Linux For Dummies

Description

Your step-by-step guide to the latest in Linux. Nine previous editions of this popular benchmark guide can’t be wrong! Whether you’re new to Linux and need a step-by-step guide or are a pro who wants to catch up with recent distributions, Linux For Dummies, 10th Edition has your back. Covering everything from installation to automation, this updated edition focuses on openSUSE and Ubuntu and includes new and refreshed material—as well as chapters on building a web server and creating simple shell scripts. In his friendly, no-jargon style, IT professional and tech higher education instructor Richard Blum draws on more than 10 years of teaching to show you just why Linux’s open source operating systems are relied on to run a huge proportion of the world’s online infrastructure, servers, supercomputers, and NAS devices—and how you can master them too. • Study the thinking behind Linux • Choose the right installation approach • Pick up the basics—from prepping to desktops • Get fancy with music, video, movies, and games Whatever your Linux needs—work, fun, or just a hobby—this bestselling, evergreen guide will get you up and coding in the open source revolution in no time at all. Title Page......Page 5 Copyright Page......Page 6 Table of Contents......Page 9 About This Book......Page 17 How to Use This Book......Page 18 Three Presumptuous Assumptions......Page 19 Where to Go from Here......Page 20 Part 1 Getting Your Feet Wet......Page 21 Is Free Really Free?......Page 23 Linux: Revolution or Just Another Operating System?......Page 24 GNU who?......Page 27 Einstein was a volunteer......Page 29 Core Linux distributions......Page 30 The Linux Live distribution......Page 32 Chapter 2 Prepping Your Computer for Linux......Page 35 Installing a second hard drive......Page 38 Partitioning an existing drive......Page 39 Double-Checking Hardware Compatibility......Page 45 Finally, Finally, Before You Get Started......Page 48 Creating a boot disk......Page 49 Chapter 3 Installing Linux......Page 53 Things to Consider Before You Begin Installation......Page 54 Installing from Ubuntu Live......Page 55 Your First Ubuntu Boot......Page 65 Installing openSUSE......Page 67 The History of GNOME......Page 77 Breaking Down the GNOME Desktop......Page 78 Menus, please!......Page 79 The desktop......Page 83 The dash......Page 85 The windows overview area......Page 89 Working with workspaces......Page 90 Customizing Your Ride......Page 91 Appearance......Page 92 Displays......Page 93 Mouse and touchpad......Page 95 A Closer Look at Accessibility Features......Page 96 The KDE Plasma Desktop......Page 99 More menus!......Page 101 The panel......Page 105 Adding widgets......Page 107 Getting more widgets......Page 111 Plasma System Settings......Page 112 Desktop Folder Settings......Page 113 Accessibility Settings......Page 114 Spicing Things Up with Cinnamon......Page 117 History of Cinnamon......Page 118 Looking at the menu......Page 119 Changing settings......Page 121 Adding more spice......Page 122 The history of MATE......Page 123 Looking at the menu......Page 125 Changing desktop settings......Page 126 Applets......Page 127 History of Xfce......Page 128 The Whisker menu......Page 129 Changing Xfce settings......Page 131 Applets......Page 132 Part 2 Getting Up to Speed with Linux......Page 135 Pieces of the Puzzle......Page 137 The root of the tree......Page 138 Where removable media lives......Page 140 Managing Your Filesystem without a Net (or Mouse)......Page 141 Viewing information about files on the command line......Page 142 Understanding file listing information......Page 143 Comprehending file types......Page 145 Navigating the filesystem in Linux......Page 146 Checking out the triplets......Page 147 Hanging out in groups......Page 149 Clicking Your Way Through the Filesystem......Page 151 Using Files......Page 152 Setting how much info you see......Page 155 Opening files and running programs......Page 156 Copying and moving files......Page 157 Taking out the trash......Page 158 Viewing and changing permissions......Page 159 Swimming with Dolphin......Page 160 Don’t Forget Xfce!......Page 162 Using DVDs and Other Removable Media......Page 165 Accessing Network Drives......Page 166 Finding Things......Page 167 Internet Connectivity 101......Page 169 Setting Up the Hardware......Page 171 Selecting an Internet Service Provider (ISP)......Page 172 Getting Information You Need from Your ISP......Page 173 Network Manager......Page 174 Command line tools......Page 179 It’s All Fun and Games Until Something Doesn’t Work......Page 185 After You’re Connected......Page 187 Part 3 Getting Things Done......Page 189 Browsing the Web with Firefox......Page 191 Configuring Firefox......Page 192 Expanding your universe with add-ons......Page 196 Surfing the web......Page 197 Communicating with Email......Page 198 Evolving into email......Page 199 Working with KMail......Page 207 The amazing Thunderbird......Page 211 Ol’ Fashion File Transfers......Page 213 Talking with Skype......Page 215 Working with Other Internet Tools......Page 217 Viewing the Contents of a Text File......Page 219 Editing Text Files with nano......Page 220 Saving and moving on with your life......Page 221 Going with gedit......Page 222 Saving your work......Page 223 Setting preferences......Page 224 Writing with KWrite......Page 227 Meet Kate......Page 232 Chapter 