Ubuntu for Non-Geeks, 3rd Edition
I've got to hand it to O'Reilly for coming up with book titles that, after a moment's reflection, make you wonder why you didn't think of them yourself. "Ubuntu Linux for Non-Geeks" is one such book. Just think about that for a moment. A person doesn't really need to be an idiot or a moron to be a little intimidated by computers. They just have to fall short of the admirable status of "geek".
While Linux users in general seem to be free-thinking do-it-yourself "hackers" in the cool sense of that word, Linux systems do not require users who can write their own utilities or build their own computers from spare parts. On the contrary, Linux systems have as appealing desktops and friendly applications as any Windows box, as easy to use an interface and at least as much visual appeal. Why shouldn't regular people, heretofore referred to as "non-geeks", find Linux systems as inviting as the more common OS options?
This book might just be one that gets non-geeks over the hump and into the fan club of Ubuntu Linux -- one of the fast-risers in the mix of Linux distributions. The book arrives with a CD that lets you run Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) right off the CD -- a kind of "let's get acquainted" option, install it to run as just another Windows binary or you can do a full install on your PC.
It also teaches readers everything they need to know to become very comfortable with Ubuntu. This includes:
- downloading and installing free application software
- connecting to the Internet
- configuring hardware, including printers, scanners and such
- watching DVDs, listening to music and lots more
In its eighteen chapters, the book introduces readers to the world of Linux and free software. It teaches them about installing the OS, how to make use of the Linux desktop, installing additional software and customizing the look and feel of their Ubuntu system. It introduces business, art and music applications. It describes system security and helps users understand how to keep their systems safe.
The third edition lets readers try Ubuntu 8.04, also known as "Hardy Heron". Ubunto 7.04 was "Feisty Fawn". 9.04 might end up being the "irreverant iguana" or, more likely, the "indominable ibex".
The CD included with the book contains the x86 version of Ubuntu. This will work with most PCs, though not as well as a 64 bit version if your system is an AMD64 system. If you want the AMD64 bit version, you can download it and prepare your own CD. Appendix A provides information on how to do this.
Linux is as easy to use as windows. This book's focus on the GUI and how to get things done puts the system squarely in the hands of non-geeks.
The explanations are friendly and non-intimidating, starting out with introductions to the terminology, answering questions like "What is a distribution?" and philosophical questions like "What does free software mean to me?".
Ubuntu Linux for Non-Geeks was written by Rickford Grant and published in 2008.
Non-geeks will find that even doing geek-like things on Ubuntu Linux is not as hard as they once imagined. In fact, with books like this in the hands of non-geeks, the lines of distinction between geeks and non-geeks might just begin to blur!
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Excellent book review,
Excellent book review, thanks.This book that sounds well-targeted to the many non-geek adopters of Ubuntu. The review contains one minor error, yielding (I'm afraid) a rather long explanation. Please bear with me.
Ubuntu is release twice yearly, usually in April and October. The version number is the year (less two thousand) to the left of the dot, and the two-digit month to the right.
Two word alliterative animal-based code names have identified the more recent versions prior to their release, usually with successive letters for each release.
Thus, 5.10 was "Breezy Badger", 6.06 (a rare June release and skip-letter) was "Dapper Drake", 6.10 was "Edgy Eft", 7.04 was "Feisty Fawn", 7.10 was "Gutsy Gibbon", 8.04 was "Hardy Heron", and 8.10 will be "Intrepid Ibex".
Thus (to my point), the code name for 9.04 could be expected to start with the letter "J", not (as the review states) the letter "I" (already used for 8.10).
I'm partial to "Jazzy Jaguar", personally. :-)
That minor mistake aside, however, I very much appreciate the clear and concise review. Thanks!
"Linux systems do not
"Linux systems do not require users who can write their own utilities or build their own computers from spare parts. On the contrary, Linux systems have as appealing desktops and friendly applications as any Windows box, as easy to use an interface and at least as much visual appeal."Not true at all. I use Ubuntu 8.04 Desktop on my laptop and I have a couple servers running 8.04 Server. I love Ubuntu and I think it's a wonderful Linux distro, but I would NEVER recommend it to a "non-geek". I would argue that Ubuntu does, in fact, require you to be the kind of person that can write scripts and build your own computer. While it's incredibly easy to install Ubuntu, day-to-day use is much more difficult. Installing a program in Ubuntu, for instance, is more of a pain than Windows. The user cannot simply download a Ubuntu binary from the products web page. They could download a source installer and compile it themselves, but this is inadvisable on a Debian-based distro, and especially inadvisable for a n00b. They have to hope that it's in the Ubuntu repositories (and they have the right repositories enabled), open the package manager, and search through thousands of packages for the right one. Sometimes the packages have weird misleading names.
Hopefully Ubuntu recognized all of your hardware on install, and it's all working correctly. If it's not, prepare to spend hours on-end trolling forums and trying several different patches and work-arounds. There's no guarantee that you will ever get that on-board Realtek sound card working properly.
On several different occasions, largely due to the aforementioned hardware problems, I have had routine package updates make Ubuntu unbootable, in which case you better hope that you can undo the damage, or have an extremely recent backup available.
As far as the interface goes, it's not bad. Windows users will be pretty much at home with the Kubuntu version with the KDE desktop environment. KDE4 is especially good - mixing some nice-looking window compositing effects with function and ease of use. Gnome is good too, but not as pretty or easy to use, IMO.
With each release, Ubuntu gets more stable and easier to use. I would definitely recommend Ubuntu to an "adventurous" geek who doesn't mind hammering out some frustrating problems now and again, but I wouldn't ever suggest it to someone with little computer knowledge and/or impatient people.
I have just downloaded the
I have just downloaded the new Ubuntu 8 desktop after struggling to grasp the concept of Fedora for a year and i love it! I hope to one day get a good handle on the terminal interface but the GUI is awesome and all my hardware was supported. I'm now using it on one of my machines at work.Here at we are relying more heavily on Linux for server use. Ubuntu 8 is a nice gentle push into the world of linux.