networks

A Linux server administrator

 —Using some of the world’s best server software, you can set up your computer to be a Web server, fi le server, mail server, or print server

A software developer

 —You can draw on thousands of open source programming tools

to develop your own software applications

The Linux systems you have in your hand don’t contain trialware or otherwise-hobbled software

On the contrary, they feature software created by world-class development projects, the same teams that build the software that powers many professional businesses, schools, home desktops, and Internet service providers In other words, this truly fi rst-rate software is from develop-ers who have made a commitment to producing software that can be used in the ways that you choose to use it

Most of the Linux distributions offered on the DVD and CD that come with this book are live CDs that let you try a Linux distribution without installing Almost all of those live CDs include features that let you install the contents of those live CDs to your hard disk For example, you can try out Fedora, Gentoo, Ubuntu, openSUSE, PCLinuxOS, and Mandriva as live CDs, and then install those distributions permanently to your hard drive from icons on the desktops of those live CDs

Unlike some other books on Linux, this book doesn’t tie you to one Linux distribution The book teaches you the essentials of Linux graphical desktop interfaces, shell commands, and basic sys-tem administration Separate chapters break down many of the major Linux distributions avail-able today Then descriptions of the major software projects in most Linux distributions (KDE and GNOME desktops, Apache Web servers, Samba fi le and printer sharing, and so on) guide you in setting up and using those features, regardless of which Linux you choose.

Understanding the Linux Mystique

This book is designed to spark your imagination about what is possible with Linux, then give you the software and instruction to jump right into Linux From there, the approach is to help you learn by using it

In the fi rst two chapters, you’ll learn a lot of exciting ways Linux is being used today and see who many of the major players are in the free and open source software (FOSS) world You will see how people are adapting Linux to run on handhelds, mini laptops, 32- and 64-bit PCs, Macs, mainframes, and super computers Linux is truly everywhere!

However, if you are concerned that somehow “free” software is too good to be true, skip ahead for the moment to the brief history of Linux in Appendix B That appendix guides you through the strange and circuitous path of free and open source software development that led to the Linux phenomenon

If you are intrigued by what you learn here, I’ll tell you how you can become part of the open source and free software communities, whose stars are known by a single name (such as Linus)

or a few initials (such as rms) You’ll fi nd a staggering number of open source projects, forums, and mailing lists that are thriving today (and always looking for more people to get involved)

How This Book Is Organized

Learn the basics of what goes into Linux and you will be able to use all sorts of devices and computers in the future The book is organized in a way that enables you to start off at the very beginning with Linux, but still grow to the point where you can get going with some powerful server and programming features, if you care to

Part I includes two short chapters designed to open your eyes to what you can do with Linux,

then get your hands on it quickly Those two chapters describe

How others use Linux, how to transition to Linux from Windows, and how to start with



Linux using the CD and DVD inside this book (Chapter 1)What you can do, what you can make, and what you can become with Linux (Chapter 2)



In Part II, you start in with details on how to use Linux desktops and associated applications

In Part III, you learn how to administer Linux systems, including

Installing Linux systems (Chapter 8)

Linux creates powerful servers, and in Part IV you learn to

Set up a Web server using Apache, MySQL, and PHP in Linux (Chapter 13)

If you don’t have Linux installed yet, this book helps you understand differences in Linux

dis-tribution, then install the systems you want from the DVD and CD included in this book Part

V (Chapters 17 through 28) describes each of those distributions and how to run them live or

In addition, Appendix A tells you what’s on the DVD and CD, how to install from the DVD or

CD, and how to burn additional installation CDs from the software that comes with this book

Appendix B provides history and background information about Linux

What You Will Get from This Book

By the time you fi nish this book, you’ll have a good basic understanding of many of the major features in Linux and how you can use them If you decide then that you want to go a bit deeper,

try the Fedora 12 Bible or the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Bible (both from Wiley, 2010), with content

that includes how to set up many different types of Linux servers You can fi nd similar books for other distributions

If you are more technically oriented, Linux Troubleshooting Bible (Wiley, 2004) can be a good way to learn more advanced skills for securing and troubleshooting Linux systems Or a Linux

Toolbox book for Fedora, Ubuntu, BSD, or SUSE (Wiley, 2007 and 2008) can provide you with

more than 1,000 Linux command lines to help you become a Linux power user

If you are looking for some fun, try out some projects with an old PC and free software from

Linux Toys II (Wiley, 2006).

Conventions Used in This Book

Throughout the book, special typography indicates code and commands Commands and code are shown in a monospaced font:

This is how code looks.

