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GNU/Linux For Dummies: A Brief Survey
You've decided to take the plunge -- there's an unused computer in the corner, you're looking for a way to fill that new 20 GB hard drive, or you've gone all out with a shiny new machine and Windows tax be darned! It's time to figure out this Linux thing. How do you start? If your local computer guru blanches at the thought of a command line, or if you have that stubborn "I'll figure it out if I have to stay up all night" streak that characterizes so many successful hackers, perhaps a book will come in handy.
Over the next few weeks, we'll be taking a look at a handful of randomly selected texts from various publishers. Their scopes and intended audiences range from nascent beginner to somewhat experienced existing user. Some walk you through installation and some expect you already know what to do right after you log in. They all purport to be your guide to the sometimes confusing, occasionally maddening, and even often rewarding world of Linux. Which one, if any, is right for you? Hopefully we'll answer that question.
Linux ... for Dummies? This week, our books come from IDG's popular "Dummies" series (but we'll skip the obvious question begging). These three books are fundamentally the same, undoubtedly due to the venerable maddog's presence as common author. Generic Linux information appears almost verbatim, and some chapters differ only in phrasing. Some information is rearranged, and the chapter on using X is different among the three (two focus on KDE, one on GNOME). A description of one book will give you a general idea of the other two. Of course, there's distribution specific information, specifically relating to installation and certain administration tasks.Why would you buy these books? They provide detailed installation instructions and supply recent CDs of the titular distributions. They also provide decent -- if basic -- introductions to simple commands and standard tasks. The installation chapters have sufficient detail to walk nearly anyone through the process, including dual-booting techniques, tips on discovering hardware information in Windows, selecting the desired packages, and creating sane partitions. (With 5 chapters devoted to navigating the shiny installers, the only thing preventing success is hardware failure or sunspots.) If you follow the directions, you'll have a decently-equipped workstation capable of accessing the Internet through a modem.
Once your new Linux system is installed, what can you do? There's a tutorial on command-line basics, discussing the Unix file system and basic file commands. You'll meet the bash shell, with pipes and job controls and even a little shell programming. The vi editor also gets a bit of explanation -- follow the instructions and you'll know enough to edit files. (Pull out the command reference card from the front of the book just in case you forget :wq.)
It's on to X, after that. Here the books diverge again. After explaning the basics of X and whichever Desktop Environment the distribution prefers, the authors describe a few common tasks and programs and leave you to explore. Some basic system administration tasks get the spotlight -- file maintenance, adding a new disk, or installing software. (Don't expect to pull down $90,000/year on an entry-level SysAdmin job after this section. The SuSE and Caldera books do discuss building a new kernel, though.)
Appendixes include hardware compatibility lists and a description of the Linux man page format.
title SuSE Linux for Dummies [ISBN: 0764506811] publisher IDG Books Included Stuff SuSE 6.2 CD-ROM Intended Audience Linux newcomers who aren't afraid to install it themselves. Little prior computing experience necessary. Scope Installation and basic introduction to Linux. Technical Correctness No glaring errors. Writing style Highly informal. May be too verbose for more technical readers. Other Focuses on KDE, where applicable. System administration tasks take place with YaST, SuSE's homebrew tool.
There's not a lot of space given to common applications beyond Netscape and vi. A quick tour of KDE will probably give users enough confidence to plumb the depths of the KDE menus themselves, but the "What Now?" feature might bite after closing the back cover.
title Caldera OpenLinux for Dummies [ISBN 076450679X] publisher IDG Books Included Stuff OpenLinux 2.3 CD-ROM Intended Audience same Scope same Technical Correctness same Writing style Highly informal, even a bit chatty. Other Focuses on KDE. System administration tasks use COAS (the Caldera Open Administration System).
This book has more information on exploring and customizing KDE, but also doesn't go into detail on user applications. (Even mentioning something like KOffice, AbiWord, or StarOffice would have been nice.)
title RedHat Linux for Dummies [ISBN 0764506633] publisher IDG Books Included Stuff RedHat Linux 6.1 and complete source on CD-ROMs. Intended Audience same Scope A bit more information than the other two books, mostly on Linux applications. Technical Correctness same Writing style Rather informal, though less so than the other two books. Other Focuses on GNOME. Uses Linuxconf to perform system administration.
