Wiley SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies Dec 2005 ISBN 0471754935 pdf

  

by Naba Barkakati

SUSE Linux

  ®

  10 FOR

DUMmIES

  ‰

  

by Naba Barkakati

SUSE Linux

  ®

  10 FOR

DUMmIES

  ‰

  ® ® SUSE Linux

10 For Dummies

  Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River Street Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 Copyright © 2006 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana Published simultaneously in Canada

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or

by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permit-

ted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the

Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600.

Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Legal Department, Wiley Publishing,

Inc., 10475 Crosspoint Blvd., Indianapolis, IN 46256, (317) 572-3447, fax (317) 572-4355, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

  

Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the

Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, and related trade

dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United

States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. Linux is a registered trade-

mark of Linus Torvalds. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

  

LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REP-

RESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CON-

TENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT

LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CRE-

ATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CON-

TAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE

UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR

OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A

COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE

AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION

OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FUR-

THER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFOR-

MATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE.

  For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport.

Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may

not be available in electronic books. Library of Congress Control Number: 2005933651

ISBN-13: 978-0-471-75493-0

  ISBN-10: 0-471-75493-5 Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  1O/TQ/RR/QV/IN

  About the Author Naba Barkakati is an electrical engineer and a successful computer-book

  author who has experience in a wide variety of systems, ranging from MS-DOS and Windows to UNIX and Linux. He bought his first personal computer — an

  IBM PC-AT — in 1984 after graduating with a PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland at College Park. While pursuing a full-time career in engineering, Naba dreamed of writing software for the emerging PC soft- ware market. As luck would have it, instead of building a software empire like Microsoft, he ended up writing successful computer books. Currently, Naba is a Senior Level Technologist at the Center for Technology and Engineering in the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). Over the past 16 years, Naba has written over 25 computer books on a number of topics, ranging from object-oriented programming with C++ to Linux. He has authored several best-selling titles, such as The Waite Group’s Turbo C++ Bible,

  

Object-Oriented Programming in C++, X Window System Programming, Visual C++

Developer’s Guide, Borland C++ 4 Developer’s Guide, and Linux Secrets. His

  books have been translated into many languages, including Spanish, French, Polish, Greek, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. Naba’s most recent books are Red Hat Fedora Linux Secrets and Linux All-in-One Desk Reference For

  Dummies, also published by Wiley Publishing, Inc.

  Naba lives in North Potomac, Maryland, with his wife Leha, and their chil- dren, Ivy, Emily, and Ashley.

  Dedication

  I would like to dedicate this book to my wife, Leha, and daughters Ivy, Emily, and Ashley.

  Author’s Acknowledgments

  I am grateful to Terri Varveris for getting me started on this book — a

  For Dummies guide about the up and coming SUSE Linux. As the project

  editor, Susan Christophersen guided me through the manuscript submission process and kept everything moving. Tiffany Franklin took care of the project while Terri was away on maternity leave. I appreciate the guidance and sup- port that Terri, Tiffany, and Susan gave me during this project.

  I would like to thank Susan Douglas for reviewing the manuscript for techni- cal accuracy and providing many useful suggestions for improving the book’s content. Thanks to everyone at Wiley Publishing for transforming my raw manuscript into this well-edited and beautifully packaged book.

  Of course, there would be no reason for this book if it were not for Linux. For this, we have Linus Torvalds and the legions of Linux developers around the world to thank. Thanks to Christian Egle, Andreas Jaeger, and others at Novell for helping me with information about SUSE Linux. Thanks to the openSUSE project for continuing to develop and enhance the SUSE Linux distribution and for making publicly available the ISO image used to create the DVD-ROM bundled with this book.

  Finally, and as always, my greatest thanks go to my wife, Leha, and our daugh- ters, Ivy, Emily, and Ashley — it is their love and support that keeps me going. Thanks for being there!

  Publisher’s Acknowledgments We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our online registration form

   .

  Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development

  Project and Copy Editor: Susan Christophersen Previous Edition: Linda Morris

  Acquisitions Editor: Tiffany Franklin Technical Editor: Susan Douglas Editorial Manager: Jodi Jensen Media Project Supervisor: Laura Moss Media Development Specialist: Kit Malone Media Development Manager:

  Laura Carpenter VanWinkle Editorial Assistant: Amanda Foxworth Cartoons: Rich Tennant

  (

  www.the5thwave.com

  ) Composition Services Project Coordinator: Adrienne Martinez Layout and Graphics: Carl Byers, Andrea Dahl,

  Stephanie D. Jumper, Barbara Moore, Barry Offringa Proofreaders: Leeann Harney,

  Jessica Kramer, Dwight Ramsey, TECHBOOKS Production Services Indexer: TECHBOOKS Production Services

  Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher Mary Bednarek, Executive Acquisitions Director Mary C. Corder, Editorial Director

  Publishing for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director

  Composition Services Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

  Contents at a Glance

Introduction .................................................................1

  

Part I: Getting to Know SUSE ........................................7

Chapter 1: What Is SUSE Linux?........................................................................................9 Chapter 2: Installing SUSE Linux.....................................................................................23 Chapter 3: Starting SUSE for the First Time ..................................................................39 Chapter 4: Taking Stock of What’s New in SUSE...........................................................53 Part II: Test-Driving SUSE ...........................................61 Chapter 5: Exploring the SUSE Desktops.......................................................................63 Chapter 6: Finding and Organizing Files........................................................................79 Chapter 7: I Want My Internet, Now! ............................................................................103 Chapter 8: Setting Up an Ethernet LAN with Wireless Access..................................121 Part III: Doing Stuff with SUSE .................................137 Chapter 9: Browsing the Web........................................................................................139 Chapter 10: E-Mailing, IM-ing, and Using IP Phone in SUSE ......................................151 Chapter 11: Reading Newsgroups and RSS Feeds ......................................................171 Chapter 12: Preparing Documents and Spreadsheets in SUSE Linux ......................187 Chapter 13: Doing Even More Office Stuff in SUSE Linux ..........................................209 Chapter 14: Playing Music and Burning CDs...............................................................221 Chapter 15: Working with Photos and Images............................................................229 Chapter 16: What’s a Shell and Why Do I Care?..........................................................245 Part IV: Becoming a SUSE Wizard..............................255 Chapter 17: Look, Ma, I’m a Sysadmin! ........................................................................257 Chapter 18: Updating SUSE and Adding New Software .............................................275 Chapter 19: Securing SUSE Linux .................................................................................289 Part V: The Part of Tens ............................................311 Chapter 20: Ten Frequently Asked Questions about SUSE .......................................313 Chapter 21: The Ten Best Things about SUSE ............................................................323 Chapter 22: Ten Great Web Sites for SUSE Maniacs ...................................................327 Chapter 23: Ten Most Commonly Used SUSE Linux Commands ..............................331 Appendix: About the DVD-ROM..................................341

  Table of Contents

Introduction..................................................................1

  About This Book...............................................................................................1 Conventions Used in This Book .....................................................................2 What You Don’t Have to Read ........................................................................2 Who Are You? ...................................................................................................3 How This Book Is Organized...........................................................................3 What’s on the DVD? .........................................................................................4 Icons Used in This Book..................................................................................4 Where to Go from Here....................................................................................5

  