In the event that an example includes both input and output, the monospaced font is still used, but input is presented in bold type to distinguish the two Here’s an example:

$ ftp ftp.handsonhistory.com

Name (home:jake): jake Password: ******

As for styles in the text:

New terms and important words appear in italics when introduced

A Caution box alerts you to take special care when executing a procedure, or damage to your computer

hard-ware or softhard-ware could result 

Cross-Reference

A Cross-Reference box refers you to further information on a subject that you can fi nd outside the current

chapter 

Coming from Windows

A Coming from Windows box provides tips to help you transfer your knowledge of Windows systems to the

Linux world 

The On the CD and On the DVD icons point out features related to the media that accompany the book

With Linux, you are free to erase your computer’s entire hard disk

and run nothing but free (as in freedom) software on it As an alternative, you could run Linux from a live CD (ignoring your computer’s contents without changing them) or install Linux to dual boot

with your Windows or Mac OS X system as you choose The bottom line is

that with Linux you are free to do as YOU choose with your computer

In only a few years, Linux has advanced from being considered a

spe-cialty operating system into the mainstream Precompiled and

con-fi gured Linux systems can be installed with no technical expertise

Versions of Linux run on all kinds of devices, from PCs to handhelds (see

www.linuxdevices.com) to game consoles (such as PlayStation 3) to

supercomputers to Mars rovers In short, Linux has become a system that

almost anyone can run almost anywhere

On both desktop and server computers Linux has become a formidable

operating system across a variety of business applications Today, large

enterprises can deploy thousands of systems using Linux distributions from

companies such as Red Hat, Inc and Novell, Inc Small businesses can put

together the mixture of offi ce and Internet services they need to keep their

costs down

The free and open source software (FOSS) development model that

espoused sharing, freedom, and openness is now on a trajectory to

sur-pass the quality of other operating systems outside of the traditional Linux

servers and technical workstations What were once weak components of

Linux, such as easy-to-use desktops, multimedia codecs and limited driver

availability, have improved at a rapid pace In areas of security, usability,

connectivity, and network services, Linux has continued to improve and

outshine the competition

Starting with Linux

IN THIS CHAPTER

Getting started with Linux Understanding Linux Linux features and advantages

Computer industry heavy-hitters such as Microsoft and Oracle have taken notice of Linux

Microsoft has struck agreements with Linux companies including Novell and Xandros to form partnerships that primarily protect those companies against threatened Microsoft lawsuits

Oracle began producing its own enterprise-targeted Linux system to try to stem the fl ow of tomers to Red Hat Enterprise Linux

cus-What does this all add up to? A growing swirl of excitement around the operating system that the big guys can’t seem to get rid of For people like yourself, who want the freedom to use your com-puter software as you like, it means great prospects for the future

Let this book help you grab your fi rst look at the distributions, applications, services, and munity that make up the phenomenon that has become Linux

com-Taking Your First Step

In your hands, you have 18 different Linux distributions (on CD and DVD), thousands of tions, and descriptions for getting it all running on your own computer For you right now, the worldwide Linux phenomenon is just a reboot away

applica-Linux Bible 2010 Edition brings you into the world of free and open source software that, through

some strange twists and turns, has fallen most publicly under the “Linux” banner Through descriptions and procedures, this book helps you

Understand what people do with Linux and how you can use Linux for all your

high-quality software projects that are included with Linux

What comes in Linux systems?

Whether you are using Linux for the fi rst time or just want to try out a new Linux

distribu-tion, Linux Bible 2010 Edition is your guide to using Linux and the latest open source

technol-ogy Although different Linux distributions vary in the exact software they include, this book describes the most popular software available for Linux to

Manage your desktop (menus, icons, windows, and so on)

Browse the Web and send e-mail

Connect to the Internet or other network

Google and Amazon.com), universities, and businesses of all sizes

This book guides you through the basics of getting started with these Linux features, plus many more After you’ve been through the book, you should be profi cient enough in the basics to track down answers to your more advanced questions through the volumes of man pages, FAQs, HOWTOs, and forums that cover different aspects of the Linux operating system

To get started with Linux right now, all you need is a standard PC with a bootable CD or DVD drive

What do you need to get started?

Although Linux runs great on many low-end computers (even some old 486s and early Pentiums), if you are completely new to Linux, I recommend that you start with a PC that has a little more muscle Here’s why:

Full-blown Linux operating systems with complete GNOME or KDE desktop

environ-

ments (see Chapter 3) perform poorly on slow CPUs and less than the recommended amount of RAM The bells and whistles come at the price of processing power Lighter-weight options (such as the Xfce or LXDE desktop environments) often run well on computers that have limited resources, but they may offer fewer features

You can use streamlined graphical Linux installations that fi t on small hard disks (as



small as 100MB) and run fairly well on slow processors Also, small live CD Linux tributions, such as Damn Small Linux (DSL), can be copied to hard disk and run from there (read about some of these small “bootables” in Chapter 28) The 50MB DSL desktop system can run fi ne on old Pentium machines with little RAM But if you want to add some of the more demanding applications to these small systems, such as OpenOffi ce.org offi ce applications, you will fi nd you need more than minimal computer hardware

dis-If you are starting with a Pentium II, 400 MHz, your desktop will run slowly in default KDE or GNOME confi gurations with less than 128MB of RAM A simpler desktop system, with just X and a window manager, will work, but won’t give you the full fl avor of a Linux desktop (See Chapter 3 for information about different desktop choices and features.)