It would appear that Paul Sery rewrote large portions of his book. While maddog's anecdotes in the other two are from the first person, the corresponding sections are in the third person perspective. Whatever the explanation, there's between 20 and 30 extra pages of information in here (including RPM and ipchains basics). There's more time spent exploring the shell and command line before diving into a tour of X applications, too, like Applixware and Wine. I preferred this book over the other two due to the extra information and the better organization of topics.
Conclusion:Someone who's already used to the Dummies series, is comfortable with the idea of installing Linux for herself, and wants a hand to hold through the process would enjoy these books. The knowledge imparted by these books -- giving extremely detailed installation instructions (follow the screenshots) but leaving a user with basic shell knowledge and some idea of how to navigate KDE or GNOME menus -- probably needs a supplement. I'm not sure enough information is presented to allow nascent hackers to figure things out for themselves. Still, for the intended audience, you get an introduction and the CDs in a convenient package.
You can purchase these books at Fatbrain: Take your pick from [SuSE Linux, Caldera OpenLinux, Red Hat Linux] For Dummies.
You do know that there's a Sex for Dummies book, don't you?
--
I found Overcoming Procrastination for Dummies at B&N the other day (RW store).... I'll get around to buying that... eventually...
--
"It's tough to be bilingual when you get hit in the head."
You can't win... if you omit female pronouns you are accused of being sexist ["Females don't matter enough to be mentioned huh?"] but if you DO include them in an innocent, if somewhat careless [these days one must be careful who one breathes in the presense of], fashion you get accused of being sexist.
... far..
/. ? Is no place safe from Big Brother [and Sister]?
brain... hurts... PC... stupidity... gone... too
On a related note, when did the PC police start to invade
-={(Astynax)}=-
-={(Astynax)}=-
"Darkness beyond Twilight"
All it takes is a willingness for the person to acknowledge "I'm buying a beginner's book on the subject, therefore it's obvious I don't know anything about the subject, so it's ok for me to call myself a dummy regarding that subject". It works for anybody. I always find myself wanting to pick up "Mutual Funds for Dummies" and "Classical Music for Dummies", but I can just never find the time to read them.
I never had as much luck with the "Complete Idiots" series. The logic of "Ok, I call myself a dummy, so I guess it's ok for them to call me a dummy" does not extend to letting yourself be called a complete idiot.
I had a chance to contribute to a dummies book (StarOffice). They have a very specific template that says exactly how to write such a book, and they don't like you leaving the pattern at all. The template can pretty much be summed up as "Lots of numbered bullet lists, with plenty of screen shots." :)
Duane
Speaking of titles, I was once asked to work on a book that the guy said would be called "Kickass J++ Game Programming." I said that I thought that was a pretty risky title that people might find offensive. I never heard back from him, but I also never saw the book on the shelves, either.
www.HearMySoulSpeak.com
No sexism implied here, I think. Throughout this whole series, I've been looking at these books from the point of view of my mother. Could someone who's used a computer for simple tasks for a few years learn how to use Linux from a book?
She's in the market for a new computer, and she wants Linux on it. (Now that Gnucash does everything she'd been using Quicken for, the only thing standing in the way is the OfficeJet.)
I've given her the RedHat book to read, and I think she can handle it. Then it's off to another book in this series of articles, because there's so much more to learn.
Thus, the reason for the feminine pronoun in this case is because I had a specific example in mind.
--
how to invest, a novice's guide
Great, but you forgot the most important chapters!
Chapter 5: Case studies in career timing. Knowing when to move on.
Chapter 6: Obfuscating your reference trail, ensuring that your past doesn't haunt you.
Temkin
I had a chance to contribute to a dummies book (StarOffice). They have a very specific template that says exactly how to write such a book, and they don't like you leaving the pattern at all. The template can pretty much be summed up as "Lots of numbered bullet lists, with plenty of screen shots." :)
It sounds like you were constrained quite a bit. I had a lot more leeway in my upcoming Dummies book, a few bulleted lists, and a few screen shots, but not many.
Then again, the subject matter is different, you were contributing to Star Office, my book should be aimed at a higher level audience.
George
There is a chapter on this.
Accessing your FAT hard disk and mounting floppies are also covered.
