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Running Linux
Once a little-known productivity boost for personal computers, Linux is now becoming a central part of computing environments everywhere. This operating system now serves as corporate hubs, web servers, academic research platforms, and program development systems. All along it's also managed to keep its original role as an enjoyable environment for personal computing, learning system administration and programming skills, and all-around hacking.
This book, now in its third edition, has been widely recognized for years in the Linux community as the getting-started book people need. It goes into depth about configuration issues that often trip up users but are glossed over by other books.
A complete, UNIX-compatible operating system developed by volunteers on the Internet, Linux is distributed freely in electronic form and at a low cost from many vendors. Developed first on the PC, it has been ported to many other architectures and can now support such heavy-duty features as multiprocessing, RAID, and clustering.
Software packages on Linux include the Samba file server and Apache Web server; the X Window System (X11R6); TCP/IP networking (including PPP, SSH, and NFS support); popular software tools such as Emacs and TeX; a complete software development environment including C, C++, Java, Perl, Tcl/Tk, and Python; libraries, debuggers, multimedia support, scientific and database applications, and much more. Commercial applications that run on Linux range from end-user tools like word processors and spreadsheets to mission-critical software like the Oracle, Sybase, Informix, and IBM DB/2 database management systems.
Running Linux explains everything you need to understand, install, and start using the Linux operating system. This includes a comprehensive installation tutorial, complete information on system maintenance, tools for document development and programming, and guidelines for network, file, printer, and Web site administration.
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Linux in a Nutshell
Linux in a Nutshell: A Desktop Quick Reference is only a minimal introduction to this remarkable operating system; the book's real strength lies in the simple alphabetical table of Linux commands that runs for more than 150 pages. Each command is documented with its various switches including occasional examples and brief overviews of especially interesting commands. Author Ellen Siever dedicates a section of the book to covering three common shell programs for Linux: bash, csh, and tcsh. In the short introduction to shells, Siever lists the commands that are common to all three as well as those that differ. This is followed by individual references for each.
Coverage of the Emacs, ex, sed, and vi programs and command sets comprise the material on Linux text editors. The gawk scripting language is also represented, as well as sections detailing programming commands and the RCS and CVS file-versioning programs. The book also covers Perl, system administration commands, and dual booting.
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Learning Red Hat Linux
Learning Red Hat Linux walks the reader through the process of installing, configuring, and using Red Hat Linux 6 and some of its most popular applications. Networking coverage includes essential local area network configuration, plus excellent coverage of Samba setup and the process of establishing a Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) connection to the Internet. The book would be better with some information on setting up a local Domain Name Service (DNS) server to improve Internet connectivity, but what's here is commendable. The author includes basic coverage of the Apache Web server, plus sendmail and File Transfer Protocol (FTP).
Learning Red Hat Linux emphasizes the Linux command line for system management tasks, explaining all the vital low-level commands as well as configuration aids like linuxconf. Popular graphical applications are explored too, including ApplixWare, StarOffice, and the WordPerfect suite. Bill McCarty exhibits plenty of patience in his writing and organizational styles, assuming no knowledge of Unix on the part of his readers. This book includes lots of annotated tables that explain the features in various programs, and many sections have a procedural format that allows you to follow along on your own Linux machine. --David Wall.
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Using Samba
Samba, the Server Message Block (SMB) server software that makes it relatively easy to integrate Unix or Linux servers into networks of Microsoft Windows workstations, has to date been mostly explained as an afterthought. Most often, it's appeared in the latter chapters of books about Linux. It deserves better, and the authors of Using Samba have delivered exactly that.
This book documents Samba 2.0.4 fully (version 2.0.5, source and binary, appears on the companion CD-ROM), focusing on smbd, nmbd, the command-line tools, and Samba's newfound ability to integrate itself securely with Windows NT domains.
Though it includes a bit of information on the SMB and Common Internet File System (CIFS) protocols that underlie Samba, the emphasis here is on setting up and configuring software. Explicit sections explain how to install Samba on a Unix/Linux system and how to set up Microsoft clients to communicate with the Samba machine. The authors pay lavish attention to the Samba configuration file, smb.conf, and explain exactly what settings you need to include in it to allow disk shares, network browsing, and integration with Windows domains. A highly useful reference that lists all Samba configuration options (along with their valid values, default values, and explanations) appears in an appendix. --David Wall
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Apache : The Definitive Guide
With distributions for both Unix and 32-bit Windows environments, the Apache Web server boasts reliability, security, and scalability--and it's free. Apache: The Definitive Guide shows Apache administrators how to perform their jobs, detailing the server through version 1.3.
