
   Linux Tips copyright 1996 Richard Allen Hohensee 19970330
   
   http://cqi.com/~humbubba
Linux is an incredible pile of useful stuff, but even the best
distributions are, to a large extent, just big piles. In the EFnet #linux
IRC channel, and in my experience, it is evident that installing and using
Linux could be made a lot easier. While the various distros work toward easy
Linux, here's a stopgap measure in the meantime.
Installing The X Windows system and PPP are two recurring areas of
frustration. These two are also required to run a graphical web browser.
I am not a Linux wizard. I am over the basic client-use install threshold,
however, and offer what help I can muster to make the effectiveness of
Linux more widespread. The hints here are merely that, hints.
Unix is massive. The key to effective use of a unix is not learning
unix, but rather, learning how to learn unix. Desperate queries on IRC are
often answered with RTFM, "read the fine manual". This assumes that you're
at square one already, with all the docs neatly installed and having some
idea of where to find them. These queries come from persons probably still
at square zero. This is unfortunate, and is analagous to guitar
instruction books that assume the student has been able to purchase,
string and tune a guitar properly without instruction. I favor a bit of
snobbery in certain groups, such as IRC channels, but almost anyone should
be able to install Linux. Although Linux is simply not for the lazy,
snobbery towards newbies just limits the market  for the work of the more
adept. So this file is for those in the treacherous, crucial zone between
square zero and square one.
**********************************************************************
Linux PicoLAFLQ         19970211 thru 19970330       Rick Hohensee
rickh@capaccess.org    http://cqi.com/~humbubba

LAFLQ, Lame answers for lame questions.

Q: What are the hardware requirements for Linux?
A: an i386 or up, 4 meg of ram, or a PowerMac for mklinux, or an Alpha. I
     believe there's also an Amiga Linux, dunno for sure. Probably other
     platforms also. On an ix86, 100 meg of HD space is very tight, 300
     meg is OK. At 200meg you can have a nice text terminal development
     setup.
Q: Is Linux Unix?
A: Linux is a unix, but not Unix(tm) . Linux bash is almost POSIX, even.
Q: Where do I get linux-proggy-xyz?
A: Download the Linux Software Map at ftp.execpc.com, web-pointed to by
     www.linux.org . The main Linux archive is sunsite.unc.edu, which is
     mirrored on the InfoMagic 6 cd set, for which I paid us$19--.
     There's also tsx-11.mit.edu, www.linux.org on the web, and
     www.consevatory.com has a lot of neat Linux links. You can order a
     RedHat CD for $1.99 net from www.cheapbytes.com .
     It's also handy to keep copies on your box of the index files of the big
     ftp sites. sunsites index file is ls_lr.gz.
Q: Which distribution is best?
A: Whichever one you can get the most help from friends with. They have
     widely varying installation setups, but Linux is Linux. They all use
     the same binaries, AFAIK. And they all compile the same source.
     ( 19970330) Lately I've been recommending that people install RedHat,
     since I get the impression from #linux that it's the easiest install,
     and then mixing and matching from other sources later. I did
     Slackware myself, cause the guy that sold me this box said so in a
     paternal tone, and because RH was still installing the 1.2.x kernel
     at the time.
     { 19970503 } Caldera Linux is about $100-- and Redhat had a non-cheap
     version. I'd guess that if your time is worth $2--/hr they're worth it.
     They come with commercial X servers, which may be faster, and may support
     video cards the XF86 doesn't, and other goodies.
Q: How do I get PPP running?
A: I had NO luck with chat or dip. dcon fired right up, and the docs for
     it seem unusually lucid. I think it's at sunsite. It's on Infomagic.
     You put your nameservers' IP addresses in /etc/resolv.conf . This may
     be an area where Slackware lags a bit vs other distros.
Q: How do I get Xwindows running?
A: Run xf86config and choose the simplest options. Like VGA. Then enter
     startx. If the screen goes blank, try left-alt - right-arrow, and
     look at the reports.
Q: How is "Linux" pronounced?
A: There's a .au sample of Linus Torvalds saying the name of his creation
     at www.conservatory.com . I pronounce it "Linux" :o)
Q: What the hell is gtbl, and why won't my man command work without it?
A: I never found a gtbl command anywhere. Man will work if you make it a
     link to tbl. Assuming tbl is in /bin, ln -s /bin/tbl /bin/gtbl   will
     do the trick, and will dry up the groff error message that
     usually follows the gtbl error.
Q: Is Linux secure?
A: Yes, if you are reasonably prudent. I was violated once, but I was on
     IRC with no password at all for root. Go ahead, laugh. It was a shaky
     install anyway, so when I found my log files missing I re-installed.
     I was not reasonably prudent, and I got spanked. If you're unsure
     about a comms service, don't provide it.
Q: Heh heh, Linux is like THE r0x1n3st hax0r OS, right, d00d?
A: Linux is great for hacking in the original computerese connotation of
     the word, independent programming, for which it is an embarrassment of
     riches. If you're looking to trade warez, spoof, sniff, crack, and run
     annoybots i.e. if you're too stupid and/or morally deformed to find
     something constructive to do with a computer and the Internet, please
     stay out of EFnet #linux. Even better, go play in the traffic. And please
     delete this file first.