No need, as Netscape 4.7x on Linux looks just like Netscape 4.7x on Windows, which is covered in The Internet for Dummies.
Is the package manager in the index? If so, there's more than likely a section on installing apps.
<O
( \
XGNOME vs. KDE: the game!
Will I retire or break 10K?
I bought the Linux for Dummies book about 2 years ago, when it came bundled with RedHat 5.0. I was a relative newbie to linux. I'd installed it and played with it for about a month when I decided that I needed some help.
That book helped me draw the necessary mental connections to relate my DOS knowledge to linux.
The CLI's complexity faded away in a matter of a few days.
Linux For Dummies isn't the same as "Electronic devices for Dummies". We all were linux newbies at some point, but many of us had been using computers for years before then.
LK
"Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
I went through the same thing recently. I wanted to get a hunting buddy online so he could check out all the excellent information on hunting, shooting, balistics, woodcraft, etc. I gave him an old laptop with Slackware 5.0 installed. I configured the menu under Blackbox to only give him the choices he needed to get online and use the Internet (plus the command line so I could walk him through stuff if necessary). I typed up a page of detailed, but basic instructions (forgot to talk about clicking on hyperlinks-the things we take for granted...). It's been less than a month and he's hooked (it helps that he's an info junky). He's even beginning to figure out technical issues himself. This is his first exposure to computers...ever!
He's hooked on Linux too! When people started telling him he should be using Windows (friends, the people at the ISP he started using, etc), he asked me about it. I explained the differences, each one's relative strengths and weaknesses (nonpolitical, I wanted him to decide for himself). He has since decided that he prefers Linux because it empowers the user.
Did I mention that he's a 50 year old Harley riding biker type and ex-mechanic?
Chris
> can't figure out the difference between
> an array and a list
Huh?
Is there a difference between an array and a list in perl?
I'm not trying to defend what's obviously a very poor book, but I wonder where Tom's coming from here.
A list such as (0,1,2,3)
and an array e.g. @a = (0,1,2,3)
don't differ in any fundamental way in perl.
Do they?
Even Tom himself refers to lists as arrays in the perl documentation.
I quote:
"A list of lists, or an array of an array if you would, is just a regular old array..."
Of course I haven't read the book TC is bitching about, so there is presumably something in there that's completely wrong.
-fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
The review indicates that there is an edition for COREL, why wasn't it reviewed?
Personally, my favorite intro book was The No B.S. Guide to Red Hat Linux 6. But I actually had the First Edition which came with Slackware. Ahhhh, you never forget your first distro!
Work for Change & GET PAID!
And that's why I don't like the title. After all, the publisher is going right out an saying that the books are for idiots. I think that it's part of a sad, but surprisingly general, confusion of ignorance and stupidity. I personally find it insulting to be told that I'm a dummy for not already knowing what the book is supposed to teach me. I think I'd personally be more inclined to buy the series if it were re-named [Blank} for Novices, rather than [Blank] for Dummies. They both get across the same idea, but one is much friendlier.
There's no point in questioning authority if you aren't going to listen to the answers.
I saw C for dummies after I already had quite a bit of experience with the language, and the book disgusted me. Besides being (I think) longer than K&R for much less content, the book tried to avoid all the vocabulary, and certainly didn't define much of it. The author, among other things, described the preprocessor as an arcane, largely useless feature, and said that he almost never used it. And much of the book was just useless blathering and lame attempts at humor. And don't even get me started on C++ for dummies.
Pretty sure I saw a Slackware for Dummies title just a few days ago at the local Borders. There's also a "Debian GNU'Linux for Dummies" volume. I forked out the 20 bucks to see how they treated the install. Alas, no better than the last time I installed Debian.... which is to say, ugly.
-- Slashdot: When Public Access TV Says "No"
Pregnancy for Dummies
Good lord.
- Justin
Its great to have some high quality intro books, but how about some intermediate stuff?
The vast majority of what's available is either the "I don't know anything and want to get started" or "I'm very proficient and need a definative reference manual that lists all the possible parameters of every command". Its been my experience that the "Dummies" series has done an excellent job of the former. Now if they'd just do a "Not a dummy, not an expert...". On the other hand, O'reilly (sp?) does a great job towards the reference side. Does anyone know of something in between the two?