The authors--one of them a member of the Apache development team--begin with an academic discussion of what Web servers do before walking the reader through the process of installing Apache. Installation gets much attention--readers find out, step by step, how to set up a Web site (or several) under Apache, and how to set up Web site security and other preferences properly. The book also provides in-depth discussions of particular aspects of Apache operation, including MIME handling, the Common Gateway Interface (CGI), and security features such as authentication and caching.
For the programmers in the crowd, this book documents the Apache API with discussions of resource pools and their allocation, plus a full API reference. A tutorial explains how to write Apache extension modules in C. In all matters, Apache: The Definitive Guide covers both Unix and Win32 machines, but it places more emphasis on the Unix port. The complete source code of Apache 1.3 appears on the CD-ROM that ships with the book. --David Wall
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Dns and Bind
This is the definitive book on the Domain Name System (DNS), the powerful scheme that facilitates the translation of English-like domain names (www.amazon.com) into computer-comprehensible Internet Protocol (IP) addresses (208.216.182.15). If you run a DNS server of any kind, particularly under Unix, you need to have this book on hand.
This book's early chapters give a view of DNS from high altitude, explaining basic concepts such as domains, name servers, and name resolution. From there, the authors proceed on a more practical tack, presenting specific instructions for setting up your own domain and DNS server using BIND. The authors then tell you what to do as your domain grows and you need to add more machines, subdomains, and greater throughput capacity. They also talk a lot about nslookup and C programming with the various DNS and BIND libraries. Administrators will find the chapter on BIND debugging output particularly helpful. Here, the authors translate BIND's mysterious error messages and offer specific strategies for fixing and optimizing the program. This edition covers BIND 8.1.2, but pays lots of attention to older versions that are still in wide use (4.8.3 and 4.9). The authors are careful to note differences among the versions. --David Wall
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Evil Geniuses in a Nutshell
The follow-up to the highly successful first collection of User Friendly comic strips from O'Reilly & Associates, Evil Genuises in a Nutshell tells the continuing tale of Columbia Internet, "the friendliest, hardest-working and most neurotic little Internet Service Provider in the world." Take three techs, two salespeople, a designer, two executives, a couple of administrative staff, mix in a mischievous Artificial Intelligence and a "dust puppy" born from the innards of a mega server, put them all together in a crowded little office, and you have the makings of one of the most off-beat, original and funny comic strips to come along in years.
User Friendly reads like Dilbert for the Open Source community. With a massive online following, it provides outsiders a light-hearted look at the world of the hard core geek, and allows those who make their living dwelling in this world a chance to laugh at themselves.
The User Friendly fan base is growing by almost 30% a month, and this title has the potential to help foster a greater sense of cultural identity between O'Reilly and its customer base. There is also the potential to attract a newer, younger audience who are fans of User Friendly but are not as familiar with O'Reilly.
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Linux Network Administrator's Guide
If you are running a one- or two-system LAN using Linux, you probably only need simple connectivity between your systems. However, if you are setting up a Linux server for your network and its connection to the Internet, you've got a lot of work to do in installation, configuration, and maintenance---and you probably require some assistance. Olaf Kirch wrote Linux Network Administrator's Guide as part of the Linux Documentation Project to cover just such information. Although you can download the book for free, the O'Reilly version of the book looks (better layout and graphics) and feels better than the online version and has a superlative index.
This book details all the tasks associated with e-mail setup and maintenance, news group setup, and essential network applications such as rcp and rlogin. In some cases you may find the level of detail not sufficient to complete the task. In those cases, Kirch tells you where to find more detailed information on the Internet. This methodology has kept the book to a very handy size, which makes it an easy-to-use, versatile resource for anyone managing a Linux network. --Robert Frankland
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Tcp/Ip Network Administration
TCP/IP Network Administration, 2nd Edition, is a complete guide to setting up and running a TCP/IP network for administrators of networks of systems or users of home systems that access the Internet. It starts with the fundamentals: what the protocols do and how they work, how addresses and routing are used to move data through the network, and how to set up your network connection.
