Ceci est une ancienne révision du document !
Book Review - Ubuntu Made Easy
July 2012, 480 pp. ISBN: 978-1-59327-425-2 http://nostarch.com/ubuntumadeeasy
The first two chapters of “Ubuntu Made Easy” begin by explaining what Linux is, how to try Ubuntu (yes, the book comes with a Live CD), and, if you like it, how to install Ubuntu. There are plenty of screenshots showing every step of the way.
With Ubuntu installed, the book then explains how the desktop works. This is particularly useful especially with Ubuntu now using Unity rather than the traditional Windows style desktop with ‘start’ button equivalent, taskbar and such-like. Unity is sure to fox new users.
Chapter five goes into great detail about getting connected to the Internet – whether it be via a modern wireless router or serial cable modem. It even shows a photo of a serial port. How quaint! It then explains browsers, email clients, microblogging and text chatting.
From there it gets down to the nitty-gritty of installing and updating apps with the Ubuntu Software Center. Keep your eye out for Full Circle Magazine popping up in a couple of screenshots. Before moving on, the book discusses the Update Manager and adding repositories. A nice touch was the authors taking the time to explain the adding of PPAs.
The next chapter is about housekeeping with Nautilus, burning CD/DVD discs and using USB storage devices. Nothing too in-depth, but still handy for getting people to do backups.
We’re not even half way through the book and we’re getting terminal commands? Hang on, installing pyWings via terminal? But we’ve not even touched on office/graphics/media stuff yet! Only after doing complex terminal stuff does it explain how to change the desktop wallpaper which seems a bit backwards.
After installing a printer and changing the localization we get to play with LibreOffice. It does a good job of explaining the different parts that make up the office suite, and quickly explains how to use each part.
At the halfway mark the book begins explaining how to import photos from digital cameras and how to go about getting images published online. Although, Facebook for publishing photos? Why not Flickr or something more suited to photographs? Next, after some GIMP talk, comes audio with Rhythmbox and the ripping of audio CDs. When the book discusses the connection of Android devices I did like how it mentioned the current trend of using MTP (rather than the old USB storage option) explaining that as of 12.04 MTP is much more Android friendly. Several pages on and we find that some Apple devices fare just as badly with HFS+ formatting which doesn’t get along well with the Linux kernel.
After video playback we enter into the realm of Linux games. Several titles are mentioned from various genres.
It’s inevitable that, at some point, your Linux machine will come into contact with a Windows machine. Chapter 19 explains how to mount Windows drives and touches upon installing and using Wine.
Heading into the final straight, the book discusses the community and how to get help. A big thanks to No Starch Press for including Full Circle Magazine in its list of newsworthy sites. Definitely an honor!
The final chapters show what to do if your Ubuntu comes a cropper and you need some assistance or, worse still, safe mode.
I like the information that’s contained in “Ubuntu Made Easy,” but I’m not sure that it’s a good idea to begin with trying to explain what Linux/Ubuntu is. I think a better starting point would have been explaining how to try Ubuntu; then, later on, explaining what Linux is after the user has tried it. The other chapters are great, but maybe a little rearrangement would have been in order. I’d probably have told people how to hook up Apple/Android devices and use the office apps before teaching them about installing pyWings via the command line.
Definitely a great book for beginners, but you’ll probably have to explain to them not to panic about the early mentions of the terminal.
Many thanks to No Starch Press for the review copy of “Ubuntu Made Easy.” Please support No Starch by buying their books via: http://nostarch.com