This gripe of mine applies to almost every topic I can think of: unix, lasers, tv, mpeg, etc. Its either novice or phd - nothing in between
The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers. Shakespeare, Henry VI, Part 2, Act 4, Scene 2
(I'll get to "Linux for Dummies" in a moment...)
/proc filesystem, pulling out cards and reading the numbers on the chips, and doing a bunch of web and netnews searches, I was able to identify the chip on the ethernet controller.
My biggest gripe about Red Hat is their inadequate documentation and support.
IMHO, an install is not complete until you can/have:
- Gotten all the ordinary peripherals working.
- Tuned the graphic interface into comfortable usability.
- Connected to your ISP or gotten up on your LAN, as applicable.
- Rebuilt the equivalent of the installed kernel from source. ("Hello, kernel build world!\n")
- Downloaded and installed any post-release patches.
The documentation should walk you through all of that, cookbook style. "Type this. Push that button. Insert this disk." And if it doesn't, and you've paid for "instalation support", the company should bloody well SUPPORT you until you get to the equivalent point. (And cookbook patch install should be available no later than the first set of patches.)
I've been using Unix for decades, and hacked Linux drivers on a Cobalt Qube and some company Intel boxes a few years back, so I'm not a complete newbie.
But last winter I decided to abandon "My Three Suns" and Solaris, and switch my home net to a new OS for the millenium. (No more closed source and closed hardware designs for me!)
So I bought my first Intel-based machine since the 8080. I picked Linux over *BSD due to the larger developer base. And I shelled out the premium for a Red Hat distribution, mainly because it promised install support.
I'd expected problems with the Winmodem. But you can imagine my annoyance when:
- The ethernet card didn't talk to the LAN.
- There was no documentation (readily findable) that would tell how to adjust the resolution of the video driver (so I could take advantage of my shiny new multi-megapixel monitor).
- There was no documentation on how to build a kernel (in the package OR on the web site).
- Attempts to build the kernel, from the supplied sources, using what I believed to be the normal approach, crashed. ("make boot" says: "System is too big. Try using bzImage or modules.", making me suspect the supplied sources and their READMEs don't match the distribution build.)
- Red Hat considered their prepaid support committment to end once you had "installed" sufficiently that you could boot the machine and log in. They refused to help with a kernel build. They had no clue about the ethernet card (even after I identified it for them). "Configuring a kernel is beyond install. If kernel build is necessary to drive the card it's an unsupported card."
- Their web site (accessable through another computer, thank goodness!) was about as helpful as their phone support.
So I had to hack it.
- By looking through the
- Reading the source showed that the corresponding driver recognized that the particular model of the ethernet chip also understood homenet (think 1-megabit LAN on your home phone lines), and was hardcoded to use ONLY that mode whan that model chip was installed.
- Patching the driver to use the chip only in ethernet mode, hand-compiling the modified driver, substituting it for the module loaded by the modload distribution kernel, got me on the LAN.
Then I hacked my old sendmail configuration into the puppy, debugged THAT, and had everything working a few hours before local midnight. And missed the newyears party.
But that didn't deal with any of the other problems - like the sound card, the monitor resolution, or getting to where I could rebuild the kernel and hack drivers for new toys. (Not to mention the Winmodem, of course.) My brand-new multi-kilobuck box was just barely up and limping. (Eight months later I moved the printer to the Red Hat box and discovered that the printer driver module wasn't loaded - because they'd left a line out of a config file - and they STILL didn't have anything about it on their web site.)
Can you IMAGINE a WinTel user, testing the waters on Linux, in this situation?
And it's not like this was TOTALLY oddball hardware. It was a brand-shiny-new, top-of-the-line, Compaq Presario Athlon box. (But not SO new it should have been unsupported.) Compaq DOES like to do things their own way. But they're one of the biggest brands, and at the time they'd supposedly had an alliance with Red Hat for months.
Needless to say, I was PISSED at Red Hat. I'd just gotten out of the hospital for pneumonia, and this was NOT how I'd intended to spend all that was left of my winter holiday.
I do have a day job, guys! With my limited spare time chewed up by this bogosity I still, after 8 months, haven't had a chance to play with drivers for new toys, or even do a really proper job of configuring the box for everyday use.