Beyond basic setup, this new second edition discusses advanced routing protocols (RIPv2, OSPF, and BGP) and the gated software package that implements them. It also provides a tutorial on how to configure important network services, including PPP, SLIP, sendmail, Domain Name Service (DNS), BOOTP and DHCP configuration servers, and some simple setups for NIS and NFS. There are also chapters on troubleshooting and security. In addition, this book is a command and syntax reference for several important packages, including pppd, dip, gated, named, dhcpd, and sendmail.
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Sendmail
This new edition of sendmail covers sendmail Version 8.8 from Berkeley and the standard versions available on most systems. It is far and away the most comprehensive book ever written on sendmail, the program that acts like a traffic cop in routing and delivering mail on UNIX-based networks. Although sendmail is used on almost every UNIX system, it's one of the last great uncharted territories -- and most difficult utilities to learn -- in UNIX system administration. This book provides a complete sendmail tutorial, plus extensive reference material on every aspect of the program. What's more, it's authoritative, having been co-authored by Eric Allman, the developer of sendmail. In addition to Version 8.8, it covers earlier versions available on many systems, such as those found on Sun workstations. Part One is a tutorial on understanding sendmail; Part Two covers the building, installation, and m4 configuration of sendmail; Part Three covers practical issues in sendmail administration; Part Four is a comprehensive reference section; and Part Five consists of appendices and a bibliography. In this second edition an expanded tutorial demonstrates hub's cf file and nullclient.mc. Other new topics include the #error delivery agent, sendmail's exit values, MIME headers, and how to set up and use the user database, mailertable, and smrsh. Solution-oriented examples throughout the book help you solve your own sendmail problems. This new edition is cross-referenced with section numbers.
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MySQL and mSQL (Nutshell Series)
MySQL and mSQL provides the essentials to programming with these two popular Unix freeware database packages in C/C++, Perl, Python, and Java. The book begins with a fine introduction to databases that covers tables, fields, indexes, and normalization. Then it explains the history of the freeware mSQL and MySQL packages (which offer better performance than commercial relational database management system (RDBMS) packages, though they don't support transactions or other features). Next the authors look at SQL as used within MySQL and mSQL and clarify where to download these packages and how to install them. Examples of how to program with MySQL/mSQL in C/C++ follow.
One of the best parts of this book is its introduction to using Common Gateway Interface (CGI) and Perl to power a Web site with a MySQL/mSQL database. This section offers complete information on using mSQL Perl (and the emerging Database Independent [DBI] standard) for developing CGI database scripts in Perl, and it includes clear examples (including a student database). The book then moves from Perl on to other programming languages--Python and Java. Reference material to all the relevant APIs is featured for each language.
Whatever programming API you choose, MySQL and mSQL are ready to meet the needs of the small to moderate-size Web site. This book delivers essential information on these packages and will help both Web masters and programmers get the most out of these powerful freeware database tools. --Richard Dragan
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Learning Perl
This second edition of Learning Perl, designed for those who seek a rapid working knowledge of Perl and sporting a new foreword by Perl author Larry Wall, fully covers the world of Perl, version 5. In this new edition, program examples and exercise answers have been radically updated to reflect typical usage under Perl 5, and numerous details have been added or modified. In addition, you'll find new sections introducing Perl references and CGI programming. Perl is a high-level, multipurpose language. It is used in diverse system administration tasks, while also playing an endless variety of roles in other areas. These range from data reduction and report generation to distributed computing and assorted auxiliary roles in software development. Perl has even encroached upon the territory of C and other programming languages. Learning Perl, written by a leading Perl instructor, provides a systematic, step-by-step, tutorial approach to learning the language. There are numerous short code examples punctuating a relaxed, informal, and precise tour of all the main features of the language. In addition, each chapter contains exercise problems, together with their solutions. Anyone who works through the book will be capable of programming with a broad and productive range of Perl features. For a comprehensive and detailed guide to advanced programming with Perl, read O'Reilly's companion book, Programming Perl.
