Peter van der Linden's Guide to Linux(R) | 
| Author: Peter Van Der Linden
Publisher: Prentice Hall PTR
List Price: $39.99
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Rating:  34 reviews
Sales Rank: 847349
Media: Paperback
Pages: 640
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 7 x 1
ISBN: 0131872842
Dewey Decimal Number: 005.43
EAN: 9780131872844
ASIN: 0131872842
Publication Date: August 18, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: We ship daily! All orders ship out within 2 business days from OR. Your satisfaction is guaranteed! CD IS MISSING
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Product Description
"Linux software is like gold on the moon. It's wonderful, if you have a way to get it." --Kevin Carmony, President and CEO, Linspire Inc.Sick of Windows Viruses, Crashes, and Expensive Upgrades? There's a better alternative: Linux. It's not just for "geeks" anymore. It's for you--and it's for real. With Peter van der Linden's Guide to Linux(R), Linux isn't just powerful, it's easy and fun. While writing this book, the author spent an entire year helping new Linux users get started and once again demonstrated that he is flat-out brilliant at simplifying technology. He knows all the tricks and the quickest ways to help make you productive. Before demonstrating how to do something faster, easier, and better with Linux, he reminds you how it works in Windows. Along the way, he anticipates potential missteps and questions, and fills in the gaps other books ignore.* Get connected to the Internet, your email account, instant messaging, and your network*Get productive with OpenOffice, the amazing Microsoft Office clone that's absolutely free*Get solutions with van der Linden's easy, step-by-step troubleshooting help*Get into digital media--music, movies, DVDs, CD burning, digital photography, and more*Get secure and keep your data and email private with CIA-strength encryption *Get beyond the basics and leave Windows behind, download the best free software, and even master the command line The book includes a Linspire 5.0 CD-ROM, the world's easiest desktop Linux! Boot into Linux from the included CD, without installing anything or changing any Windows files at all.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 29 more reviews...
 Excellent book that targets the Linspire distro... July 10, 2005
Thomas Duff (Portland, OR United States)
27 out of 29 found this review helpful
One of the benefits to being an active reviewer is that you occasionally get sneak previews of books that are not yet published. Prentice Hall sent me a draft manuscript copy of Peter van der Linden's Guide to Linux due to be published in August. While good for all Linux distros, it will be especially valuable if you're focusing on Linspire.
Contents: Hello Linux; Running the Linux Live CD; The KDE Desktop; Onto the Net; All About Email; Web Tools; Adding Software; More Applications; Filesystems and Optical Storage (CDs and DVDs); Sharing On Your Local Network; Keeping Your Data Private; Installation and Boot; Malicious Windows Software; Making Your Hardware Obey You - BIOS and Device Drivers; Sample Output from WiFi Network Commands; Commands for the Command Line; Disk Basics and Partitioning; Troubleshooting With Strance
Since Peter has focused on Linspire, the target audience is going to be Window users who want to switch over to Linux without becoming a geek. I think he hits that target dead on. The style of the book is extremely readable. There's plenty of content that Joe Average will be able to read and understand, and as a result will be able to start using the Linux desktop quite effectively. Jane Power User will also benefit, as there is also material that gets into more difficult concepts like file sharing using packages such as Samba. Even if Joe isn't ready for that on day one (Joe just wants to surf the 'net and read email), he'll be able to refer back to the book on numerous occasions to push his limits.
When the book is published, there will be a bootable Linspire CD included that will allow you to try out Linspire without making any changes to your current hardware. Bootable CDs like Knoppix bring up a Linux environment that runs completely from memory without making physical changes to your hard drive. If you think that Linspire is a distro that you'd like to use, getting this book will be the logical first step in your evaluation process. You'll learn if your system can run Linspire, and then you can experiment with the desktop GUI before making your final commitment.
Very well done work, and I'm looking forward to the final version of the book. This will be a nice addition to the world of Linux books, and it will be a highly recommended purchase if you're going with Linspire.
 Linux for non-geek, non-Linux users October 3, 2005
C. R. W. Ashton (Adelaide, Australia)
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
Peter van der Linden has the unusual gift (among I suspect the majority of writers) of presenting his information in a chatty form, without being verbose. As a software reviewer for Australia's premier CAD magazine, I was continually in trouble from my editor for being verbose :)
I write this brief revue from the perspective of a non-geek power user who until recently had only encountered Linux's big brother, Unix, and was always in strife with superiors for doing dastardly things to files I had been sent to work on. How I wish Peter had written this book before 1990 :D
I have found it quite difficult to put this book down, because of the author's style and the content; the depth of coverage of each topic is such that if the reader needs that amount of detail to understand a point, or to solve a problem, there is enough there to resolve their issue. Equally, if they don't need that amount of detail, because of their browsing the pages solely out of interest, they are not likely to get bored with techno-babble, which is what happens so often in my experience.
Peter has done an excellent job of creating a technical reference that can be picked up and dipped into without having to methodically go through all the previous pages to get to the bit the reader is interested in.
A very nice touch is his applying his writing skills to a real life distribution produced for ab-initio Linux users with some experience of the Microsoft Windows platform, but who are not necessarily techno-philes. The book will appeal equally to those who do understand what goes on "under the bonnet" because of his obviously deep understanding of the subject. Yet the book would equally be of great benefit to users of any Debian Linux distribution.
I can thoroughly recommend this book, and in closing I would like to add a "thank-you" to the author for what has obviously been a tireless and lengthy job, occupying many hours. Perhaps one should add a vote of thanks to Mrs van der Linden, and their kids too, in their encouragement of his task :D
Breaking down the geek barrier August 24, 2005
Zoic (Canada)
11 out of 12 found this review helpful
I am not one to sit and read any computer books manuals as a rule, a chapter or two and then I am on to something else. I did not even start at Chapter 1, but jumped right into another area of interest. I was somewhat surprised to find I could not wait to read more chapters, I was learning more than I had expected.
