Reviews for Beginning Ubuntu Linux: From Novice to Professional 3rd Edition Book/DVD Package (Books for Professionals by Professionals)

1. perfect for novices

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, November 12th, 2009

   This does exactly what it says on the cover. It assumes you are new to Ubuntu and Linux and gives you a foolproof step by step guide through the processes of;
   The History of Linux/Ubuntu
   Open Source software Philosophy
   Installation and troubleshooting hardware and peripherals
   Adding, configuring and using software with suggestions for MS Windows® alternatives
   Using the default installed software
   Security
   Using the command line (BASH)
   
   As a new Ubuntu user I already have a very clear understanding of the importance of the 'open source' philosophy but I found that devoting three whole chapters to this and the history of Linux to be excessive. Particularly so as anyone interested in such information could readily locate such details online by using their favourite search engine.
   
   The assumption that the user is a novice is sometimes taken too far with detailed explanations of installation steps that must be self evident to anyone who has previously used a pc. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing for the true novice, yet in this lies the underlying contradiction within the book. It frequently alludes to prior experience with another operating system, which would make the user more than capable of understanding the well crafted and intuitive graphic user installation interface.
   The section for troubleshooting your installation is detailed and to the point and undoubtedly useful for those who experience such problems, but the premise is based on Ubuntu 8.04, a distribution that is at this time eighteen months old and does not take into account the many software packages that have been updated and improved.
   
   Later chapters are an improvement with details on how to configure networks cards, system updates, how to set up your desktop environment and configure printers and scanners (and other peripherals) if Ubuntu fails to do so automatically.
   
   Eventually by chapter thirteen you get to what most readers of this book will be interested in - 'Introducing the BASH shell' (similar to the DOS command line in Windows®). Common commands are listed alongside their DOS equivalents and then simple examples show how these can be used along with details of file permissions and the contents of operating system directories. Text file manipulation in BASH and viewing/stopping currently running processes plus some more advanced BASH functions are also covered.
   
   The the next section deals with the use of the software installed by default, including multimedia and office applications as well as email, calendar, presentation and database applications.
   
   In the final chapters we are taught how to add/remove and update software packages and sources, manage users and backup our precious data, all in the same foolproof manner that defines this book.
   
   In conclusion. I would not hesitate to recommend this book to the complete novice. I would even recommend it to new users such as myself for the wealth of information that it contains. However, this information is often heavily wrapped in exhaustively detailed instruction and for anyone who has experience with any operating system the first half of this book may cause irritation in its completeness of every detail. To me, an Ubuntu user of a few weeks, the most useful sections of this book are the BASH commands and Appendix A and B, a quick and easy way to locate what you need with help from the index.
   
   NOTE: The 4th edition of this book is now available. ISBN10: 1430219998
   

2. Great!

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, October 12rd, 2009

   This book is great! I've never used Ubuntu ever (or any other Linux OS) and by using this book I found Ubuntu easy to get to grips with. It teaches you all the basic information you need without getting too over your head. It teaches you basic commands for using the Shell, (if your an experienced Windows user its like using DOS just 1000 times better!) and teaches you have to update, install new software and play music and videos!
   
   If your only plan is to use Ubuntu for Word processing, power points, movies ect you can access all of this without typing commands, commands are aimed for powerusers.
   
   By the end of the book you will feel just as comfortable using Ubuntu as you would Windows, and most likely will choose never to use Windows again!
   
   Just be aware that the Ubuntu CD it comes with is 8.04 and now we are on 9.04 so there are minor changes, and if you download Ubuntu make sure you burn the file to CD as an ISO file don't just copy it as a data file as you wont be able to boot from the CD!!!

3. Good basic book, but a bit out of date now.

   Rated 3 out of 5 stars, September 12th, 2009

   I bought this because I wanted to see how little I knew about Ubuntu, now that I'd made the decision to move to it as my mainstream OS. I found it worthwhile, especially the bit about what the directories mean. The disk included is way out of date now (we're about to see version 9.10 released,and this is still on 6), and so of course are some of the descriptions of how to do stuff. It is much easier now to avoid the command line than when this was written!
   
   I would say this is a good start, but the reader needs to be aware that a lot has changed and improved. Go on to other more up-to-date books, like the Ubuntu Pocket Guide, or the newly-released Handbook for version 9.04.

4. This book does whiat it says

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, July 12th, 2009

   This book aims at providing a good grounding in the installation,configuration and use of Ubuntu as a desktop operating system. It succeeds, rather like Ubuntu without fuss but with a certain offbeat style.
   Part One of the book may be safely be ignored by anybody who has played with Linux,otherwise it is mandatory. The rest of the book deserves to be read at least once before installing the operating system. It is then a good reference book.
   I found the sections on applications to be informative without being condescending.
   There are woolly aspects as regards to codecs (probably due to legal issues).
   The whole tone of the book is that when you start to read a section, you feel that you know that you know that already, and by the time you finish, you feel that you know more.
   Ubuntu has so many differing variants that it would be unfair to judge this book by it's scanty treatment of them.It is, after all entitled Beginning Ubuntu Linux. I do however feel that more attention should have been given to the server edition.I may be unfair in this, as physically, it weighs more then my netbook.
   As I said in the title, This book does what it says.
   

5. Ubuntu Bible?

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, July 12nd, 2009

   Wow! What a fantastic book. Usually, computer books are either written by Idiots (sorry, should that be for Idiots as in, "The Idiot's Guide to Whatever") or alternatively they waffle on in 'techno-babble' and lose me by page 25. This book is different. It takes each stage of getting Ubuntu Linux up and running and using all the various programs - one chapter per stage.
   
   It is very easy to read and straightforward to understand yet powerful in the techniques it teaches. I have read a lot of computer books over the years and without doubt ... this is quite simply the best of the bunch.
   
   If you have mastered the basics of using a computer then you can easily learn Ubuntu Linux with this book (and then show off to your friends!).