And now I see that the "Linux for Dummies" books cover kernel build for the SuSE and Caldera distributions, but not for Red Hat. At first I was ticked off all over again, but then I began to wonder... Do I detect a pattern? Maybe THEY had similar problems with lack of kernel build support for Red Hat, and decided to skip it.
Needless to say, absent a major housecleaning in Red Hat's documentation and support departments, my next upgrade won't be to another Red Hat distribution.
Or maybe it will even be to a BSD.
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
Years ago, I wanted to write a book which I had titled The complete marketting morons guide until the first "...For Dummies" book appears. At this point, I realised my book would not have any use.
> Don't expect to pull down $90,000/year on an entry-level SysAdmin job after this section.
For that, you need to buy System Administration For Greedy Mothers Who Don't Want To Pay Their Dues.
Chapter 1: Writing Your Resume
Chapter 2: Bluffing Your Way Through The Interview
Chapter 3: Which Books To Hide Under Your Desk
Chapter 4: When Disaster Strikes: How To Pass The Buck
Appendix A: Important Buzzwords To Memorize
Appendix B: Understanding The PHB
Appendix C: Who Can You Sue?
Appendix D: Learning To Get By On Less When You Go Back To Flipping Burgers
--
Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
Anybody who can explain what does needs some recognition.
--Dave
Someone who's already used to the Dummies series, is comfortable with the idea of installing Linux for herself, and wants a hand to hold through the process would enjoy these books...
I'm not sure if this was intentional, but I'm not sure I like the implications. The best spin I'm going to put on this is that women might ask for directions (thus the "hand to hold") and men would just spend hours of guesswork.
Being with you, it's just one epiphany after another
I thought the 'in a nutshell' books would have been the favoured choice round these parts, but as they tend not to cover buying a house, I guess there is a requirement for something easy to pick up. Even more OT, I thought the 'for idiots' range was pretty misjudged. If Cliff Claven knows more than you on any given subject, it's time to give up.
Fine, you said it. It's true, too.
We're all dummies in our own ways. I could probably use House Cleaning for Dummies or something like that, since I'm a terrible slob. See my URL for an explanation.
Vote Naked 2000
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
I haven't read any of these books, but my question is: Do any of these books cover hardware requirements? Before you even start the installation process? If you truely are a "Dummy", then you probably bought a prepacked computer that came with a incompatible winmodem, and maybe even a incompatible sound card. In that case, you're outta luck as far as connecting to the internet is concerned.
It isn't really in depth, it just has a list of most of the common commands, their usage, and the most common options. As such, it has probably gotten more day-to-day use than any 600+ page manual that might be on my bookshelf.
Short, to the point, and it gets the job done. Seems like a perfect match. =) It should definetly get included with the books reviewed above.
--sugarman--
You do know that there's a Sex for Dummies book, don't you?
That's one of my favorites.
The life-size Dr. Ruth centerfold makes it all worthwhile.
Disappointing, no Slackware for Dummies.
Slackware has everyting... No configure-everything-here you say? vi!
The only reason I didn't is that I'd already made the decision a long time ago to let my CPA handle my taxes. It's well worth the money to not have to pollute my mind with all the complexities, particularly when you mix together personal, business personal, and corporate taxes.
My solution was just to marry an acountant.
Of course I think even she will agree I'm probably paying more than I would have to just get my taxes done and learning more about about taxes then I ever wanted to know... so this might be an ideal solution for everyone.
:)
This space for rent. All reasonable inquiries will be entertained at proprietors discretion.
RedHat Linux for Dummies had pages and pages of hardware that was tested and worked, at the end. NICs, modems, scanners, video cards, lots of stuff.
I don't recall if the WinModem warning was in there.
George
On the contrary, my baptism by fire occurred at about age 10 when I accidentally deleted some critical system files (um, along with wordperfect) from our brand spanking new computer. I spent long nights with my nose embedded in tomes of DOS 4.0 books to escape the ire of my parents.
Sometimes the best thing to do is just bang the stuff into your brain with manuals. After the soreness wears off, you'll probably be left with something more substantial.
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
I agree with you. Although I think that "For Idiots" is a bit too agressive.
PCXL Forever!!!!
i hate those things. they are self degrading. you must really be a loser to read a book for dummies. why admit such self defeat?
What you say is how I feel.. but I think after they gained a certain amoutn of repoire ont he "For Dummies" name changing it would be kinda silly now.
