Linux Book Recommendations, for 2004?

An anonymous reader asks: "LinuxDevices.com editor Henry Kingman has reviewed O'Reilly's new Pocket Linux Guide, a 191-page guide to Linux, asking whether a book that short can tell you what you need to know to get started working on a Linux system. Apparently this book cannot, to believe Kingman, who also dismisses O'Reilly's Linux in a Nutshell as 'dry.' Can anyone recommend a good book for smart but inexperienced Linux users, something that conveys a little of the magic of Linux without being too chatty, or too esoteric, or just too overwhelming?"

Comments

Linux for Non-Geeks

[metallicagoaltender]

I'll admit I haven't read it, and therefore can't vouch for its quality, but Linux for Non-Geeks sounds like it may fit the bill.

A Practical Guide to Linux" by Mark G. Sobell

[brianc]

I recommend "A Practical Guide to Linux" by Mark G. Sobell for a very good distro neutral book. Although it might be a little light on admin specific stuff.

http://www.sobell.com/LINUX/linux/html

Here's an online Linux admin guide I stumbled across awhile back-

http://rute.sourceforge.net/

For Linux specific security, I recommend "Real World Linux Security - Intrusion Prevention, Detection, and Recovery" by Bob Toxen (Prentice
Hall ISBN 0-13-028187-5).

http://www.realworldlinuxsecurity.com/

All "smart but inexperienced Linux users" should follow the guidelines Toxen presents before ever connecting an ethernet cable (or modem) to the machine.