The good news is that cheap desktop PCs or netbooks that you can buy from big box retailers start at less than $200 Those systems will perform better than most PCs you have laying around that are more than a few years old, and some even come with Linux pre-installed The bottom line is that the less you know about Linux, the more you should try to have computer hardware that is up to spec to have a pleasant experience

Starting right now

If you are anxious to get started, insert either the DVD or CD accompanying this book into the appropriate drive on your PC and reboot When you see the boot screen, press Enter When the DVD or CD boots, the following happens, respectively:

KNOPPIX starts up.

 A fully functional KNOPPIX desktop Linux system will boot directly from the DVD From that Linux system, you can do everything you would expect to do from a modern desktop computing system: write documents, play music, communicate over the Internet, work with images, and so on If you have a wired Ethernet connection that connects to the Internet when you started up Windows, most likely it will also connect automatically when KNOPPIX starts

Damn Small Linux starts up.

 This small, amazing desktop-oriented Linux system starts up directly from the CD that comes with this book Besides being expandable and adaptable, DSL runs on everything from low-end PCs to powerful workstation hardware while being small enough to fi t on a mini CD (it’s only about 50MB in size)

What you have in front of you is a functioning desktop system that you can install to your hard disk to use permanently, if you like You can choose to add software from among thousands of software packages available for Linux Depending on your Linux system, installing extra software might just take a few clicks

The next sections step you through a few things you can do with KNOPPIX and Damn Small Linux

If you have any trouble starting KNOPPIX, see Chapter 21 for descriptions of boot options to help you

over-come certain problems (such as a garbled screen or hanging when certain hardware is encountered) That

FIGURE 1-1

The KNOPPIX live Linux CD contains the KDE desktop and hundreds of applications

Here is a quick tour of the KNOPPIX desktop:

Browsing

 —Select the Web Browser icon from the bottom panel to open the IceWeasel browser The IceWeasel browser is a version of the Firefox Web browser that was rebranded by the Debian project (http://geticeweasel.org)

Managing files

 —Select the My Documents icon from the desktop A PCMan File Manager window opens to show your home folder (/home/knoppix) You will typically save fi les and folders to your home folder Because you are running KNOPPIX as a live

CD, any fi les you create will be lost when you reboot if you don’t explicitly save them

Chapter 21 describes how to make a persistent desktop, so you can save the fi les you create in KNOPPIX permanently

Accessing disks

 —A live CD, such as KNOPPIX, is designed to run without touching the contents of your hard disk However, if you have something on your hard disk you want to use with KNOPPIX (such as a music fi le or document), KNOPPIX makes doing

it easy

Entries appear in the left column of the fi le manager, representing every partition on your hard disk, as well as detected removable media (such as a USB fl ash drive) In Figure 1-1, Volume entries represent several partitions on your hard disk Select an icon

to display the contents of the partition in that fi le manager window To add content to that disk partition, simply drag and drop fi les from the desktop, or copy, move, or oth-erwise create fi les from the shell

Special Knoppix features

 —Because of the temporary nature of a live CD, you have to confi gure settings each time you boot, unless you take steps to save those settings From the LXDE icon on the left side of the bottom panel, you can see a menu of selections to

do special things to make KNOPPIX run from your hard disk Select System Tools ➪ KNOPPIX HD Install to install KNOPPIX so you can run it from your hard disk

Other KNOPPIX features are also available from that menu You can select Install Components to add non-free software, such as Flash plug-ins or Windows fonts

Chapter 21 describes other KNOPPIX features

Running Applications

 —Select the LXDE icon from the lower-left corner of the panel

to see a menu of available applications Choose Offi ce to select from several OpenOffi ce

org offi ce applications for writing documents, using spreadsheets, drawing pictures, and building presentations Try out some communications applications, such as Icedove mail reader and Pidgin Internet Messenger, from the Network menu

When you are done trying KNOPPIX, select Log Out from the LXDE menu and choose Shut Down After KNOPPIX shuts down, it ejects the disc After you remove the disc, you can use your computer again with whatever operating system you have installed there

Trying Damn Small Linux

Because Damn Small Linux (DSL) is based on KNOPPIX, you may notice some similarities DSL

is smaller and faster, however, so you should get to the DSL desktop screen quicker Instead of LXDE, the DSL desktop features a simple window manager Figure 1-2 shows an example of a Damn Small Linux desktop with several applications open

Note

Many of the same boot options that come with KNOPPIX will work with DSL, so check Chapter 21 if you have

trouble booting DSL For other descriptions of DSL, see Chapter 28