Moving to Linux

Marcel Gagné is best known as the award-winning author of Linux Journal's "Cooking with Linux" series, for which he received the Readers' Choice award for favorite column two years in a row. He is also the author of the highly acclaimed book, Linux System Administration: A User's Guide, also published by Addison-Wesley.

Acknowledgments.


1. Introduction.


Is Linux Really FREE? The GPL. So What Do I Gain? What Do I Lose? Some Tips on Using this Book. Help Me! About the CD. It's My Philosophy. Resources.



2. Ready…Set… Linux!


Getting Linux. Getting a Free Copy of Linux. Dual Booting. Preserving Your Data. A Linux-Only System. Windows on Linux. Breaking Free! Resources.



3. The Installation.


Getting Ready for Your Installation. Hardware Considerations. Dual Booting Revisited. An Installation Comparison. A Mandrake Linux Install. Putting On The Red Hat. A SuSE Install. Not So Tough Installs. Starting and Stopping Linux. And Now… Linux! Resources.



4. Getting Your Hands Dirty.


Getting to Know You…KDE. Logging In. Becoming One with the Desktop. Your First Application. Windows, Title Bars, and Menus, Oh My! Resizing Windows. Command Central. A Polite Introduction to the Command Line. Changing Your Password. Konquest of the Desktop.



5. Konquering Your World.


Files, Directories, and the Root of All Things. Wherever You Go…. Enhancing Konqueror. Uh, Roger, Copy That… Creating New Directories. Copying Files and Directories (and Moving, Too!) Deleting Files and Directories. My World, My Way. Making Your Home a Home.



6. Customizing Your Desktop (or Making Your World Your Own).


I Am Sovereign of All I Survey… Save My Screen, Please! Moving Things Around. Is That a Theme or a Motif? Adding Icons and Shortcuts to Your Desktop. Miscellaneous Changes.



7. Installing New Packages.


Linux and Security. Kpackage. RPMs, the Shell Way. Look, Use the Source. The Extract and Build Five-Step. Resources.



8. Working with Devices.


Yes, It Runs with Linux! Plug and Play. Getting Familiar with Your Hardware. Printers and Printing. Modems versus Winmodems. What? More Devices? Resources.



9. Connecting to the Internet.


Before You Begin. Getting on the Net. Connecting to the Net with a Modem. Okay, I'm Connected Now What? What about My Windows Friends? Resources.



10. Electronic Mail.


Be Prepared… Kmail. Let's Communicate! Evolution. Other Options. Resources.



11 Surfing the Net (Just Browsing?)


Konqueror. Cool Konqueror Tricks. Mozilla. Wrapping up. Resources.



12. Keeping Up to Date.


Mandrake Update. Red Hat up2date. SuSE's Online Update. Ximian's Red Carpet. The Not-So-Final Word on Updates. Resources.



13 Word Processors (It Was a Dark and Stormy Night…)


OpenOffice.org Writer. Write Now! Toolbars of Every Kind. Help! To Word or Not to Word? Personalizing Your Environment. Running on AutoPilot. Navigating Style. Speaking of Document Elements… More!Give Me More! Other Options. Resources.



14. Spreadsheets (Tables You Can Count on).


Starting a New Spreadsheet and Entering Data. Basic Math. Saving Your Work. Complex Charts and Graphs, Oh My! Alternatives. Resources.



15. Presentation Graphics (For Those Who Need No Introduction).


Getting Ready to Impress. Instant Web Presentations. So What's with the Penguin? Extra! Extra! Resources.



16. Graphics and Art (Just Call Me Leonardo).


Working with a Digital Camera. Scanning. Optical Character Recognition. Welcome to the GIMP. Printing Your Masterpiece. Tools, Tools, and More Tools.



17. Multimedia (If Music Be the Food of Love…).


Adjusting the Levels. KsCD, the KDE CD Player. XMMS. Noatun. Ripping and Burning Songs. K3b for a Friendlier Burn. Lights, Camera, Action: Moving Pictures. Playing the MS-Only Plugin Game. Then, There's Mplayer! Using MPlayer as a Browser Plugin. It's a Wrap! Resources.



18. Fun and Games (Very Serious Fun).


Security Revisited. Take Me out to the Arcade. Deal those Cards, Ace. B-4. Miss. E-7. Hit! Educational Games. 3D Accelerated Fun. More Games! I Need More Games! Resources.



Appendix A: The GNU General Public License.


Appendix B: Take Command of Linux.


An Easy Start. Working with Files. A Peek at Metacharacters. File Permissions in the Shell. Standard Input and Standard Output. Pipes and Piping. Working with Directories. More on File Permissions. User and Group Ownership. Who Can Do What? Finding Anything. Forging on… References.



Index.


About the CD