12 Word Processing and More with LibreOffice......Page 235 Installing the LibreOffice Suite......Page 236 Taking a tour of LibreOffice Writer......Page 237 Working with Writer files......Page 241 Taking a tour of LibreOffice Calc......Page 242 Presentations with LibreOffice Impress......Page 246 Taking a tour of LibreOffice Impress......Page 247 Working with Impress files......Page 251 Taking a tour of LibreOffice Draw......Page 252 Working with Draw files......Page 255 Getting help from the wizard......Page 256 Taking a tour of LibreOffice Base......Page 259 Sitting down at the table......Page 261 Layout with LibreOffice Math......Page 262 Menu bar......Page 263 Standard toolbar......Page 264 Document section......Page 265 What Sound? I Don’t Hear a Thing!......Page 269 GNOME 3 and Rhythmbox......Page 272 KDE Plasma and CDs......Page 274 VLC to the rescue......Page 275 Amarok......Page 276 Listening to Internet Radio......Page 280 Ripping Music Tracks from CDs......Page 281 Using Brasero......Page 284 Using K3b......Page 285 Watchin’ Videos on the Web......Page 289 Firefox video support......Page 290 Getting even more video support......Page 291 Viewing Movie Files......Page 293 GNOME Videos......Page 294 KDE Dragon......Page 295 VLC......Page 296 Watchin’ DVDs......Page 297 Creating and Modifying Graphics......Page 298 GIMP basic tools......Page 299 Capturing screenshots......Page 300 Editing an image file......Page 301 Using GIMP scripts......Page 303 Playing 3D Games......Page 304 Part 4 Junior Administrator Boot Camp......Page 307 Opening Downloaded Files......Page 309 Compressing and Packaging Files to Share......Page 311 Updating Ubuntu......Page 312 Updating openSUSE......Page 313 Installing New Software......Page 314 Adding applications......Page 315 Adding packages......Page 317 Finding More Software......Page 319 Upgrading Your OS......Page 320 Chapter 16 Working without the GUI......Page 321 Getting a shell......Page 322 The shell prompt......Page 323 Understanding bash Command Syntax and Structure......Page 325 Putting Wildcard Expansion to Good Use......Page 327 Asking Linux to complete a command or filename for you......Page 328 Accessing your command history......Page 329 Checking out commonly used environment variables......Page 330 Storing and retrieving variables’ values......Page 331 Redirecting command output......Page 334 Clearing the screen......Page 336 Chapter 17 Basic System Administration......Page 339 Finding the right tool......Page 340 Adding new users......Page 342 Adding new groups......Page 345 Printing......Page 347 Printer server settings......Page 349 Adding a new printer......Page 350 Modifying printer properties......Page 353 System Monitor......Page 354 Processes......Page 355 Resources......Page 357 File Systems......Page 358 Choosing Secure Passwords......Page 359 Updating Software......Page 360 Network holes......Page 361 The secure shell game (SSH)......Page 366 Software holes......Page 371 Keeping an Eye on Your Log Files with the System Log Viewer......Page 372 Locating Security Resources......Page 374 The Basics of Shell Scripting......Page 375 Redirecting output......Page 376 Piping data......Page 377 The shell script format......Page 378 Running the shell script......Page 380 Displaying messages......Page 381 Using variables......Page 382 Command line arguments......Page 385 The exit status......Page 386 Command substitution......Page 387 Performing math......Page 388 Logic statements......Page 390 Loops......Page 394 What Is Virtualization Software?......Page 397 Installing VirtualBox......Page 398 Creating a Virtual Machine......Page 400 Customizing a Virtual Machine......Page 403 Changing settings......Page 404 Installing an OS......Page 406 The Machine menu area......Page 409 The View menu......Page 410 The Devices menu area......Page 411 Part 5 The Part of Tens......Page 413 Chapter 21 Ten Steps to Running a Web Server......Page 415 Step 1: Select a Web Server......Page 416 Step 2: Select a Programming Language......Page 417 Step 3: Select a Database Server......Page 418 Step 4: Install the Servers......Page 419 Installing servers in Ubuntu......Page 420 Installing servers in openSUSE......Page 421 Step 5: Examine the Apache Server......Page 423 Setting the default TCP port......Page 424 Interacting with the PHP server......Page 425 Tracking errors......Page 426 The core server settings......Page 427 Working with the InnoDB storage engine......Page 428 Step 7: Customize the PHP Server......Page 429 Step 8: Create the Database Environment......Page 431 Step 9: Build Your Application......Page 434 Step 10: Deploy and Test Your Application......Page 435 Chapter 22 Ten Troubleshooting Tips......Page 437 Tip #1: “The Linux Installer Froze”......Page 438 Tip #2: Checking Your Distribution Burns......Page 439 Tip #4: “The Installer Tested My Graphics Fine, but My GUI Won’t Start”......Page 440 Tip #5: “I Think I’m in Linux, but I Don’t Know What to Do!”......Page 441 Tip #6: “I Don’t Want to Boot into This!”......Page 442 Tip #7: Changing Your Boot Environment “Permanently”......Page 443 Tip #8: “I Want to Change Screen Resolutions”......Page 445 Tip #9: “My GUI Is Hung, and I’m Stuck!”......Page 446 “Aaargh! I Forgot My Root Password! What Do I Do?”......Page 447 Appendix A Common Linux Commands......Page 449 Appendix B Linux Distributions......Page 459 Index......Page 465 EULA......Page 483