Tips ...........
rm -rf /*     will erase your entire Linux filesystem. There is no easy
   un-delete in unix.
Linux 'help' is called man  , for manual page, e.g.  man man   .
   The bash shell has "help", specific to the shell itself. Most commands
   give a usage prompt if you give them arguments they don't understand,
   e.g. tar fogih  .
Help is also available from , command --help, command -h,
   /usr/src/linux2.xx/Documentation the Linux HOWTOs ( in
   /usr/doc/faq/howto), in /usr/doc, and rarely, in irc efnet channel
   #linux. My nick is colorg.
Linux ( unix) is case sensitive. readme is not README. This can be
   bewildering if you forget that. So remember
The 'apropos' command finds related commands.
The command to untar is    tar xf filename  .   tar  xzf filename also
   gunzips, like for .tar.gz or .tgz files ( e.g. Slackware packages.)
When something drops you into a braindead editor with a bunch of ~
   on the left margin, you're in vi. Hit esc :q! . ( vi is
   actually very powerful and elegant, particularly for it's size, but it
   has a bit more of a learning threshold then people have become accustomed
   to.)
The canonical definition for regular expressions is from ed, i.e.
   the ed manpage, or man regex. Other useful non-command manpages,
   man (section#) intro    and    man hier   .
Shell techniques like   | (  ) , which are crucial to the power of
   unix, are explained in the bash manpage.
Some say the best Linux book is "Linux Secrets". I give Wrox Press'
   "Programming Linux" 3 stars. The O'Reilly's run about 2 stars, IMHO.
   Any unix book is a plus. And you should know fundamental concepts of
   computers, like what hexadecimal and octal are, so snag a paperback on
   fundamentals of computer programming.
You can have graphics without X with svgalib. Like viewing pics with
    e.g. zgv.
You can read every textfile on the InfoMagic cds from windog. Do a ton
    of reading before messing with your partition(s).
ls bigdir|less lets you scroll through a big directory. Learn the 'less'
    string search feature too.
Linux defaults to 6 virtual terminals. You can switch between them with
    combinations of the alt key and the left and right arrow keys, or
    control-alt-func.key#
Using virtual terminals, the splitvt command, and control-z/fg job control
    is more eficient for text-only tasks than a GUI, IMO. Graphical tools
    for graphical tasks.

command prompt things to try ( shown in order, assumes bash and a
very basic installation, no PPP, no X)....

updatedb & ; ( this will update your "locate" database in the background )
man man
apropos cron
cd /
pwd
d -R
cd ~/
pwd
d -A
file /vmlinuz
set
ZZZZZ=ewqewqewqewqewq
set
echo $ZZZZZ
top ( and then q to get out of top )
left-alt simuntaneous with a left or right arrow key
df
mount
which vi
whatis tar
cd /dev
ls
cd ~/
( and if you did this sequence in order... )
locate ld.so
ls /usr/man/man1
dmesg
date
Try using less on a .tgz or .tar.gz archive, e.g. less sumpkg.tgx  .
mkdir .dirname
ls
ls -A
which splitvt
which ncftp
who

******************************************************************
## this is my ~/.profile, which initializes some stuff for the
## bash shell. It is bash shell syntax compliant, i.e. these lines work
## from a shell prompt individually. BTW, I use ## instead of the standard #
## to distinguish comments I have added to various files on my system.

alias cdc="mount /dev/hdb /cdrom" ## you have to "unmount" the CD
alias cdo="umount /cdrom"         ## to change disks in Linux
alias d=ls                        ## same with the floppy
alias flopm="umount /flop; mount -t msdos /dev/fd0 /flop"

alias f1="fg 1"
alias f2="fg 2"
alias f3="fg 3"
alias f4="fg 4"
alias f5="fg 5"
alias f6="fg 6"

alias j=jobs
alias l=less
alias p="pico -z"

SIGNATURE=/root/.signature
*************************************************************
## this is my /etc/resolv.conf . I know the first 3 lines are OK
## 'cause it works :o).
***********************************************************
domain casper.com
nameserver 205.252.44.227
nameserver 205.252.44.253
popserver  cq.cqi.com
smtpserver cq.cqi.com
newsserver news.cqi.com

*******************************************************
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