Jeremy
Everytime I'm in a bookstore and see "Microsoft Windows for Dummies", I always think "how true!"
HH
Guyz (& girlz), check this one out!
Yes, it seems to be for real.
HH
I've known a number of people who would approach me at work with, "You'll think I'm stupid, but..." or "You'll think this is easy, but..." I never had a problem with anyone who asked for help before something became a crisis (which would require me to be working late on a Friday night.)
What blew me away was how quickly these people assumed they knew all there was about system migrations, what were reasonable expectations of highly accelerated project schedules and how utterly lazy those programmers were who drag themselves in at 9:30 am and why they couldn't show up when everyone else did at 8 am (of course, not everyone else had been in the shop until 2 am)
A useful new title could be: How to Tell When it's Time to Switch Jobs for Dummies
Vote Naked 2000
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
Female pigs are sows. Male pigs are boars.
And where's the Slackware For Dummies book?
icqqm [ICQ:11952102]
I've used Linux and other Unices quite extensively as a developer. Which means that, in general, I know how to get around, how to mind my ps's and quotas, and in general, function as an intelligent user. But system setup and configuration... well, I haven't done much of tha, and I don't know much about hardware, and I find that this is exactly the weakness that many of the books, installers, and docs don't cater to. Once the system is up and running I can generally figure things out. But getting it up has, so far, taken more than a few hours of effort. So a dummies book that holds my hand during an install but lets me fly once we're done would be just up my alley. I expect there might be a few more people out there like me....
Libertarianism is rich wolves and poor sheep playing gambler's ruin for dinner.
I'm quote the fan of Dummie's books myself... And soon, the lead author on one.
Well, I hope they've got a good proofreader.
HH
Yeah, just grab a copy of my book "Signatures for Dummies" and you'll be all set!
I'm in awe of your analysis.
I fear for slashdot if you use your considerable powers for trolling.
Well, maybe not.
George
I love these books, but only if used properly: as an introduction to the basics. There has been several times that I need to take a plunge into something I've never done before (buying a house comes to mind). The for Dummies book provides a good foundation--clear and simple definitions of terms, stripped down and to-the-point examples, etc. Essentially I use the books as a way of learning the language of a particular topic so I can ask further questions in the areas I need help on.
--
Linux MAPI Server!
http://www.openone.com/software/MailOne/
(Exchange Migration HOWTO coming soon)
This isn't a reflection on the books though, just the titles.
Founder's Camp
Founder's Camp
News for non-Nerds. Stuff that matters.
Isn's GNU/Linux for Dummies an oxy-moron?
Seriously though, the attraction to Linux is of the technical-minded. I still don't see too many advantages for the regular user (except for perhaps internet appliances powered by Linux).
"The universe seems neither benign nor hostile, merely indifferent." --Carl Sagan
s/SuSE/RedHat/g
s/SuSE/Caldera/g
s/KDE/Gnome/g
heh-heh, a neat trick at least for Maddog and Paul Sery.
While many of you will quickly scoff at the idea of linux for dummies, check out the books first.
;-)
I have actually read through a few of the "For Dummies Books" over the years (I think there is a copy of unix for dummies somewhere in myu pile) and, in general, find them great works for those just delving into a topic. Maybe its time to pick this up so my wife can actually use my machine
I think....therefore I am
I reject your reality
I checked fatbrain.com and there apparently is a Debian GNU/LINUX For Dummies book, looks like someone just forgot to mention it specifically in this article.
Without the pad, it's not Dance Dance Revolution, it's Listen
I got my TRS80 back in '78. For some reason I ordered the tbug monitor software. Just sounded like something I should get. Well, the software (on tape) included a small book. I would spend lots of time looking at the pages of this little book. I decided that it must have dropped from a flying saucer. Made no sense at all. Till I got another book called "The Z80 Cookbook". Then I said, "oh, thats what it means!".
So yeah, have pitty on newcomers!
To get my feet wet, I always use the Dummies books. I have always found them to be helpful when I'm first tackling a new subject. (except the perl for dummy's book) Then I get the O'Reilly books for reference and in-depth study.
Dummies can't be all that bad, John 'maddog' Hall wrote the "Linux for Dummies" book.
