Close
  • Latest News
  • Cybersecurity
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Mobile
  • Networking
  • Storage
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Menu
Search
  • Latest News
  • Cybersecurity
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Mobile
  • Networking
  • Storage
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Latest News
    • Servers

    A Pair of Linux Stocking Stuffers

    By
    Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
    -
    December 7, 2004
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      All I want for Christmas is a Linux for everyone to enjoy. And I found it.

      You can find it, too, in Robin “Roblimo” Millers new book, “Point & Click Linux!”

      Ive often recommended CD-bootable Linux distributions such as Knoppix and Gnoppix as ideal distributions to get your feet wet with Linux, and I still do. But getting a distribution off the Web has one problem: You have to set it up yourself. Wouldnt it be great to have someone by your side who could help you?

      Well, for all practical intents, thats what “Point & Click Linux” gives you. Its an easy-to-read, easy-to-use introduction to Linux and some of its most popular desktop software, such as OpenOffice.org, Mozilla, the Kopete IM (instant message) client and the GIMP graphics.

      And if youre the kind of person who has trouble getting from the book to the PC, this book also comes with a DVD with what really are easy-to-follow videos for the basics.

      This book is based on the popular Debian-based Linux, MEPIS. You can both give it a try as a CD-based distribution or go whole-hog and install it on your PC.

      Another thing I like about this particular distribution is that it gives you a good desktop Linux even on slower machines. I currently have it running on a 733MHz Pentium III white box with a mere 128MBs of RAM, and its actually a pleasure to use.

      I might add thats the first time Ive found any operating system a pleasure to use on that machine.

      Ive looked at more than a hundred Linux books now, and this is by far the friendliest of the whole collection for beginners. If you ever wanted to give your grandpa, or anyone else for that matter, a quick and easy way to get started with Linux, “Point & Click Linux” is the book.

      If you already know something of Linux and you want more, I have another recommendation for a Linux book to put under your Christmas tree. Or, to be more precise, to order for early next year. Its Dee-Ann Leblancs “Linux for Dummies” Sixth Edition.

      Its important to note that “Sixth Edition.” Several of the older editions were … well, not that good. Starting with the fifth edition, which is the one thats currently available, its really improved.

      This “Dummies” book does a good job both of introducing Linux and the basics and of giving users an overview of SuSE, Mandrake, Xandros, Linspire (formerly Lindows) and Knoppix desktop Linuxes.

      But the latest editions main focus is on Red Hats Fedora Core 3. Fedora is a cutting-edge Linux, and in so much as it can be made beginner-friendly, Leblanc does so. Still, for real beginners, I prefer “Point & Click Linux.” That said, “Linux for Dummies” is a fine choice for people who arent PC dummies.

      eWEEK.com Senior Editor Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols has been using and writing about operating systems since the late 80s and thinks he may just have learned something about them along the way.

      Check out eWEEK.coms for the latest open-source news, reviews and analysis.

      Avatar
      Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols
      I'm editor-at-large for Ziff Davis Enterprise. That's a fancy title that means I write about whatever topic strikes my fancy or needs written about across the Ziff Davis Enterprise family of publications. You'll find most of my stories in Linux-Watch, DesktopLinux and eWEEK. Prior to becoming a technology journalist, I worked at NASA and the Department of Defense on numerous major technological projects.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Android

      Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro: Durability for Tough...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 5, 2020 0
      Have you ever dropped your phone, winced and felt the pain as it hit the sidewalk? Either the screen splintered like a windshield being...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Why Data Security Will Face Even Harsher...

      Chris Preimesberger - December 1, 2020 0
      Who would know more about details of the hacking process than an actual former career hacker? And who wants to understand all they can...
      Read more
      Cybersecurity

      How Veritas Is Shining a Light Into...

      eWEEK EDITORS - September 25, 2020 0
      Protecting data has always been one of the most important tasks in all of IT, yet as more companies become data companies at the...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      How NVIDIA A100 Station Brings Data Center...

      Zeus Kerravala - November 18, 2020 0
      There’s little debate that graphics processor unit manufacturer NVIDIA is the de facto standard when it comes to providing silicon to power machine learning...
      Read more
      Apple

      Why iPhone 12 Pro Makes Sense for...

      Wayne Rash - November 26, 2020 0
      If you’ve been watching the Apple commercials for the past three weeks, you already know what the company thinks will happen if you buy...
      Read more
      eWeek


      Contact Us | About | Sitemap

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      Terms of Service | Privacy Notice | Advertise | California - Do Not Sell My Information

      © 2021 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×