Notes on the 1st GNU\Linux course

Sun 1-8-2004

Notes:

Background:

• Free Software (4 freedoms)
• Open Source (security in Linux)
• Q: Benefits of Free Software\Open Source
  • Do it yourself
  • Limited markets\needs (e.g gimp module for color blind ppl)
  • Price (legal)

Installation:

• What is Booting?
  • BIOS
• General rules of installing a new operating system?
  • Partitioning
  • Package Selection
  • Locale selection
  • Hardware configuration
  • Boot Loader
  • Network configuration
• Partions in Linux:
  • at least 2
  • swap
• Hardware problems?
  • with internal modems
  • Linux comes with all drivers
• Security:
  • Levels
  • Administrator (root user)
• Partitioning:
  • If you have windows there will be 1 more options (use free space on windows)
  • You need to defrag before resizing a windows partition
• Custom disk partitioning
• types of file system
  • use journalized ext3
• Packages:
  • Desktop layers
  • LSB: Linux standard Base
  • If you choose to install servers, Mandrake makes sure of your choice (security)
• Users
  • / and the root user are not related
  • Multiuser system
  • Administrator is the only user who can change the settings of the system
  • you need to press accept user before you press next
• Boot Loader
  • accept the suggested options

There was an error in the Cds so we delayed the rest of the installation demonstration to the 2nd session and skiped to Desktop demonstration.

Desktop:

• Clipboard
• Maximize, Minimize
• Mandrake Documentation

What do use Computer in?

• Office
• Internet
• Multimedia
• Programming:
  • C++ (can do it on Linux)
  • C# (under developmnet)
  • C (can do it on Linux)
  • Visual Basic (Gambas is similar)
  • Visual C++ (can't do it, it's a M$ product)
  • Java (can do it on Linux)
  • Scripting (perl, python, php)
  • for embeded devices (can do it on Linux)
• Graphics
  • photoshop (GIMP)
  • flash

Tue 3-8-2004

Notes:

Installation (cont.)

• root user, useers
• Location
• Time Zone
  • GMT (Don't select it if yoou are using windows)
  • ???
• Network
  • Installer thinks you are using dhcp, but you need to configure the network
  • LAN connection (also if you have DSL @ home)
  • choose eth0
  • ignore that it's already detected and manual config it
  • remove network hot plugin option (useful if you will remove the cable in the middle of the install)
  • configure the network same as we configured it before (59, 60, 61, 62, 29, 63, 64) gateway (1.1)
• DNS:
  • 62.140.73.1
  • 62.140.73.2
  • 161.121.2.2
• Firewall:
  • everything allowed
• Updates
  • select No
• Last screen: (Advanced button)
  • Auto install floppy (useful if you will install on other identical PCs)
  • Save package selection (useful if you will install on other different PCs and you want to install the same set of packages)

Will need to install:

• Mozilla (better do it while installation)
• Scribus
• Superkaramba
• Nvu
• Blender
• Inkscape
• Lifrea

Desktop:

• Add panel
• Applets
• KDE --> configure your desktop

Office:

• KOffice and GnomeOffice
• OpenOffice:
  • OOWriter (styles, export to pdf, advanced html)
  • OOCalc (more accurate, gnumeric, export to pdf)
  • OOImpress (export to pdf or macromedia flash)
  • OpenOffice has a windows version

Internet Apps:

• Netscape 1998 --> Mozilla
• Konquerer
• Mozilla
  • CTRL T --> open new tabs
  • F9 --> sidebar (search, bookmarks, history)
  • sidebar is expandable (news)
  • edit --> preferences --> languages (make default character encoding windows 1256)
  • Apperance ==> plugins (XUL platform)
• Mozilla mail
  • same as outlook express
  • can open newsgroups
  • scripts to get your email from yahoo, hotmail, gmail
• Kontact
  • same as Microsoft Outlook
  • to do + mail + ...
• Kolab
• Kopete
  • needs upgrade for yahoo and msn
  • video & voice chat not supported yet (working on it in gaim)
  • plugins (dictionary, encryption)
• Konquerer
  • network icon (sftp://ip)
• Liferea
  • get RSS feed of EGLUG
  • In preferences: use browser command (mozilla %s)
• gftp
• kget (equivalent to getright)

Multimedia:

• Totem (get movies from sftp://192.168.1.64)
• Gmplayer and Mplayer
• Gimp 2 (/usr/share/wallpapers)
• Gqview
  • duplicate (grap all & drop, compare by)
  • info about digital images
  • Sort manager
• kdeinlive (similar to moviemaker)
  • Cinelara (hard), Avidimux (easy)
• Audicity
  • Ardur (hard)
• Blender (equivalent tp 3dmax)
  • export source code to OpenGL
  • scripts with python (3d interactive)
  • filter ability
  • Blender interactive version generates executables for windows, makintosh and Linux
• Inkscape
  • supports svg
  • make paths that you can use for filters or selection areas in gimp
• Qcad (office --> graphs)
• Superkaramba
  • /usr/share/apps/superkaramba/themes
  • move it eith ALT
• Nvu
• Gnucash (office --> finances)
• Scribus (equivalent to publisher, quarkx express)
  • desktopp publishing tools
  • no arabic support yet
• Dia: connected graphs (office --> graphs)
• Imageseek (just mentioned it)
• LyX
  • WYSIWYM
  • export to pdf