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Programming Perl
Programming Perl, 2nd Edition, is the authoritative guide to Perl version 5, the scripting utility that has established itself as the programming tool of choice for the World Wide Web, UNIX system administration, and a vast range of other applications. Version 5 of Perl includes object-oriented programming facilities. The book is coauthored by Larry Wall, the creator of Perl.
Perl is a language for easily manipulating text, files, and processes. It provides a more concise and readable way to do many jobs that were formerly accomplished (with difficulty) by programming with C or one of the shells. Perl is likely to be available wherever you choose to work. And if it isn't, you can get it and install it easily and free of charge.
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Perl Cookbook
When the second edition of Programming Perl was released, the authors omitted two chapters: "Common Tasks with Perl" and "Real Perl Programs." Publisher O'Reilly & Associates soon realized that there would be too many pages in Programming Perl if it put updated recipes in the new edition. Instead, O'Reilly chose to release the many Perl code examples as a separate entity: The Perl Cookbook.
The recipes are well documented and the examples aren't too arcane; even beginners will be able to pick up the lessons taught here. The authors write in relatively easy-to-understand language (for a technical guide). Through this book and its arsenal of recipes, you will learn many new things about Perl to help you through your toughest projects. The next time you're working on a project at 2 a.m., you'll thank yourself for the guidance and direction The Perl Cookbook provides. --Doug Beaver
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Learning Python (Help for Programmers)
The authors of Learning Python show you enough essentials of the Python scripting language to enable you to begin solving problems right away, then reveal more powerful aspects of the language one at a time. This approach is sure to appeal to programmers and system administrators who have urgent problems and a preference for learning by semi-guided experimentation.
First off, Learning Python shows the relationships among Python scripts and their interpreter (in a mostly platform-neutral way). Then, the authors address the mechanics of the language itself, providing illustrations of how Python conceives of numbers, strings, and other objects as well as the operators you use to work with them. Dictionaries, lists, tuples, and other data structures specific to Python receive plenty of attention including complete examples.
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Java in a Nutshell : A Desktop Quick Reference
The 3rd edition of the well-known reference, Java in a Nutshell, covers the essential APIs of Java 1.2, including networking, security, input and output, and basic language and utility classes. Due to the size of the Java 1.2 API, graphics and graphical user interface classes are now examined in a volume called Java Foundation Classes in a Nutshell, and server-side and enterprise programming are detailed in Java Enterprise in a Nutshell.
Though primarily a reference, the book starts off with a thorough, fast-paced introduction to Java, exploring all the key topics, including syntax, object-oriented programming, security, beans, and tools. These discussions are brief and very information-dense, and if you are buying this book to learn the language, you will probably be overwhelmed by the speed of this initiation.
This book intends to document quite a bit of Java, and it easily succeeds with broad coverage of Java programming in Part I, and API cataloging broken down by package in Part II. For example, discussions in Part I explain Types, Reflection, and Dynamic Loading. The handling of these topics takes a little over a page, but the book gives a useful overview with code examples that clearly illustrate the points made. It is one of the clearest and most concise treatments of these three topics available.
The chapters in Part II include an introduction, diagrams, and sections for each class in the package. The sections for each class can be very informative, as in the discussion of the Socket class in the java.net chapter, which includes how to instantiate a Socket object, getting I/O streams from the object you instantiated, and how to alter the behavior of sockets. This discussion, like most in this book, is brief, clear, and to the point.
If you are looking for a Java reference, this is a solid volume that will provide lasting value. --John Keogh
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Java Foundation Classes in a Nutshell
The JFC/Swing classes offer a powerful way to build user interfaces in Java, and this richness comes with a lot more complexity. Java Foundation Classes in a Nutshell provides the documentation needed for understanding the most important features of Swing and serves as a handy reference to every package, class, and method.
The book is especially good at introducing the essential elements of Swing compared to the older AWT standard. Early chapters compare the fundamentals of AWT and Swing, including the architecture of each, plus the new possibilities for user interfaces offered by today's Swing. Standout sections on Java2D graphics (which is a lot more complicated than AWT graphics), printing, and Swing's advanced UI capabilities round out the tour here. Short examples and clear explanations, somewhat dryly written, provide a starting point for learning Swing.
