The Ubuntu Handbook - THE How To on Ubuntu, Complete Expert's hints and tips Guide by the leading experts, everything you need to know about Ubuntu

Dan Bell

Description

This most comprehensive and complete book for Ubuntu serves as a Practical Guide to getting into and understanding Ubuntu Linux. It is comprehensive and well organized, this large Guide to Ubuntu Linux is an excellent Reference and your must have Unbuntu Linux Toolbox containing great info for those who hunger for more!

In easy to read chapters, with extensive examples, references and links to get you started right away this book covers: Ubuntu (operating system), Debian, Linux distribution, Free and open source software, Canonical Ltd., Mark Shuttleworth, Ubuntu Foundation, List of remastering software, Debian Free Software Guidelines, Medibuntu, Getdeb, Super OS, List of Linux distributions, Kubuntu, KDE, GNOME, Edubuntu, Xubuntu, Xfce, Ubuntu Studio, Mythbuntu, MythTV, Ubuntu Mobile, Ubuntu Netbook Remix, Gobuntu, Ubuntu JeOS, Linux Mint, OpenGEU, CrunchBang Linux, GNewSense, Comparison of Linux distributions, Ubuntu Certified Professional.

Topic relevant selected content from the highest rated Wiki entries, typeset, printed and shipped, combine the advantages of up-to-date and in-depth knowledge with the convenience of printed books. A portion of the proceeds of each book will be donated to the WikiMedia Foundation to support their mission.

Sujets

• Computers
• Informatique
• General officer
• General

Informations

• Publié par: Emereo Publishing
• Date de parution: 24 octobre 2012
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781486431717
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 8 Mo

Extrait

Ubuntu Topic relevant selected content from the highest rated wiki entries, typeset, printed and shipped. Combine the advantages of up-to-date and in-depth knowledge with the convenience of printed books. A portion of the proceeds of each book will be donated to the Wikimedia Foundation to support their mission: to empower and engage people around the world to collect and develop educational content under a free license or in the public domain, and to disseminate it effectively and globally. The content within this book was generated collaboratively by volunteers. Please be advised that nothing found here has necessarily been reviewed by people with the expertise required to provide you with complete, accurate or reliable information. Some information in this book maybe misleading or simply wrong. The publisher does not guarantee the validity of the information found here. If you need specific advice (for example, medical, legal, financial, or risk management) please seek a professional who is licensed or knowledgeable in that area. Sources, licenses and contributors of the articles and images are listed in the section entitled "References". Parts of the books may be licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. A copy of this license is included in the section entitled "GNU Free Documentation

Contents Articles Ubuntu Ubuntu (operating system) Debian Linux distribution Free and open source software Canonical Ltd. Mark Shuttleworth Ubuntu Foundation List of remastering software Debian Free Software Guidelines Medibuntu Getdeb Super OS List of Linux distributions Kubuntu KDE GNOME Edubuntu Xubuntu Xfce Ubuntu Studio Mythbuntu MythTV Ubuntu Mobile Ubuntu Netbook Remix Gobuntu Ubuntu JeOS Linux Mint OpenGEU CrunchBang Linux GNewSense Comparison of Linux distributions Ubuntu Certified Professional

1 1 11 29 37 41

46 49 50 51 54

55 56 59 69 74 82 89

91 95 99 102 105 109 111 115 118 120 126 131 133 136 154

Linux Professional Institute Certification References Article Sources and Contributors Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors Article Licenses License

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157 162

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Ubuntu

Ubuntu (operating system)

Ubuntu 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope) Company / developer → Canonical Ltd. / → Ubuntu Foundation OS family Unix-like Working state Current Source model → Free and open source software Initial release October 20, 2004 Latest stable release [1] 9.04 / 2009-04-23 Latestunstable [2] 9.10 Alpha 5 / 2009-09-04 release Availablelanguage (s)Multilingual (more than 55) Update method APT (front-ends available) Package manager dpkg (front-ends like Synaptic available) Supportedplatforms IA-64IA-32, x86-64, lpia, SPARC, PowerPC, ARM, Kernel type Monolithic (Linux) Default userinterface → GNOME License Mainly the GNU GPL / plus various other licenses Website [3] www.ubuntu.com

