Introduction

Welcome to The Official Ubuntu Book, Fifth Edition!

In recent years, the Ubuntu operating system has taken the open source and IT world by storm. From out of nowhere, the Little Operating System That Could has blossomed into a full-featured desktop and server offering that has won over the hearts of users everywhere. Aside from the strong technical platform and impressive commitment to quality, Ubuntu also enjoys success because of its sprawling community of enthusiastic users who have helped to support, document, and test every millimeter of the Ubuntu landscape.

In your hands you are holding the official, authorized guide to this impressive operating system. Each of the authors selected to work on this book has demonstrated a high level of technical competence, an unbridled commitment to Ubuntu, and the ability to share this knowledge in a simple and clear manner. These authors gathered together to create a book that offers a solid grounding to Ubuntu and explains how the many facets and features of Ubuntu work.

About This Book

At the start of every book, on every bookshelf, in every shop, is a paragraph that sums up the intentions and aims for the book. We have one very simple, down-to-earth aim: to make the Ubuntu experience even more pleasant for users. The Ubuntu developers and community have gone to great lengths to produce an easy-to-use, functional, and flexible operating system for doing, browsing, and creating all kinds of interesting things. This book augments that effort. With such an integrated and flexible operating system, this guide acts as a tour de force for the many things you can do with Ubuntu.

The Scope of the Book

With so much to cover, we had our work cut out to write a book that could cover the system in sufficient detail. However, if we were to write in depth about every possible feature in Ubuntu, you would need to buy a new bookcase to store the sheer amount of content.

Part of the challenge in creating The Official Ubuntu Book was selecting the topics and content that can be covered within a reasonably sized book. We have identified the most essential content and written only about it. These chosen topics not only include installation, use of the desktop, applications, multimedia, system administration, and software management, but also include a discussion of the community, online resources, and the philosophy behind Ubuntu and open source software. As a bonus, we decided to squeeze in a chapter full of useful troubleshooting recipes that you can use when you need to troubleshoot problems, and we expanded our discussion of projects related to Ubuntu that will be of interest to you. We believe this book provides an ideal one-stop shop for getting started with Ubuntu.

The Menu

Here is a short introduction to each chapter and what it covers.

• Chapter 1— Introducing Ubuntu: This spirited introduction describes the Ubuntu project, its distribution, its development processes, and some of the history that made it all possible.

• Chapter 2— Installing Ubuntu: We walk through the installation process one step at a time to clearly describe how anyone interested may begin using Ubuntu on their own computer.

• Chapter 3— Using Ubuntu on the Desktop: This is an informative and enjoyable introductory tour of the Ubuntu desktop, the applications included, and ways to configure and customize your desktop.

• Chapter 4— Gaining Greater Proficiency: We explore some of the advanced ways to use Ubuntu, including managing the system. These features are not vital if you want to use the computer only as a simple tool, but once you learn how to install and manage software, use hardware devices and printers, interact with remote computers, use the terminal, and run some Windows programs under Ubuntu, you will find your overall experience even more rewarding and enjoyable.

• Chapter 5— The Ubuntu Server: This introduction to Ubuntu Server installation and administration includes coverage of command-line package management, basic security topics, and advanced installer features like logical volume management and RAID.

• Chapter 6— More Applications for Ubuntu: Here we discuss some of the most interesting and useful options from among the software packages available for Ubuntu but not installed by default. These quality programs are interesting and useful, but either there is not enough space to include them on the installation CD or they are without as wide of an audience as those programs preinstalled for everyone.

• Chapter 7— The Ubuntu Community: The Ubuntu community is larger and more active than many people realize. We discuss many of its facets, including what people like you do to build, promote, distribute, support, document, translate, and advocate Ubuntu—and we tell you how you can join in the fun.

• Chapter 8— Using Kubuntu: The most popular spin-off project from Ubuntu is Kubuntu. This chapter provides a solid introduction and primer for getting started.

• Chapter 9— Mobile and Netbook Editions: There is an exciting modification of Ubuntu designed for installation and use on netbooks, the small computers created for portability and long battery life that are taking the tech world by storm.

• Chapter 10— Ubuntu-Related Projects: There are a number of Linux distributions based on Ubuntu that you will find interesting and possibly useful. We discuss some of these as well as projects that are integral to the creation of Ubuntu, such as Launchpad and Bazaar.

• Chapter 11— Introducing the Ubuntu Forums: For hundreds of thousands of people, the Ubuntu Forums have provided the first glimpse of and interaction with the greater Ubuntu community. Especially for new users, this has become the most important venue for support. We explore the forums and the people, history, and processes that have built them.

• Appendix— Welcome to the Command Line: You can begin to take advantage of the power and efficiency of the command line with the clear, easy-to-use examples in our brief introduction.

The Ubuntu team offers several installation options for Ubuntu users, including CDs for desktop, alternate install, and server install. These three CD images are conveniently combined onto one DVD included in the back of this book, allowing you to install Ubuntu for different configurations from just one disk. There is also an option to test the DVD for defects as well as a memory test option to check your computer.

The first boot option on the DVD, Start or Install Ubuntu, will cover most users’ needs. For more comprehensive information, check the Help feature by selecting F1 on the boot menu. You can also refer to Chapter 2, which covers the Ubuntu installation process in detail.

You can find the DVD image, the individual CD images (for those who don’t have a DVD drive), and Kubuntu and Edubuntu images on www.ubuntu.com/download.