The heart of this book is its 500 pages of reference material for every Java Swing (and AWT) package, class, and method. Some readers may quibble with the ordering here. (For instance, the model classes for advanced UI components like JTables are separated from the components themselves). But this reference has a good sense of visual clarity (with alternate lines of text highlighted with gray so that you can find what you need quickly). There are also some nice graphics, showing the relationship of Swing classes to one another.
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Java Servlet Programming (O'Reilly Java)
This book is a superb introduction to Java servlets and their various communications mechanisms. It includes deep and comprehensive coverage of the Java Servlet API, and also of HTTP, non-HTTP socket communications, Remote Method Invocation (RMI), and more. Throughout, the authors present excellent illustrative code and go to much effort to explain why things work the way they do.
The authors (to their credit) do not assume that Java programmers will be familiar with transport protocols or what really goes on when a Web server operates. They begin by showing how to use servlets to generate static pages, then show how to get servlets to generate customized documents in response to requests from the client side. That alone will satisfy many readers' problems. However, the authors go on to tell how to track sessions with servlets, how to carry out secure transactions, how to get servlet threads to communicate with each other, and more. If it can be done with Java servlets, it's discussed in this book. Java Servlet Programming also includes a reference to the Java Servlet API, version 2. --David Wall
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Essential System Administration : Help for Unix System Administrators
Essential System Administration takes an in-depth look at the fundamentals of UNIX system administration in a real-world, heterogeneous environment. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced administrator, you'll quickly be able to apply its principles and advice to your everyday problems. The book approaches UNIX system administration from the perspective of your job -- the routine tasks and troubleshooting that make up your day. Whether you're dealing with frustrated users, convincing an uncomprehending management that you need new hardware, rebuilding the kernel, or simply adding new users, you'll find help in this book. You'll also learn about back up and restore and how to set up printers, secure your system, and perform many other system administration tasks. But the book is not for full-time system administrators alone. Linux users and others who administer their own systems will benefit from its practical, hands-on approach. This second edition has been updated for the latest versions of all major UNIX platforms, including SunOS 4.1, Solaris 2.4, AIX 4.1, Linux 1.1, Digital UNIX, OSF/1, SCO UNIX version 3, HP/UX versions 9 and 10, and IRIX version 6. The entire book has been thoroughly reviewed and tested on all of the platforms covered. In addition, networking, electronic mail, security, and kernel configuration topics have been expanded substantially. Topics covered include: Starting up and shutting down your system Adding new users Managing processes System security Organizing and planning file systems Planning and performing backups Setting up pointers TCP/IP networking Setting up email Adding terminals and disk drives Setting up and using the accounting system.
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Practical Unix and Internet Security
Practical Unix & Internet Security is on its second edition, and its maturity shows. To call this highly readable book comprehensive is an understatement. The breadth is vast, from fundamentals (definitions of computer security; the history of Unix) and commonsense but little-observed security basics (making backups; physical and personnel security; buggy software) to modern software (NFS, WWW, firewalls) and the handling of security incidents. The section on users and passwords alone is 21 pages long--and worth every page. Useful appendices include a Unix security checklist, a list of emergency response organizations, and many references to electronic and paper resources.
The Internet covers too much and moves too quickly for any book to cover every security aspect of every piece of software, but this book comes close. More importantly, it gives you an exceptional grounding in the fundamental issues of security and teaches the right questions to ask--something that will stay with you long after today's software is obsolete.
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Managing Nfs and Nis
A modern computer system that is not part of a network is an anomaly. But managing a network and getting it to perform well can be a problem. This book describes two tools that are absolutely essential to distributed computing environments: the Network Filesystem (NFS) and the Network Information System (formerly called the "yellow pages" or YP). The Network Filesystem, developed by Sun Microsystems, is fundamental to most UNIX networks. It allows systems ranging from PCs running DOS to UNIX workstations to large mainframes to access each other's files transparently. It is the standard method for sharing files between different computer systems. As popular as NFS is, it is a "black box" for most users and administrators. This book provides a comprehensive discussion of how to plan, set up, and debug an NFS network. It is the only book we're aware of that discusses NFS and network performance tuning. This book also covers the NFS automounter, network security issues, diskless workstations, and PC/NFS. NFS isn't really complete without its companion, NIS. NIS provides a distributed database service for managing the most important administrative files, such as the passwd file and the hosts file. NIS centralizes administration of commonly replicated files, letting you make a single change to the database rather than making changes on every system on the network. This book tells you how to set up and use NIS to simplify network management. It also tells you how to use NIS to manage your own database applications, ranging from a simple telephone list to controlling access to network services. If you are managing a network of UNIX systems, or are thinking of setting up a UNIX network, you can't afford to overlook this book.