[4] [5] [6] Ubuntu (pronounced/uːˈbuːntuː/oo- BOON -too), is a computer operating system based on the→Debian→ [7] Linux distribution. It is named after the South African ethical ideologyUbuntuand is("humanity towards others")

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Ubuntu (operating system) distributed as→and open source software. Ubuntu provides an up-to-date, stable operating system for the free average user, with a strong focus on usability and ease-of-installation. Ubuntu has been selected by readers of desktoplinux.com as the most popular Linux distribution for the desktop, claiming approximately 30% of Linux [8] [9] desktop installations in both 2006 and 2007. Ubuntu is composed of multiple software packages typically distributed under either a free software or an open source license. The main license used is the GNU General Public License (GNU GPL) which, along with the GNU Lesser General Public License (GNU LGPL), explicitly declare that users are free to run, copy, distribute, study, change, develop and improve the software. Ubuntu is sponsored by the UK based company→Ltd., Canonical owned by South African entrepreneur→Mark Shuttleworth. By keeping Ubuntu free and open source, Canonical is able to utilize the talents of community developers in Ubuntu's constituent components. (Instead of selling Ubuntu for profit, Canonical creates revenue by selling technical support and from creating several services tied to Ubuntu.) Canonical endorses and provides support for three additional Ubuntu-derived operating systems:→ Kubuntu,→ Edubuntu and Ubuntu Server Edition. There are several other derivative operating systems including local language [10] and hardware-specific versions. Canonical releases new versions of Ubuntu every six months and supports Ubuntu for eighteen months by providing security fixes, patches to critical bugs and minor updates to programs. LTS (Long Term Support) versions, which are [11] [12] released every two years, are supported for three years on the desktop and five years for servers. The current version of Ubuntu,9.04, was released on April 23, 2009, and the upcoming version,Karmic Koala, is planned to be released on October 29, 2009. History and development process [13] Ubuntu is a fork of the→The original aim was to release a new version of UbuntuDebian project's code base. [14] every six months, resulting in a more frequently updated system. Ubuntu's first release was on October 20, 2004. [15] Ubuntu is released a month after→contrast to other forks of Debian (such as MEPIS,releases. In  GNOME Xandros, Linspire, Progeny and Libranet) which extensively use proprietary and closed source add-ons, Ubuntu uses [16] primarily free (libre) software, making an exception only for some proprietary hardware drivers. Ubuntu packages are based on packages from Debian's unstable branch: both distributions use Debian's deb package format and package management tools (APT and Synaptic). Debian and Ubuntu packages are not necessarily binary compatible with each other, however, and sometimes .deb packages may need to be rebuilt from source to be used in [17] Ubuntu. Many Ubuntu developers are also maintainers of key packages within Debian. Ubuntu cooperates with [18] Debian by pushing changes back to Debian, although there has been criticism that this doesn't happen often enough. In the past, Ian Murdock, the founder of Debian, has expressed concern about Ubuntu packages potentially [19] diverging too far from Debian Sarge to remain compatible. Before release, packages are imported from Debian Unstable continuously and merged with Ubuntu-specific modifications. A month before release, imports are frozen, and packagers then work to ensure that the frozen features interoperate well together. Ubuntu is currently funded by Canonical Ltd. On July 8, 2005,→Mark Shuttleworth and Canonical Ltd announced the creation of the→ Ubuntu Foundation and provided an initial funding of US$10 million. The purpose of the foundation is to ensure the support and development for all future versions of Ubuntu. Mark Shuttleworth describes [20] the foundation as an "emergency fund" (in case Canonical's involvement ends). [21] The Ubuntu logo and typography has remained the same since that first release. The hand-drawn, lowercase [22] OpenType font used is called Ubuntu-Title. The font is distributed under the terms of the GNU Lesser General [22] Public License (LGPL) (and use of the font, the Ubuntu logo, and derivatives is encouraged). Ubuntu 8.04, released on April 24, 2008, is the current Long Term Support (LTS) release. Canonical releases LTS [23] [24] [25] versions every two years, with the next scheduled LTS version in 2010. The current regular release, Ubuntu 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope), was released on April 23, 2009.