Web Apps:

70% of the web servers are apache servers

Thr 5-8-2004

Notes:

Closer look on the OS (components and concepts)

• Compatible with Unix
• GNU\Linux didn't take of Unix but is similar to it
• Simplicity:
  • single task, do it well
  • procedure for communication
• Linux kernel:
  • hardware drivers
  • networking
  • file system
• GNU tools:
• GNU Development tools:
  • libraries
  • compilers (install, build)
  • use it if you want to compile a driver for example
• we can say that Linux consists of:
  • kernel
  • GNU tools
  • GNU development tools
• hardware
  • --> kernel
    • --> X server
      • --> desktop
• graphical == X window system
• login in failsafe
  • graphical interface without desktop environment
  • no panels, icons, background, borders, menu
  • CTRL + ALT + backspace to logout of graphical interface
• Client - Server:
  • X window
  • cups (for printers)
  • sane (for scanners)
• Samba
  • see windows network
  • see windows share
  • share from my desktop
• services:
  • crond
  • sshd
• Single tree
• file names (case sensitive)
• file system
  • choose depends on the purpose of the directory

file tree (EVERYTHING is a FILE):

• /bin ==> programs (minimum programs only, e.g. gnu tools)
• /boot ==> kernel (vmlinuz2.6...)
• /etc ==> configuration files of the whole system
• /mnt ==> mount external media
• /root ==> home of the root user
• /sbin ==> programs/commands that only the root can use
• /tmp ==> temporary files
• /var ==> files that are modified while we are working (e.g. score of a game)
• /usr has bin, etc,.. same as /
  • /usr/bin ==> executables of all applications
  • /usr/include ==> header files
  • /usr/lib ==> libraries for apps
  • /usr/share ==> the rest of the files of each apps
    • /usr/share/doc ==> all documentations and manuals
• /dev
  • cdroms and disks
  • cdrom, disk, partition, mouse are files from the point of view of the OS
  • ex: cat /dev/mouse , then move the mouse and observe
• /proc ==> information about all the state of the OS and the processes that are running
  • /proc/meminfo

File types:

• regular files
• device files
• sockets (client server)
• links
• forgot to mention hidden files

Permissions, Users & groups:

• permissions for:
  • owner
  • group
  • others
• permissions (for files and directories) are:
  • read
  • write
  • execute
• directory permissioons:
  • no read ==> can't read any file in this directory even if you have permission to read the file itself
  • no write ==> can modify the files in this directory if I have write permission to them, but can't add or delete a new file in it
  • execute ==> can go through/inside it
• Advanced: Programs have owner and group when they are running ???
  • set UID ==> give the program the permisions of the user of the file not those of who started the program
  • set GID ==> same but for the group (e.g. used in score of games)
  • sticky bit ???
  • set UID and GID have no meaning for directories

Mandrake Control Center

• Boot Loader:
  • number of seconds befre automatic loading
  • if i added another OS after Linux and want to add it in the boot loader
  • choose the default OS
• Hardware: (configuration)
• Mount points:
  • partitioning, and change mount points of partitions
  • NFS for network of other Linuxes and Unixes
  • samba
  • webDAV (mount webserver directories as file system)
  • user disk sharing (allows user to make a share directory on NFS or samba)
• Network and Internet:
  • Internet connection sharing
    • transparent proxy (caching sites, filtering, organizes the requests of all the users), no need to config the browsers of users
• Security:
  • levels and checks
  • permissions (chooses a policy for files improtant to the system)
  • firewall (same as in installer)
• System:
  • Menus
    • Menu style --> add link to what to do menu, then save
  • Display Manager
  • services (start, stop, boot)
  • fonts
  • date & time
  • logs (of the system)
  • console (opens command line interface)
  • users and groups:
    • can add user and group password
  • Backups
    • backup system (/etc)
    • backup users (/home)
    • Advanced (choose which directory)
    • back up where (harddisk, network, ...)
    • incremental and differential backups
• Software Manager
  • Install and Remove
    • Mandrake choices
    • choose package by: (selection, repository, update)
    • info (maximum)
  • Updates
    • security, bug fixes, normal
    • use rsync (fastest)
  • Media Manager:
    • main: 4cds
    • contrib: 5cds (by users tested by mandrake)
    • plf: 2cds (multimedia, codecs, games, peer2peer)
    • other

(not finished yet)

How to get HELP?

• how to open a terminal/switch to the console
• how to run a command
• how to run a command as root
• Resources for this course
  • [ http://www.eglug.org/course_resources ]]
  • packaging --> easy urpmi
    • use the small index option (less discription) for dial up
• [ http://www.eglug.org ]]
  • wiki
  • forum
  • articles
• #eglug (irc.freenode.org)
• Saturdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m

Questions Asked during the course:

Q: Where is the source code?

You can get the source code of the GNU\Linux OS and its Free Applications from the internet, visit the website of the projecr/software and you will find its source code.

Q: What is the language that is used in programming Linux?

A: The GNU\Linux operating system and its applications are programmed using different languages, among them: C, C++, perl, python, lisb, ruby.

• The Linux kernel and the GNU tools are written in C.
• Many of the desktop applications are written in C++, e.g. Mozilla, Open Office.
• The Mandrake installer is written in perl

Q: Are programs on Linux small?

A: yes, they are. Each program does a specific task and does it very good, and they depend upon existing packages