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What You Need to Know When You Can't Find Your Unix System Administrator
If you use UNIX, you know that it can be a technically challenging environment. And if you're like most users, you have a job to do aside from exploring your operating system -- like analyzing that hot new stock, running another experiment, or typsetting another report. What happens when you have problems? What happens when the system slows to a crawl, when you can't get logged back in after a power failure, or when you've sent a file to the printer three times but have yet to find a printout? Your first choice for handling a problem might be to have the problem never occur. Your second choice might be to have someone else fix it, immediately. However, in the real world, sometimes you will have to investigate the problem and report it, and sometimes you will have to find an answer yourself. When You Can't Find Your UNIX System Administrator, part of our new What You Need to Know series, gives UNIX users tools for solving problems. It offers: Practical solutions for problems you're likely to encounter in logging in, running programs, sharing files, managing space resources, printing, and so on Just enough background on what's going on "behind the scenes" so that you can make sense of our suggestions, rather than simply memorizing keystrokes An explanation of how to present problems to your sys admin so that you're more likely to get quick, accurate support A list of the site-specific information to which you should have access, and a place to write it down A quick-ref card summarizing what to try first, second, third for commonly encountered problems The goal of this book is not to make you a guru in your own right. The goal of this book is to get you back to the job you'd rather be doing.
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termcap & terminfo (O'Reilly Nutshell)
While termcap and terminfo are no longer as important as they once were, due to the growth of the X terminal market and increased standardization among ASCII terminals, handling different terminal types can still be a headache for system administrators. The termcap and terminfo databases are UNIX's solution to the difficulty of supporting many terminals without writing special drivers for each terminal. Termcap (BSD) and terminfo (System V) describe the features of hundreds of terminals, together with a library of routines that allow programs to use those capabilities. This book documents hundreds of capabilities and syntax for termcap and terminfo, writing and debugging terminal descriptions, and terminal initialization. Contents include: Terminal independence: the need for termcap and terminfo. Reading termcap and terminfo entries. Capability syntax. Initializing the terminal environment. Writing termcap and terminfo entries. Converting between termcap and terminfo. Detailed descriptions of the capabilities. Screen dimensions and cursor movement. Initialization and reset. Special and equivalent terminals. Many useful appendices.
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Volume 8 : X Window System Administrator's Guide
As X moves out of the hacker's domain and into the "real world," users can't be expected to master all the ins and outs of setting up and administering their own X software. That will increasingly become the domain of system administrators. Even for experienced system administrators, X raises many issues, both because of subtle changes in the standard UNIX way of doing things and because X blurs the boundaries between different platforms. Under X, users can run applications across the network on systems with different resources (including fonts, colors, and screen size). Many of these issues are poorly understood, and the technology for dealing with them is in rapid flux.
This book is the first and only book devoted to the issues of system administration for X and X-based networks, written not just for UNIX system administrators but for anyone faced with the job of administering X (including those running X on stand-alone workstations). The book includes: An overview of X that focuses on issues that affect the system administrator's job. Information on obtaining, compiling, and installing the X software, including a discussion of the trade-offs between vendor-supplied and the free MIT versions of X. How to set up xdm, the X display manager, which takes the place of the login program under X and can be used to create a customized turnkey X session for each user. How to set up user accounts under X (includes a comparison of the familiar shell setup files and programs to the new mechanisms provided by X). Issues involved in making X more secure. X's security features are not strong, but an understanding of what features are available can be very important, since X makes it possible for users to intrude on each other in new and sometimes unexpected ways. How fonts are used by X, including a description of the font server. A discussion of the issues raised by running X on heterogenous networks. How colors are managed under X and how to get the same colors across multiple devices with different hardware characteristics. The administration issues involved in setting up and managing an X terminal. How to use PC and Mac X servers to maximize reuse of existing hardware and convert outdated hardware into X terminals. How to obtain and install additional public domain software and patches for X. Covers features new in R5, including the font server and Xcms.
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