* "Uncle this droid is malfunctioning" -- Luke Skywalker
Perhaps you should read the book "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance"...it is a somewhat interesting perspective on that concept.
Retarded Haiku
Its lines are unrelated
Why do you write crap?
Thanks you. Thanks you very much.
personally, i'd be more likely to buy a book called "kickass" than "for dummies"
and kickass must have been on somebody's shelves
First, lets start by examining a poorly constructed troll:
i hate those things. they are self degrading. you must really be a loser to read a book for dummies. why admit such self defeat?
The preceding is a troll for two reasons. First, it is placed in a discussion about dummies books. Rather than having something constructive to say, this inexperienced troller tries to invalidate the entire discussion. Secondly, it is a troll because it attempts to insult the intelligence of those seriously engaged in the discussion. The troller is saying, "Not only are dummies books lame, but you are lame for reading them.
What distinguishes a good troll from a bad troll is its obviousness. A really good troll should not only be completely ludicrous like the above statement, it should not appear completely ludicrous, but rather appear to be an intelligent argument against whatever prevailing wisdom the majority of those in the discussion hold. It should stir heated discussion about the merits or the pros and cons of the topic being discussed. Unfortunately, the above troll can only inspire a knee-jerk reaction(I am NOT stupid...), something that only the most clueless newbie would fall for.
So there you have it. You can learn good trolling by looking at bad trolling.
This message brought to you as a public service by Pinball Wizard(a fan of the good kind of troll.)
No, Thursday's out. How about never - is never good for you?
The reason calls start off like that is because too many "geeks" make people feel stupid for not knowing something. Users start to believe it's their fault they aren't all knowing.
Chris
Indeed. Here's a link to an online version
---
DO NOT DISTURB THE SE
Followed by the even more unnerving "Parenting for Dummies."
This is still my favorite "dummies" book.
Hmm, how quickly we all forget
--------
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"Every artist is a cannibal, every poet is a thief."
It interests me that this latest round of IDG books receives such a favorable slashdot response, after the previous hullabaloo (e.g. see this article, there are more). For a clientel that is so concerned about world corporate domination and such (or are we), it seems like tauting the greatness of these books is a little hypocritical. Just a thought.
I always wanted to write "The Idiot's Guide to Writing Books for Dummies"
How many support calls start out like this:
"This is probably REALLY simple but..."
"I'm a complete moron when it comes to these things, so how do I..."
"You'll have to excuse my ignorance but I've never done this before,"
"I just did this the other day and I've already forgotten how, can you tell me how to...."
Now try saying the same thing to a sex therapist.... HAH faaaaantastic!
- Toby
Linux for Natalie Portman
Linux for Evil Geniuses
Linux for the Expecting Mother
Linux for Children
Linux for People Who Can't Read
Linux for Executives
Linux for Morons
Linux for Miscreants
Linux for Bloated Sacks of Proto Plasm
Linux for People So Stupid They Don't Deserve to Live
and lastly
Linux for Packs of Dobermans Clamped Onto Lawyers
Vote Naked 2000
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
I can't help but think it would have been a useful resource in the absence of my buddy. Kudos to IDG for publishing the books, and hopefully attracting some fence-sitters to join the party.
"Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry and I'll give you somethin' to cry about!"
7 years ago when I was around 13, I found C a perplexing langauge until I found C For dummies Vol1, and 2. I didnt ever need a dummies book about programming, but the gentle introduction helped me learn period versus being in some gray haze with my friends K&R, Book on C.
Now I program for a living and dont have but those two For dummies books..
BUT, I think anyone who would ever go so far as to say the books are for idiots are wrong.
These kind of books can help people who may otherwise lose intrest become very knowledgeable.
And go on.. to become sucessful in a Techie type career. So Dont knock emm not everyone learns the same.
Jeremy
I seem to remember they had a UNIX for dummies book. I got it from the library when i got my first real shell account so i could refresh myself to the level of being able to navigate around and all that good stuff.
I wonder how much the Linux one differes from the UNIX one...
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Play Six Pack Man. I
The No BS Guide to Linux - This book is a great introduction to the commandline interface. Nothing much on X, but everything you need to find your way around a shell.
Idiot's Guide to Linux My favorite book. Manuel Ricart wrote this excellent guide to running X on linux with emphasis on KDE. Good tips on backing up, security, and other basics that many books take for granted.
