Basics

Topics:

• Documentation
• Files And Directories
  • Structure of The Linux File System
  • Understanding Permissions
• Installing Software
  • From RPM
  • From source
  • Other
• Using The Shell

Documentation

In an ideal world, you wouldn't need documentation. But as it is, you should know where to find it and how to find your way through it.

Page One :

• Overview

• Finding Documentation
• Handling 'man'
• Handling 'info'

• Searching Text Files With 'grep'
• Documentation Browsers

Files And Directories

Structure of The Linux File System

Lost in a maze of strange directories of the File system Hierarchy Standard ? These pages tell you which files to find in which directories.

Page One :

• General Characteristics
• Reasons and Consequences
• Current Problems

• The Root Directory

• /etc
• /home
• /var

• /usr

Understanding Permissions

Permissions are file attributes. Learn why they are here, why they are good and how to handle them.

Page One :

• The Concept
• Why Understanding Permissions Is Important

• Practical Examples
• Changing Permissions
• Popular Cock ups With Permissions

Installing Software

First the principles: in Linux you don't need to visit the vendors' sites to download and install everyting one by one. Instead of this you have a central software installer utility which is for install all the software you want and one software uninstaller to uninstall everything you don't need. You need to setup the software sources where you want to install from though, be it a CD, local network or an ftp server. When you have done that you just need to browse the available software in the software installer (rpmdrake) and choose it. Rpmdrake will take care of the rest.

From RPM

RPM is a software package allowing the easy installation, de-installation and management of software . It is recommended to use 'urpmi' or the Mandrake Control Center to install software, which is a wrapper around RPM that is able to solve dependencies.

Page One :

• What Is RPM?
• What RPM Does For You
• What RPM Does Not Do For You

• Preliminaries
• Common Operations
• Advanced Querying

• urpm - RPM Mandrake Style
• Configuring urpm
• Using rpmdrake
• Using urpm

• What is …
• How Do I …
• What Do I Do If …

• Introduction
• "I've lost everything: media sources, install groups, and uninstall groups."
• "I get false results when looking for a new RPM after updating my media."
• "I've added CD media but the RPMs aren't showing up."
• "rpmdrake is listing multiple copies of every package."

From source

Want bleeding edge? Compile yourself1.1 These pages tell you how.

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• Compiling Basics
• Unpacking Archives
• Important Files to Read
• Needed Packages

• Running 'configure'
• What's Missing?
• Running make
• Uninstalling
• Applying Patches

• Missing Or Unusual Build Files
• Build File Problems
• Building Problems

Other

Handling third party (Adobe, Netscape) installers.

Installing Non-RPM Programs {May 21, 02}

Using The Shell

These pages introduce and explain basic shell commands and mechanisms.

Page One :

• The Ultimate Power Tool
• Terminals, xterms And Shells
• First Steps On the Shell

• The very first shell commands to experiment

• Auto-Completion
• Commandline History
• Commandline Editing
• Available Shell Shortcuts

• Command Queuing
• Command Jobbing
• Command Substitution

• Filename Globbing / Expansion
• Output Redirection

• bash Configuration Files
• The Prompt
• Changing $PATH

• Command Aliases and Shell Functions
• Where To Go From Here
• Shell FAQ