Peter has a seemingly uncanny ability to make the most complex concept or task seem as simple a filling a glass with water. He manages to appeal to the reader using this talent, with expanding details where needed, and just plain simplicity when you wanted only the time, not instructions on how to build the watch. He inspires confidence that anyone can use Linux (Linspire) without having to become a command line guru, while typing characters and symbols not even seen on a normal keyboard.
I am an early adopter of Linspire, over 3 years now it has been my main operating system, and yet I continued to finds tidbits of information that I had not found or thought of before. Peter gives Linux a whole new fresh perspective, and this is a must have book for the new users migrating from windows. I just hope that those who try the LiveCD and do not succeed in getting it work, will at least try to seek help in the wonderful community forum. I have seem many times when just a small adjustment or change in procedure helped people overcome a seemingly impossible problem, and in the end they are happy they made the effort because they have Linspire working.
I will definitely recommend this book to any new Linux users and feel confident they will find it every bit as useful and informative as I did
Zoic
Families need this book! September 24, 2005
Mark A. Szorady (Ohio USA)
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
I know many people who own only one Windows PC. This system becomes "Grand Central" and is used by every family member. And, sooner or later (because of all those family users), their system crashes or becomes infected with viruses or spyware. Mom and dad spend hours trying to correct the system only to have it happen again. The end result is buying the latest and greatest anti-virus software or firewall to try and end the agony of PC system infection and interruption. But, once again, little Bobby or Susie jump on the system, visit a web site and end up, unknowingly, downloading another Windows virus.
Families need a solution to this problem. The solution is Linux. Linux is stable, secure and affordable. But it's always been a technical mystery. Not anymore.
If you want to learn and use Linux, and introduce it to your family, then this is the only book you'll ever need.
Peter van der Linden's Guide to Linux is absolutely THE BEST book of its kind. Within reading the first few chapters, you'll be up and running and understanding Linux! And guess what? There's no mystery to it! Because Peter de-mystifies it!
Peter has a very affable, easy to understand writing style. He covers every aspect of Linux (centering mostly on the Linspire distribution) from running the OS to downloading software to customizing applications, the desktop, etc. It's all here.
The book is wonderfully well organized. Peter has this gift for breaking large chunks of information into smaller steps making it easy for anyone to understand and digest. It all becomes clear!
And to his credit, Peter is quite even-handed when speaking about the strengths and weaknesses of Linux, Windows and Mac. His honesty and candor are refreshing.
The book comes with a Live CD of Linspire and enables you to run Linux on your existing PC without having to install it to your hard drive. This way you can test it out and take it through all the paces.
There are so many tips and ticks to devour that you'll actually enjoy tweaking and tuning your Linspire Linux system. You'll no longer be intimidated by Linux!
I highly recommend this book! And I highly recommend it for families looking for an alternative to the constant assault of viruses, worms and spyware plaguing their Windows systems.
To take full advantage of Peter's book, you really must run Linspire Linux. It simply is the World's Easiest Desktop Linux! Your family will love Linspire! It's easy! Peter's book will make it easy for every family member to understand. I bought the book. I run Linspire.
An excellent book for people who want to understand WHY it works! August 24, 2005
Kendall (San Diego, CA)
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
I got a chance to read Peter Van Der Linden's book and found it to be extremely useful to the user who has started down the path to get away from Microsoft Windows. Peter starts you off right from the beginning and gives you some background and explains what Linux is and how it can help to address some of the problems that Microsoft Windows users face. He lays out the advantages and disadvantages of Linux and gives you a bit of background on the history of Linux.
Peter's style is easy to understand and he uses analogies and examples that make it easy to comprehend the subject matter.
Peter gets you started by explaining how to run the included Linspire Linux CD. I had no problems with the included CD and have run it successfully on many different computers. (The first poster above must have some strange hardware or else he is trying to run 4 different operating systems at the same time like a true Linux geek! Most people I have met are able to boot this CD on their computer without any trouble.)
Once you get the Linspire Linux CD up and running, Peter walks you through various tasks step-by-step. He starts with the desktop and then explains how to set up networking and get on the Internet. Peter then covers the web and email. After he gets you up and running online he talks you through how to install software on your Linux system! This is important because this is the part that most new Linux users find extremely difficult.
Peter Van Der Linden's Guide to Linux is extremely thorough and well written. It is the perfect companion for anyone who has ever been curious about Linux. Even if you tried Linux in the past and didn't like it.... this book could help to change your mind! The combination of easy-to-understand guidance along with an easy-to-use version of Linux like Linspire makes this the perfect combination. This book also goes a lot deeper than the average "getting started" guide. Peter's Guide to Linux works for advanced users as well as user's who are just getting into Linux for the first time.
Advanced users will like the information on the commandline, installing drivers, and disk partitioning. Everyone will benefit from knowing how to:
* Install and configure software
* Make copies of your DVDs
* Burn CD and DVDs
* Creating music CDs
* Networking with your Windows computers
* Troubleshooting wireless connections
* Avoiding Windows spyware and viruses
This book walks you though the entire experience of running Linux -- from setup and installation to configuration to daily use. It is packed full of screenshots, examples, tips, and illustrations to make it easy to understand. If the O'Reilly books are a bit too advanced for you and the "getting started" books are too easy -- then Peter Van Der Linden's book may be just what you are looking for! I highly recommend it.
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