Before I picked up the third edition of Ubuntu for Non-Geeks, my husband, the engineer, had already installed Ubuntu 8.04 on two of our computers and spent hours figuring out how everything worked. Granted he had it dual booted with Windows XP, so I wouldn’t have to enter nerd-ville. But if I didn’t catch the load in time, I was trapped in a foreign operating system, feeling the same way I did when my dad left me in a gas station for three hours when I was four. In both cases, there were many tears shed.
Needless to say, I’m the non-geek in the family. So, as the title so graciously explains, this easy-to-read instructional guide to Ubuntu was exactly what I needed. And if you’ve found yourself in a similar “abandoned” situation or you’re making the step on your own to put this absolutely free and open sourced operating system on your computer, then this book is for you too.
I told you my husband spent hours figuring out how to use the newest Ubuntu system code named “Hardy Heron.” So if it takes an engineer that long, you may be wondering if this is the step for you. But that’s why this book is so important. Ubuntu for Non-Geeks takes you from installing the new operating system to acquiring applications, all the way to working with your iPod. This guide is everything you need to get started with Linux. You go from thinking your dad hates you to realizing this gas station isn’t really that bad after all.
As well as the install CD, some of the things you’ll find in this book are explanations on what exactly Ubuntu is, hardware compatibility, choosing applications, personalizing your desktop, running the internet, terminal commands, audio and visual applications, and security. All the basics for Ubuntu can be found in this well organized, non-technical manual.
Article comments
1 - geofrey lowe
Hi,I just bought your book the other day 8/3/08 at Barns and Nobles.I spent 2 hours deciding what book on computers to buy.Well after thinking things through I went with Ubuntu for non-geeks and was realy impressed.I had heard a lot of good things about linux but was scared to try.This book gave me the courage and understanding I needed.Thank for writiing a great book like this.
2 - Iskandar Kudratov
Hello, I am from Uzbekistan I would like to buy this book, Can gen this book from the postage, I will send a money
Large thanks for www.ubuntu.com
3 - bliffle
Ubuntu is a pretty good system. Even so I usually setup a dual boot with XP, and then I use mostly Ubuntu until something absolutely requires XP, which is very infrequent.
By using ubuntu and firefox for all my browsing I've eliminated all the slowdowns, bugs and viruses that drove me away from XP-only.
Also, it's a lot easier to deal with multimedia on ubuntu than on XP. Easier to dub movies and burn various interesting CDs and DVDs, even just for backup. Ubuntu just seems to be more modern.