recommendation needed

[Michael]

other than the obvious "linux for dummies", are there any decent reads out there for the linux novice?

no preference in distros since Im pretty much a clean slate as far as linux is concerned

[Davemon]

Hmmm, lotsa sites out there for new people to Linux.

Have you installed Linux Mint 5? It includes all the proprietary codecs and what not. You can play MP3's and DVD right after finishing an install without any extra steps.



Davemon

[Michael]

I guess I should have been a little more clear on what I was looking for. I'm wanting something that teaches linux from the "I can do anything I want because I have linux and I'm in total control" standpoint. Basically, I want to become master of the universe through my terminal. Ok thats a bit of an overstatement but still , I think you get my point.

Alos, codecs are completely inconsequential since I still have my primary machine running Windoze.

I'd use a website, but I hate reading off of a monitor. Also, I'm not much of a fan of burning printer ink to print out an entire website. The name of a good e-book would be great.

time to check demonoid.

[Insanity5902]

I haven't read a linux book in a while. I think The Linux Bible was a good one (obviously this is the latest.

I would also suggest grabbing the O'Reilly pocket book of linux commands. I really like 0'Reilly books, I imagine there in a Nutshell book for linux would be good also.

As for Distro's the two best for learning the inwards, are Gentoo and LFS (Linux from Scratch). Not too much of a difference between Gentoo and LFS, except Gentoo gives a package management so IMHO it is easier for long tearm usage. I've seen suggestions before of people to get LFS working for a week or two, then dump it and load up Gentoo for further learning. Getting X and things to run can be a hassle without a package manager. The documentation provided by Gentoo is also pretty good. Their forums are active and provide decent help.

I use Gentoo, so I am a bit biased, but it really does require you to do a lot from scratch, and edit a lot of files. The new docs suggest you start from a Stage 3, and it is quite a bit easier. If you want to fool around you could build you a system from a Stage 1, I haven't done it in a while but it does expose you to a lot of knowledge.