Product: 159327257X

This is Grant’s third book about user-friendly Linux desktop distributions, following Linux For Non-Geeks about the Fedora distribution and Linux Made Easy covering the Xandros distribution. As one might expect, he gets better with each book.

The first two-thirds of the book cover the all-important aspects of installing and using the Ubuntu operating system. An early chapter provides a guide to the highly personalizable Gnome windows interface, followed by a chapter on connecting to the Internet and using browsers and email programs.

The next chapter, covering downloading and installing programs, is possibly the most important and helpful in the book. Adding new programs downloaded from the Internet can be endlessly frustrating.

Ubuntu uses Synaptic to effortlessly locate and install programs contained in Debian Packages. The book illustrates the procedures in great detail. By default, Synaptic is set up to find only applications specifically tuned to work in Ubuntu. There are many more Debian packages available, however, that most likely will work just fine. The book shows the simple, but non-intuitive, few steps needed to add those other programs to the availability list.

A later chapter goes into detail about installing programs that are not available as Debian packages, including Red Hat packages (RPMs), binaries and Tarballs. Other useful topics are using the file system, some command line procedures, connecting peripherals, and summaries of popular Open Source programs for office applications, image editing, and audio-video applications.

The book provides essential help in making the most of the Ubuntu distribution, even for those already familiar with other Linux distributions. It is written in an easy style with many useful examples. Highly recommended.
Rating: 5
159327257X
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