Learning Debian GNU/Linux by Bill McCarty

Somewhat old in terms of computer history. It would be useful for history and use on old hardware. The reader looking to install Debian GNU/Linux would be advised to try the latest which is Jessie Version 8.1 at the time of the review. Upgrading from the old version with the Debian mirrors would be problematic with the old version.

LOVED IT! Not too low-brow where I felt like I was a preschooler being talked to by an adult, yet I wasn’t lost in techno babble either. EXCELLENT.

I have to agree with the Reader from New York. I received the book as part of the boxed set from the VALinux CD distribution. So, at a minimum, the price and material can’t be beat!
But, in addition to the “xf86config” misnomer, the reader is also told to use the SHIFT-ALT-+ key combination to reduce the size of the virtual desktop. Well, as a newbie to Linux, as well as Debian, I must have looked like a trained monkey hammering away on that key combination, until I thought, “Maybe there was a misprint or misquote.” And yes, the CTRL-ALT-+ combination worked just fine. By the way, the monkey was, of course, rewarded immediately with a reduced virtual desktop and a banana.
This is just one of several “small” errors in the book; however, to a Debian system newbie, the errors are annoying.
Also, the flow throughout the book was choppy, at best. Although the book and its flow start out well, providing sufficient detail to install successfully the Debian system without too many problems, by Chapter 5 the book has lost any useful level of specificity. I understand that once you get into the X Window environment, your choices for a window manager are numerous but sticking with two or three window managers, throughout the remainder of the book, would have been beneficial to the reader.
By the book’s ending, the flow has jumped around so much that the reader can easily become overwhelmed and confused. Much like the middle of the book, the level of specificity is limited so that you can easily become lost in any LAN, WAN, or web server profile installation. I found myself constantly referring to the Debian “HOW TOs” for additional and more helpful information.
Better-presented books are available at the price level associated with this book. Overall, the book was misleading in that its usefulness began promisingly but ended disappointedly. If the level of specificity and flow found in the first four chapters had been carried throughout the remainder of the book, a higher rating would have been given.

For those accustomed to software manuals that consistently tell you everything that’s already self-evident and nothing that you wanted to know, “Learning Debian Linux” is a breath of fresh air. McCarty strikes a rare balance in giving you enough information to get started using and understanding the Linux system, while not overwhelming you with arcane geekspeak. Using it as a reference, it’s easy to find the facts you need quickly. Yet, it’s sufficiently engaging that I found myself reading on, until by weeks end, I had read it nearly cover-to-cover. I do have a few complaints. I personally would have appreciated a little more technical detail on such things as routing tables and printer fonts. I was also disappointed to find no listing of common Linux error messages which, at least to the uninitiated, can seem as cryptic and unhelpful as those issued by Macintosh or Windows. Still, on balance, this is easily one of the best computed books I have encountered.

I have downloaded and installed several Linux distributions (Red Hat 6.1, Caldera 2.3, etc.) in my search to find one that I like. I am also reading the book, “Running Linux, 3rd ed.” which is teaching me the ins and outs of Linux. Debian GNU/Linux works for me because the book leads you step by step through the installation, plus it is setup more like traditional (non-commercial) distributions, which I am reading about in “Running Linux”. Together, both books and the included CD, have me up on a simple home LAN where I can print from Windows machines, through my Linux server, and share files too. Not only that, but I understand it!
Yes, Linux does require a bit of time on your part to learn some of the Microsoft type things you use to take for granted, but you’ll sleep better knowing that pointless lock-ups are a thing of the past.