Part I: Getting to Know SUSE.........................................7

Chapter 1: What Is SUSE Linux? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Getting a Handle on Linux...............................................................................9 Discovering SUSE Linux.......................................................................12 Making sense of Linux version numbers ...........................................12 What’s in SUSE Linux? ...................................................................................13 GNU software ........................................................................................13 GUIs and applications ..........................................................................14 Networks ...............................................................................................15 Internet servers ....................................................................................16 Software development .........................................................................17 Online documentation .........................................................................17 Figuring Out What You Can Do with SUSE Linux........................................18 Disks, CD-ROMs, and DVD-ROMs .......................................................19 Peripheral devices................................................................................19 File systems and sharing .....................................................................20 Networking ............................................................................................21 Getting Started with SUSE Linux ..................................................................21 Install and configure SUSE Linux ........................................................21 Explore SUSE Linux ..............................................................................22 Use SUSE Linux .....................................................................................22 Chapter 2: Installing SUSE Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 Introducing the Installation Steps................................................................23 Checking Your PC’s Hardware ......................................................................25

  Installing SUSE Linux .....................................................................................26 Booting your PC from the DVD/CD-ROM drive.................................26 Installing SUSE Linux from CDs or DVD.............................................27

  Chapter 3: Starting SUSE for the First Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Powering Up SUSE Linux ...............................................................................39 Getting GUI ......................................................................................................40 Setting Up Printers.........................................................................................44 Managing DVDs and CD-ROMs .....................................................................47 Playing with the Shell ....................................................................................47 Starting the bash shell .........................................................................47 Understanding shell commands.........................................................48 Trying a few Linux commands............................................................49 Shutting Down ................................................................................................51 Chapter 4: Taking Stock of What’s New in SUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53 Discovering the Internet Applications ........................................................54 Introducing the Office Applications.............................................................55 Exploring the Multimedia Applications.......................................................56 Cataloging the Image and Graphics Applications ......................................58 Part II: Test-Driving SUSE............................................61 Chapter 5: Exploring the SUSE Desktops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63 Discovering the Common Features of the Desktops .................................63 Desktop context menus .......................................................................65 Icon context menus..............................................................................66 The panels .............................................................................................67 The Main Menu or Applications Menu ..............................................68 Exploring KDE.................................................................................................71 Getting to Know GNOME ...............................................................................74 Chapter 6: Finding and Organizing Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79 Figuring Out the Linux File System ..............................................................79 Using GUI File Managers................................................................................83 Conquering the file system with Konqueror.....................................83 Roaming the file system with Nautilus ..............................................86 Using Linux Commands to Manipulate Files and Directories...................91 Commands for directory navigation..................................................91 Commands for directory listings and permissions..........................93 Commands for working with files.......................................................96 Commands for working with directories...........................................97 Commands for finding files .................................................................97 Commands for mounting and unmounting .......................................99 Commands for checking disk-space usage .....................................100 SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 7: I Want My Internet, Now! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103 What Is the Internet? ...................................................................................104 Deciding How to Connect to the Internet .................................................105 Connecting to the Internet with DSL .........................................................106 How DSL works ...................................................................................107 Stirring the DSL alphabet soup: ADSL, IDSL, SDSL.........................108 Typical DSL setup...............................................................................109 Connecting to the Internet with a Cable Modem .....................................112 How cable modems work ..................................................................113 Typical cable modem setup ..............................................................115 Dialing Up the Internet ................................................................................118 Connecting the modem .....................................................................118 Configuring the modem .....................................................................119 Chapter 8: Setting Up an Ethernet LAN with Wireless Access . . . . .121 Getting a Handle on Ethernet .....................................................................121 Connecting PCs to an Ethernet LAN ..........................................................122 Configuring the Ethernet Network .............................................................124 Connecting Your LAN to the Internet ........................................................125 Extending Your LAN with a Wireless Network .........................................126 Understanding wireless Ethernet networking ................................127 Understanding infrastructure and ad hoc modes ..........................128 Understanding Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) ...........................129 Setting up the wireless hardware .....................................................130 Configuring the wireless access point .............................................131 Configuring wireless networking......................................................131 Checking Whether Your Network Is Up.....................................................133 Checking the network interfaces......................................................134 Checking the IP routing table............................................................135 Checking connectivity to a host .......................................................135 Part III: Doing Stuff with SUSE ..................................137 Chapter 9: Browsing the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139 Understanding the World Wide Web .........................................................139 Links and URLs ...................................................................................140 Web servers and Web browsers .......................................................142 Web Browsing in SUSE Linux ......................................................................144 Web Browsing with Konqueror ..................................................................144 Web Browsing with Firefox .........................................................................146 Getting familiar with Firefox..............................................................148 Changing your home page.................................................................149

  SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies

  Chapter 10: E-Mailing, IM-ing, and Using IP Phone in SUSE . . . . . .151 Understanding E-Mail ..................................................................................152 How MUA and MTA work...................................................................152 Mail message enhancements ............................................................154 E-Mailing in SUSE Linux ...............................................................................154 Introducing KMail ...............................................................................155 Introducing Evolution Mail................................................................156 Instant Messaging in SUSE Linux................................................................160 Using Kopete .......................................................................................160 Using GAIM..........................................................................................162 Making IP Telephone Calls in SUSE Linux .................................................165 Using KPhone or Linphone ...............................................................166 Using Skype .........................................................................................169 Chapter 11: Reading Newsgroups and RSS Feeds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171 Understanding Newsgroups .......................................................................172 Newsgroup hierarchy.........................................................................172 Top-level newsgroup categories.......................................................173 Some Linux-related newsgroups.......................................................175 Reading Newsgroups from Your ISP ..........................................................176 Taking stock of newsreaders in SUSE Linux....................................176 Introducing KNode .............................................................................176 Introducing Pan ..................................................................................179 Newsgroup subscriptions .................................................................181 Posting news .......................................................................................181 Reading and Searching Newsgroups at Web Sites ...................................182 Reading RSS Feeds .......................................................................................183 Examining an RSS feed.......................................................................184 Reading RSS feeds ..............................................................................185 Chapter 12: Preparing Documents and Spreadsheets in SUSE Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .187 Writing with OpenOffice.org Writer ...........................................................187 Taking stock of OpenOffice.org Writer ............................................188 Getting started with Writer ...............................................................190 Setting up Writer.................................................................................192 Preparing documents in Writer ........................................................192 Editing and reviewing documents....................................................193 Using styles and templates ...............................................................194 Doing page layout...............................................................................197 Creating and inserting graphics .......................................................199 Using fields ..........................................................................................201 Working with large documents .........................................................202

  Preparing Spreadsheets with OpenOffice.org Calc..................................203 Taking stock of OpenOffice.org Calc ................................................203 Getting started with Calc...................................................................204 Entering and formatting data............................................................207 Calculating and charting data...........................................................208

  Chapter 13: Doing Even More Office Stuff in SUSE Linux . . . . . . . . .209 Keeping Track of Appointments and Tasks ..............................................209 Making Calculations.....................................................................................211 Making Presentations with OpenOffice.org Impress ...............................211 Taking stock of OpenOffice.org Impress..........................................212 Getting started with Impress ............................................................213 Using Impress......................................................................................215 Preparing presentations ....................................................................216 Adding graphics and special effects ................................................218 Delivering presentations ...................................................................220 Chapter 14: Playing Music and Burning CDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .221 Playing Audio CDs........................................................................................221 Playing Music Files.......................................................................................223 Burning a CD/DVD........................................................................................224 Burning CD/DVDs with K3b...............................................................224 Burning data CDs in Nautilus............................................................227 Chapter 15: Working with Photos and Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .229 Downloading Photos from a Digital Camera.............................................230 Scanning Photos and Documents ..............................................................234 Editing Images with The GIMP....................................................................238 Viewing Images .............................................................................................240 Viewing PDF and PostScript Files...............................................................242 Chapter 16: What’s a Shell and Why Do I Care? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .245 Opening Terminal Windows and Virtual Consoles ..................................245 Exploring the Bash Shell .............................................................................246 Understanding the syntax of shell commands ...............................247 Combining shell commands..............................................................248 Controlling command input and output..........................................248 Typing less with automatic command completion........................250 Going wild with asterisksand question marks................................251 Repeating previously typed commands ..........................................252 Part IV: Becoming a SUSE Wizard ..............................255 Chapter 17: Look, Ma, I’m a Sysadmin! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .257 What Does a Sysadmin Do?.........................................................................257 Becoming root, When You Must.................................................................259 Table of Contents

  SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies

  Resetting a Forgotten root Password ........................................................259 Introducing Your New Friend, YaST ...........................................................260 Starting and Stopping Services ..................................................................263

  Understanding how Linux boots ......................................................263 Trying a new run level with the init command...............................264 Using YaST to start and stop services .............................................265 Manually starting and stopping services ........................................266

  Checking Your System’s Performance.......................................................267 Using the top utility ...........................................................................267 Using the uptime command ..............................................................269 Checking disk performance and disk usage....................................269

  Managing Hardware Devices ......................................................................270 Managing User Accounts.............................................................................272

  Chapter 18: Updating SUSE and Adding New Software . . . . . . . . . . .275 Updating SUSE Linux Online .......................................................................276 Adding a Software Source to YaST .............................................................278 Locating and Installing Software Using YaST............................................279 Using RPM Commands to Work with RPM Files.......................................283 Using the RPM commands ................................................................283 Understanding RPM filenames..........................................................284 Querying RPMs ...................................................................................284 Installing an RPM................................................................................286 Removing an RPM ..............................................................................287 Upgrading an RPM..............................................................................287 Chapter 19: Securing SUSE Linux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .289 Why Worry about Security?........................................................................289 Understanding Linux Security ....................................................................290 Understanding the host security issues..........................................290 Understanding network security issues..........................................291 Getting Familiar with Computer Security Terminology ..........................292 Practicing Good Host Security ...................................................................297 Making passwords expire..................................................................297 Protecting files and directories ........................................................298 Securing the Network ..................................................................................302 Securing Internet services.................................................................303 Turning off stand-alone services ......................................................303 Configuring the Internet superserver ..............................................303 Configuring TCP wrapper security...................................................304 Using Secure Shell (SSH) for remote logins.....................................305 Setting up a simple firewall ...............................................................306 Using NATs...........................................................................................308 Keeping Up with Security News and Updates ..........................................308

  Table of Contents

  Part V: The Part of Tens .............................................311 Chapter 20: Ten Frequently Asked Questions about SUSE . . . . . . . . .313 What Does SUSE Stand for and How Do You Pronounce It? ...................313 How Can I Find Answers to My SUSE Linux Questions?..........................314 When Is the Next SUSE Linux Release?......................................................314 Can I Get ISO Files for SUSE Linux from the Internet? .............................315 How Do I Do an FTP Install of SUSE Linux? ...............................................315 How Can I Auto-Login into the KDE Desktop as Another User?.............318 If My System Crashes, Can I Press the Reset Button to Reboot? ...........319 How Can I Schedule a Command to Run Every 30 Minutes? ..................320 How Can I Find All the Huge Files on My SUSE Linux System?...............321 Where Can I Find More SUSE RPMs?..........................................................322 Chapter 21: The Ten Best Things about SUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .323 YaST — The Super Sysadmin Tool .............................................................323 Detects All Hardware (Well, Nearly All!)....................................................324 Smooth and Easy Installation .....................................................................324 I Love YOU — YaST Online Update............................................................325 Automatic Mounting of My Windows Partitions

  and USB Memory Stick.............................................................................325 Automatic Login at the KDE Desktop ........................................................325 Good Support for Laptops ..........................................................................326 Easy Browsing of Windows Shares ............................................................326 That Cute Gecko Mascot .............................................................................326 SUSE’s Increasing Popularity ......................................................................326

