Table of Contents for

Ubuntu: Up and Running

This book is for people interested in learning about Ubuntu, the most popular Linux distribution. This includes students, home and business users, hobbyists, professionals, and all other types of user. Because this book takes you from the first steps of installing the operating system, through configuration, maintenance, and security, and on to topics such as networking, it provides a complete resource for all beginning to intermediate users.

This book assumes that you have a basic understanding of your computer and are comfortable using either Windows or Mac OS X, but no prior knowledge of Unix, Linux, or Ubuntu is required.

The chapters in this book are carefully ordered so that different aspects of the operating system are fully introduced before moving on to the next step. To get the best results from this book, you are therefore recommended to read the chapters in sequence.

For example, to get you started, the first chapter introduces Ubuntu, explains its background, and explores the different parts that make up the operating system. Then, with introductions out of the way, the second chapter takes you straight into installing Ubuntu. The process is fully explained in simple terms with plenty of screen grabs to guide you.

After that, the next chapter shows how to configure Ubuntu to your computer, including setting up your keyboard, mouse, and monitor, and managing peripherals such as printers, sound cards, and webcams.

With your setup now configured, the next chapters introduce the Linux filesystem and how to use it, both with the desktop and via the command line. You are then shown how to install and remove programs with the easy-to-use built-in tools, as well as how to maintain your system and keep it secure.

The following two chapters then cover networking functions such as file and folder sharing and accessing the Internet.

By this time, you will have a solid understanding of Ubuntu, so the remaining chapters show you what you can do with it, such as using the OpenOffice.org office suite of programs, installing and playing games, connecting peripherals such as scanners and Bluetooth devices, running Windows programs, and how to install other flavors of Ubuntu.

Along the way, each new topic is introduced using plain English, with the absolute minimum of jargon, and is supported by screen grabs showing exactly what you should see on your computer.

Once you have mastered Ubuntu Linux, you may be interested in learning more about Linux and its other distributions. You can take your skills to the next level using the following books, which range from beginner to advanced level:

The following typographical conventions are used in this book:

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We appreciate, but do not require, attribution. An attribution usually includes the title, author, publisher, and ISBN. For example: “Ubuntu: Up and Running, by Robin Nixon. Copyright 2010 Robin Nixon, 978-0-596-80484-8.”

If you feel your use of code examples falls outside fair use or the permission given here, feel free to contact us at permissions@oreilly.com.

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A huge thank you goes to my editor, Andy Oram, for all his guidance and the tremendous amount of work and all the extra snippets of advice and information he put into making this book such a useful guide. And, as usual, the production staff at O’Reilly also did a magnificent job copyediting the text and designing the book’s format and layout. It’s a pleasure to work with you all.

With a book introducing something as complex as an operating system, it’s essential for it to be as accurate as possible, so I am also very grateful to the team of eagle-eyed technical reviewers: Lesley Harrison, Matthew Helmke, and Jeff Kite, who provided many excellent suggestions for improving the manuscript.

And, of course, this book wouldn’t exist without Canonical, GNU, Linux, and the many other organizations that have worked tirelessly for the best part of two decades to integrate a myriad of different parts into the whole known as Ubuntu. Because they number in the thousands, I don’t want to single out just a few of the contributors; instead, on behalf of all Ubuntu users, I would simply like to thank each and every person who has participated in creating such an amazing piece of software.