The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group Linux Cookbook - for the bookshelf Major Keary |
On the cover of this O'Reilly title is a type of headline, "Practical advice for Linux users and system administrators", which is an accurate description. The focus is on practical advice, which is delivered in "recipe" form - hence the cookbook title. In the preface the author says, "This book is aimed at folks who want to know what button to push. Understanding the underlying theory is useful, but if you can't make the darn thing work, not very helpful. So it's light on theory and heavy on how-to-make-this-go, with detailed step-by-step instructions".
The format is: problem, solution, discussion, "see also". Problems are presented in plain, straightforward language; the solutions involve the use of command line input and scripts, but are fully explained; the discussion is concise, and puts the problem/solution into context. Cross references are provided under the see-also heading.
For example:
Problem: You can't find a man page for an installed program, and you're certain it should be on the system.
Solution: Sometimes the man database gets corrupted, users make strange modifications, or programs install man pages incorrectly. First try searching with whereis -m: Then follows a number of options, including a command for rebuilding the man database, with explanations.
Discussion: Explains that some programs don't have man pages, and suggests other resources that can be searched.
The "recipes" are grouped in chapters, each of which deals with a particular topic. For example, the first three chapters cover Finding documentation, Installing and managing software on RPM-based systems, and Installing and managing software on Debian-based systems. Other chapters cover a wide range of subjects, including: installing programs from source code; starting and stopping Linux; CD and DVD recording; patching, customising, and upgrading kernels; managing the bootloader and multi-booting; running an Apache web server; and building a Postfix mail server.
One of the things that Linux does well is version control. "A version control system is an efficient way to track changes in documents and to preserve a complete history of a project ... and ... are useful for all sorts of things: source code, binary files, configuration files, scripts, articles and books, songs, inventories, indexes ."... There are several systems; a chapter on version control deals with two applications: Revision Control System (RCS) and Concurrent Versions System (CVS). It shows how to build a simple local RCS repository, how to retrieve files from RCS, comparing file versions in RCS, and managing system configuration files. Similar scenarios for CVS are also covered.
An essential text for system administrators and those manning Linux help desks; a valuable resource for more advanced users; and well worth looking at by less experienced users who want to develop their Linux skills. A good library acquisition.
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Carla Schroder: Linux Cookbook ISBN 0-596-00640-3 Published by O'Reilly, 553 pp., RRP $84.95 incl. GST |
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Reprinted from the May 2005 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