  Chapter 22: Ten Great Web Sites for SUSE Maniacs . . . . . . . . . . . . .327

  http://www.opensuse.org ............................................................................327 http://portal.suse.com/sdb/en/index.html ...............................................328 http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=suse.............................328 http://www.suseforums.net ........................................................................328 http://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/f60..........................................328 http://www.linuxforums.org/forum/forum-36.html..................................329 http://www.linux-laptop.net/ ......................................................................329 http://packman.links2linux.org ..................................................................329 http://www.tldp.org/ ....................................................................................329 http://www.linuxhq.com/guides/ ...............................................................330

  Chapter 23: Ten Most Commonly Used SUSE Linux Commands . . . .331

  apropos: Finding Commands Based on a Keyword .................................332 man: Reading Online Man Page ..................................................................332 ls: Listing Files and Directories ..................................................................333 cat: Feeding Input to Commands ...............................................................333

  SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies

  grep: Searching for Text in Files .................................................................334 locate: Finding Files and Directories the Easy Way .................................335 chmod: Changing Permissions ...................................................................336 rpm: Taming RPM Packages........................................................................337 tar: Packing and Unpacking Archives ........................................................337 pico: Editing Text Files ................................................................................339

  Appendix: About the DVD-ROM ..................................341

  System Requirements ..................................................................................341 DVD Installation Instructions .....................................................................342 What You’ll Find on the DVD ......................................................................343 Troubleshooting ...........................................................................................344

  Index........................................................................345

  

Introduction

  USE Linux is an increasingly popular Linux distribution that competes head- on with Red Hat’s Linux versions. SUSE Linux’s fortunes have been on the

  S

  rise following Novell’s acquisition of Germany’s SUSE Linux AG and the recent initiation of the openSUSE project (www.opensuse.org) — an open source project, sponsored by Novell, in which a community of developers, end users, and other open source enthusiasts can participate and continue to evolve SUSE Linux. The recent migration to the openSUSE community-based development model has generated a distinct “buzz” around SUSE Linux as the up-and-coming Linux distribution for everyone from home users to enterprise servers. A significant factor in SUSE Linux’s increasing popularity is that unlike its competitor Red Hat’s singular focus on the enterprise market, Novell contin- ues to address both the enterprise market and Linux enthusiasts. Specifically, the SUSE Linux open source software (OSS) is aimed at small-office/home-office users as well as those wishing to experiment with the SUSE Linux as their desktop system. The commercial version of SUSE Linux is sold as a boxed set through distributors as well as online stores. SUSE Linux is a complete Linux distribution, suitable for small office/home office or even an enterprise. This book includes a DVD with SUSE Linux 10 OSS, with everything you need to use it as a personal desktop system.

  If you are starting out with SUSE Linux, you need a beginner’s guide that not only gets you going with the installation and setup of SUSE Linux, but also shows you how to use all the tools that come with your desktop. That’s why I wrote SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies in plain English, using a breezy style, that quickly gets to the step-by-step instructions for accomplishing a task, be it installing a printer or crafting a memo with OpenOffice.org Writer. My goal is to minimize confusion and keep things as simple as possible. I present the essen- tial steps for specific tasks, but avoid inundating you with too many details.

  About This Book SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies is a beginner’s guide for the upcoming SUSE Linux

  distribution. The approach to the subject matter and the writing style is that of the successful For Dummies series. The focus is on introducing you to the SUSE Linux desktop with all the GUI tools, including the office productivity suite (OpenOffice.org) and multimedia applications (audio player, digital camera, CD burning, image editing, and so on). I include a chapter on con- necting to the Internet using cable/DSL modems and setting up a basic home

  SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies

  than one PC and, especially, for those who plan to run SUSE Linux on a PC. I also include a part that introduces the basics of routine system administra- tion, how to add and update software, and how to tighten up the system’s security.

  Here are some of the things that this book shows you how to do: ⻬ Install and configure SUSE Linux from the DVD-ROM included with the book.

