Sat, 01 Oct 2005
Linux, Moving to and a Guide to
Marcel Gagne, Moving to Linux,
Kiss the Blue Screen of Death Goodbye!,
2nd ed., Addison Wesley, with CD
Readers of the Linux Journal will know Marcel from his regular
column there which, I think it's fair to say, some people find amusing
and educational while others find it annoying.
This book is not annoying though. It is a straightforward trip
through the process of leaving Windows which is made easier by the
inclusion of a CD with Knoppix Linux on it.
You are guided through the hardware situation and then on to
working with Linux as a substitute for Windows -- what do I use
to get my email, browse the web, play with graphics, play my toons
and DVDs? etc. It's a sensible approach that is aimed at a reasonably
sensible person. People who want to go on to become gurus will
need another book as well.
Peter van der Linden, Guide to Linux, Prentice Hall,
with CD
I'm not going to compare this book and Marcel Gagne's. They both
cover much the same ground but with a different emphasis and a slightly
different audience in mind. This book, for example, is slightly
more detailed, and uses the Linpire Live CD for Linux.
It starts out looking at the desktop (KDE) and then X Windows, and
then onto the internet and home networking. After that, there's email
and web browsing, package handling and compiling. There are sections
on burning and playing DVDs and CDs as well. There's even a section
on encryption of files and emails.
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pre Dec 04 reviews are here