Overview
"The definitive work on Red Hat Linux. Chain it to your desk. You'll browse others, but you'll wear this one out."
-Nicholas Petreley, Founding Editor of LinuxWorld If Red Hat Linux 9 can do it, you can do it too...
Activate the power of Red Hat Linux 9, the most popular distribution of this practical, economical operating system, with the in-depth information in this comprehensive reference manual. If you're exploring Linux for the first time, the hands-on instructions for installing, configuring, and customizing the system will get you going with confidence. If you're a Red Hat veteran, Linux expert Christopher Negus gives you everything you need to administer the latest desktop, server, and networking enhancements, plus much more.
Inside, you'll find complete coverage of Red Hat Linux 9
* Explore GNOME and KDE desktop menus, panels, file managers, workspaces, and themes
* Configure a firewall to share your Internet connection and protect your LAN
* Run applications for Internet browsing, publishing, music, video, and gaming
* Construct your own public Internet server, complete with mail, DNS, FTP, and Web services
* Administer users, manage backups, and automate system tasks
* Create dial-up connections, wireless LANs, and virtual private networks (CIPE)
* Set up Windows (Samba), Mac (netatalk), or NetWare (mars-nwe) file and print sharing from Linux
* Use the Red Hat Network up2date facility to easily get software updates Special 3 CD-ROM version of Red Hat Linux 9, with 260 additional packages not included in the standard 2 CD Publisher's Edition Red Hat Linux 9 core includes: Linux kernel, GNU C compiler, GNOME desktop, Apache Web server, Samba Windows file/print sharing, CUPS print service, Sendmail mail server, and BIND DNS server Additional packages include:
* KDE desktop
* samba-swat
* vsftpd
* spamassassin
* sendmail-cf
* Legacy UNIX network services
* Tripwire
* sndconfig
Synopsis
Assuming little or no experience with Linux or UNIX operating systems, this work provides a task-based guide to using Red Hat Linux from running simple applications and connecting to the Internet to setting up networks and configuring servers. This new edition has expanded desktop coverage and de-emphasized shell scripts. Chapters cover the installation and operation of applications, audio and video players, graphic computer games, setup and system maintenance tasks, task automation, and setup procedures for a variety of server types. The three CD-ROMs contain the software needed to set up a complete Red Hat Linux system. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
The Barnes & Noble ReviewSeems like we were just crowing over Red Hat Linux 8, and already RHL9 has arrived -- even more robust and polished than its predecessor.
Many improvements are “under the hood”: new versions of everything from XFree86 to OpenOffice.org; an updated kernel; hot new Nvidia and ATI drivers, and loads more. Some of what’s new is eminently visible: improvements to Red Hat’s slick BlueCurve interface, for example. If you didn’t upgrade to RHL8, Red Hat Linux 9 is a slam dunk. If you did, RHL9 is just a little better everywhere: more powerful, more robust, more fun.
Of course, to make the most of RHL9, you’ll need to educate yourself -- so check out Red Hat Linux 9 Bible.
Christopher Negus’s Red Hat Linux Bibles have long stood out for their focus on real-world tasks, not cryptic Linux jargon -- and for their breadth. Inside these pages is everything you need to know to find and run applications, set up a small network, connect to the Internet, provide email and other services -- even burn your own CDs and play networked games.
What’s more, this book also contains a three CD-ROM copy of the Red Hat 9.0 distribution. Not just the standard “Publisher’s Edition” but an enhanced version containing 260 additional packages -- everything from Spam Assassin (covered in detail in this edition) to sndconfig for easier soundcard configuration.
Even with 1,000-plus pages at his disposal, Negus can’t possibly be exhaustive. So he does something even better: He focuses on the most important tasks and the most widespread or useful ways to accomplish them. You won’t learn a dozen different text editors here: You’ll learn how to get the best ones running really well.
Negus starts with an overview of what’s changed in Red Hat Linux 9 and why. Next, he walks you through all your installation options, from Red Hat’s largely automated installation and preset configurations to network and hard disk installs, and Linux/Windows coexistence. There’s also a step-by-step guide to preconfiguring Red Hat Linux for rapid installation on multiple computers.
You’ll find detailed coverage of both KDE 3.1 and GNOME 2.2 -- each of which has been significantly enhanced since RHL8. Negus shows how to explore Red Hat from the shell; then offers brief introductions to several of Red Hat’s most impressive productivity software packages. There’s also a thorough chapter on Linux multimedia, including the latest digital camera and scanning tools.
Negus systematically introduces administration with Red Hat’s enhanced Web-based tools. Next, he presents 12 full chapters on setting up networks and servers -- including Apache 2.0, Samba file/print sharing, email with both sendmail and postfix; the latest iptables firewalls; NetWare support; even wireless LANs and VPNs.
If you’re running or supporting Macintoshes, you’ll especially appreciate Negus’s entirely new chapter on Mac networking. With OS X, Linux-to-Mac networking becomes far more straightforward, and Negus shows how to take advantage of that. He first shows Mac OS X (and other Mac) users how to access shared resources on Linux servers; and then walks administrators through configuring AppleTalk servers with netatalk.
Red Hat Linux keeps getting more impressive. Ditto for the Red Hat Linux Bibles. Bill Camarda
Bill Camarda is a consultant, writer, and web/multimedia content developer. His 15 books include Special Edition Using Word 2000 and Upgrading & Fixing Networks for Dummies, Second Edition.