Linux Desktop Pocket Guide

Description:

While Mac OS X garners all the praise from pundits, and Windows XP attracts all the viruses, Linux is quietly being installed on millions of desktops every year. For programmers and system administrators, business users, and educators, desktop Linux is a breath of fresh air and a needed alternative to other operating systems.

The Linux Desktop Pocket Guide is your introduction to using Linux on five of the most popular distributions: Fedora, Gentoo, Mandriva, SUSE, and Ubuntu. Despite what you may have heard, using Linux is not all that hard. Firefox and Konqueror can handle all your web browsing needs; GAIM and Kopete allow you to chat with your friends on the AOL, MSN, and Yahoo! networks; and the email programs Evolution and Kontact provide the same functionality as Microsoft Outlook, with none of the cost. All of these programs run within the beautiful, feature-packed, and easy-to-use GNOME or KDE desktop environments.

No operating system truly "just works," and Linux is no exception. Although Linux is capable of running on most any computing hardware that Microsoft Windows can use, you sometimes need to tweak it just a little to make it work the way you really want. To help you with this task, Linux Desktop Pocket Guide covers essential topics, such as configuring your video card, screen resolution, sound, and wireless networking. And laptop users are not left out--an entire section is devoted to the laptop issues of battery life, sleep, and hibernate modes.

 

Table of Contents:

Preface  

Chapter 1:. Distributions

     Choosing a Distribution 

     Fedora 

     Gentoo 

     Mandriva 

     SUSE 

     Ubuntu 

     Other Distributions 

     Getting a Distribution 

Chapter 2:. Logging In

     Graphical Logins 

     Text Logins 

Chapter 3:. GNOME

     GNOME Desktop 

     File Manager 

     The GNOME Menu and Program Launchers 

     GNOME Configuration 

Chapter 4:. KDE

     The KDE Desktop 

     File Manager 

     The KDE Menu 

     The KDE Control Center 

Chapter 5:. Applications

     Web Browsers 

     Email 

     Instant Messaging and IRC 

     Office Suites 

     Video Players 

     Music Ripping, Encoding, and Playing 

     CD and DVD Burning 

     Digital Images 

     Games 

Chapter 6:. Add, Remove, and Update Programs

     Fedora 

     Gentoo 

     Mandriva 

     SUSE 

     Ubuntu 

     Using RPMs 

     Build Your Own 

Chapter 7:. Configuration

     Sound 

     Printing 

     Wired Networking 

     Wireless Networking 

     X 

Chapter 8:. Laptops

     Touchpads 

     Kernel Support for Power Management 

     Extending Battery Life 

     Putting Your Laptop to Sleep 

     Hibernating Your Laptop 

     Distribution Support 

Appendix: Running Commands and Editing Text

Index