Fedora 10 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux Bible [With CDROM and DVD]

Most Linux books I've seen are really just regurgitations of man pages or stuff ripped off the web. These books have been around a while, are pretty up to date and actually contain useful examples. I use this as the text for a Linux based class I teach and have had the best luck with it of the four or five other books I've tried.

We are developing a software product that runs on teh LAMP stack. I needed to get a Linux machine up and running quickly; it needed to be both a client and a server. Linux was new to me, so I needed both a distribution and a "Getting Started" Guide. This book was exactly what I needed. I used the DVD to create a Linux partition on a 5 year old Windows XP desktop. Before I started, I was able to test my machine's compatibility with the Linux Live CD that came with the book, as well. Everything installed wonderfully. Even the audio worked "out of the box," a known Fedora 10 "issue". The book had the material I needed to get started both with GNOME and Linux as a server. Be aware, Fedora and Linux are not for people who aren't comfortable with command lines, inconsistent interfaces and experimenting a bit.

Rarely do these monster distro tomes separate themselves from the pack. Much of their content tends to be a feature dump. However, this Fedora 10 title is different because it anticipates virtually everything that is coming in Fedora 11. Specific distro numbers do not always translate to the book's utility since Linux knowledge carries over and forward. But this is one book to have in your library. Newbies can load up on getting to know their way around, while the pros can beef up their command line and networking skills.