  ⻬ Connect the SUSE Linux system to the Internet through a DSL or cable modem. ⻬ Set up dialup networking. ⻬ Add a wireless Ethernet to your existing network. ⻬ Get tips, techniques, and shortcuts for various uses of SUSE Linux, such as

  • Using the OpenOffice.org office suite
  • Browsing the Linux file system
  • Using Linux commands
  • Using multimedia applications ⻬ Understand the basics of system and network security. ⻬ Perform system administration tasks.

  Conventions Used in This Book

  I use a simple notational style in this book. All listings, filenames, commands, and keywords are typeset in a monospace font for ease of reading. I italicize the first occurrences of new terms and concepts, and then provide a defini- tion right there. I show typed commands in boldface. The output of com- mands and any listing of files are shown in a monospace font.

  What You Don’t Have to Read

  Each chapter zeros in on a specific task area — such as using the Internet or preparing documents with OpenOffice.org — and then provides hands-on instructions on how to perform a series of related tasks. You can jump right to a section and read about a specific task. You don’t have to read anything but the few paragraphs or the list of steps that relate to your question. Use the Table of Contents or the index to locate the pages relevant to your question.

  Introduction

  You can safely ignore text next to the Technical Stuff icons as well as the side- bars. However, if you are the kind who likes to know some of the hidden details of how Linux works, by all means, dig in to the Technical Stuff and the sidebars.

  Who Are You?

  I assume that you are somewhat familiar with a PC — you know how to turn it on and off and you have dabbled a bit with Windows. Considering that most new PCs come preloaded with Windows, this assumption is safe, right? And I assume that you know how to use some of the Windows applications such as Microsoft Office. Most of all, you want to either experiment with or switch to SUSE Linux as your desktop of choice.

  When installing SUSE Linux on your PC, you may want to retain your Windows 2000 or Windows XP installations. I assume that you are willing to accept the risk that when you try to install SUSE Linux, some things may not quite work. Problems can happen if you have some uncommon types of hard- ware. If you are afraid of ruining your system, try finding a slightly older spare Pentium PC that you can sacrifice and then install Linux on that PC.

  How This Book Is Organized

SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies contains 23 chapters organized into five parts. The

  book’s organization is that of a typical For Dummies title that covers an operating system such as SUSE Linux where the reader is expected to install the software and then learn to use it. The five parts cover installation and setup, test driving the system to learn the ropes, using the system to do productive work, learning to be a budding system administrator, and the mandatory “Part of Tens.” Here’s a quick overview of the five parts and the appendix:

  ⻬ Part I: Getting to Know SUSE introduces the reader to SUSE Linux, pro- vides step-by-step installation instructions, and explains what happens when you start the system for the first time. ⻬ Part II: Test-Driving SUSE is about getting started with SUSE Linux — how to use the desktop and the file manager, how to connect to the

  Internet (and set up a home network) — and figuring out what else is there to play with. ⻬ Part III: Doing Stuff with SUSE turns to doing day-to-day things with the

  SUSE Linux system such as browsing the Web, reading e-mail and news- groups and making IP phone calls, using the OpenOffice.org office suite and some multimedia applications, and, finally, working with the com- mand line shell.

  SUSE Linux 10 For Dummies

  ⻬ Part IV: Becoming a SUSE Wizard includes chapters on the basic system administration and security. In particular, Part IV explains how to add new software and keep the SUSE system up to date with the YaST (Yet another Setup Tool) installation/configuration tool and YaST Online Update (YOU).

  ⻬ Part V: The Part of Tens is the standard Part of Tens with chapters that present ten frequently asked questions about SUSE, ten best things about SUSE, ten great SUSE-related Web sites, and ten most commonly used SUSE Linux commands.

  ⻬ Appendix: About the DVD-ROM summarizes the contents of the book’s companion DVD-ROM.

  What’s on the DVD?