Teach Yourself KDE 1.1 Simply a good guide to learning how to fully use KDE. Each lesson is simple and focused, allowing those that need to learn in short amounts of time a concise lesson.
Apache Server for Dummies A straightforward book on configuring Apache. It's not meant as a handbook for a business, more as a way for someone to understand and configure Apache for the first time to understand the concepts behind the software. It allowed me to get a server up and running and even running CGI scripts for intranet use.
If you are already a GNUGod, you won't need these books. But if you are like me and trying to learn these things without the benefit of live human tutor, these books are handy.
Also, the two of the books deal mainly with KDE. If you like Gnome, bewarned that Idiot's Guide to Linux deals mainly with KDE and not Gnome.
nuclear iraq bioweapon encryption cocaine korea terrorist
| Ceci n'est pas une pipe.
IMHO, I'd like to see chapters on the following, if anyone's writing other Linux Newbie guides:
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
True, most people don't get a working Linux OS on their machines, so they have to get through it. But really, how many times do you install a Linux system?
A book called 'Linux for Dummies' should begin with: look at the Linux distributions you know, look at their HCL, if your hardware maches the specs: BUY. Then, follow the installation manual and start reading this book.
No (I repeat _NO_) Linux for dummies book should waste valuable trees on installation. Of all distributions that come in boxes I know, I encountered none with bad installation manuals (SuSE, Red Hat, Mandrake).
Now a book that tells you how to _use_ Linux, how to get used to sometimes actually have to _type_ commands, a book that explains there are choices in how your OS looks, that's a book I'm going to recommend to my friends.
It should start with: read the {Gnome,KDE} users guide, then do
All of the above applies to desktop users. There should also be a Linux Server for dummies book as well. LCSE certification Vol. 1.
Yay.
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The imp hits!
Unfortunately I have no moderator access, else I would moderate you up (moderators: hint hint). It is indeed a very interesting book, certainly considering the difference between classic/romantic people.
:-)
'Romantical' people just use technology, but don't want to know how it works. It's not that they *could* not understand, it's more like, they just don't *want* to.
'Classical' people use technology, wanting to understand it. These people would -for example- build their own computers, rather than buying one at the local retailer (with Win98 pre-installed)
The book is an interesting read, note however that it does not have anything to do with computers
FYI, the author is Robert Pirsig.
Every expression is true, for a given value of 'true'
It would seem to me that, while a guide to installation and basic command line info would be useful, complete newbies to Linux would probably begin by wondering how they can do the same things under Linux that they do under Windows. And for most people, this does not mean using an editor like vi or writing shell scripts. It means connecting to the Internet, using e-mail, web browsing, and word processing. From this review, it appears that these books do not explain how to do all of this under Linux. If not, I would thinkk that the average newbie Linux user would find these books disappointing, or, even worse, they may decide that these tasks cannot be done in Linux without resorting to the CLI. A good introduction to Linux, in my opinion, should cover installation and the use of a user-friendly GUI (like KDE or Gnome). It should explain how to set up an Internet connection, how to run Mozilla or Netscape, and the use of StarOffice or KOffice (when it becomes stable, that is) or some other office suite. Someone who buys "Linux for dummies" probably won't be using the command line very soon. Leave that for a later book, once they know how to do what they need to and they're interested in learning more.
Matt Reece
It never ceases to amaze me how many otherwise intelligent people allow themselves to seize up when confronted with unfamiliar technology. The same people who can get a medical degree just don't want to even give technology a try. Funny.
It's not just that people don't know about technology, it's that they gloat about their ignorance. The only other field I've noticed receiving such "attention" is math. Normal course of nature, or frightening trend?
" Oh, I don't know anything about *that*..."
Visit the
I believe that the true benefit of these books is more of an eye-opener for many individuals who would not normally open a book that says 'linux' on the cover. If they see 'dummies' associated with 'linux', some people might recognize that the OS is not quite as complex as some of the common news sources report it is. It won't hurt the linux community to have some more publicity by the sale of these books.
-=MeMpHiStO=-But you can't buy it anymore, shame.
I think my copy is at home.
The Linux books deal more with the hardware and install, a UNIX for Dummies reader would not be installing Solaris.
George