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Ubuntu (operating system) On March 12, 2009, Ubuntu announced developer support for 3rd party cloud management platforms, such as for [26] those used at Amazon EC2. Features [27] Ubuntu focuses on usability and security. The Ubiquity installer allows Ubuntu to be installed to the hard disk from within the Live CD environment, without the need for restarting the computer prior to installation. Ubuntu also emphasizes accessibility and internationalization to reach as many people as possible. Beginning with 5.04, UTF-8 [28] became the default character encoding, which allows for support of a variety of non-Roman scripts. As a security feature, the sudo tool is used to assign temporary privileges for performing administrative tasks, allowing the root account to remain locked, and preventing inexperienced users from inadvertently making catastrophic system [29] changes or opening security holes. Ubuntu comes installed with a wide range of software that includes OpenOffice, Firefox, Pidgin, Transmission, GIMP, and several lightweight games (such as Sudoku and chess). Ubuntu allows networking ports to be closed using its firewall, with customized port selection available. GNOME (the current default desktop) offers support for [30] more than 46 languages. Ubuntu can also run many programs designed for Microsoft Windows (such as Microsoft Office), through Wine or using a Virtual Machine (such as VMware Workstation or VirtualBox). Installation Installation of Ubuntu is generally performed with the Live CD. The Ubuntu OS can be run directly from the CD (albeit with a performance loss), allowing a user to "test-drive" the OS for hardware compatibility [31] and driver support. The CD also contains the Ubiquity installer, which then can guide the user through the permanent installation process. CD images of all current and past versions are available for [32] download at the Ubuntu web site . Installing from the CD requires a minimum of 256 MB RAM. Users can download a disk image (.iso) of the CD, which can then Ubuntu 9.04 (live session) either be written to a physical medium (CD. DVD), or optionally run directly from a hard drive (via UNetbootin). Ubuntu is even available on the PowerPC platform (enabling users of older Macintosh computers to run Ubuntu natively on their machines), however, it is no longer officially supported. [33] [34] Canonical offers Ubuntu and Kubuntu installation CDs at no cost, including paid postage for destinations in most countries around the world (via a service called ShipIt). [35] A Microsoft Windows migration tool, called Migration Assistant (introduced in April 2007), can be used to import bookmarks, desktop background (wallpaper), and various settings from an existing MS Windows installation [36] into a new Ubuntu installation. Ubuntu and Kubuntu can be booted and run from a USB Flash drive (as long as the BIOS supports booting from USB), with the option of saving settings to the flashdrive. This allows a portable installation that can be run on any [37] PC which is capable of booting from a USB drive. In newer versions of Ubuntu, the USB creator program is available to install Ubuntu on a USB drive (with or without a LiveCD disc). [38] Wubi, which is included as an option on the Live CD, allows Ubuntu to be installed and run from within a virtual Windows loop device (as a large file that is managed like any other Windows program via the Windows Control Panel). This method requires no partitioning of a Windows user's hard drive. Wubi also makes use of the Migration Assistant to import users' settings. It is only useful for Windows users, it is not meant for permanent Ubuntu installations and incurs a slight performance loss.

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Ubuntu (operating system) Remastering Various programs (such as remastersys and Reconstructor) exist to produce customised remasters of the Ubuntu Live [39] CD (sometimes referred to as "Custom Spins"). Package classification and support Ubuntu divides all software into four domains to reflect differences in licensing and the degree of support [40] available. All unsupported applications receive updates from community members, but not from→Canonical. free non-free softwaresoftware supported MainRestricted unsupported UniverseMultiverse

[41] Free software includes only software that has met the Ubuntu licensing requirements, which roughly correspond to the→Debian Free Software Guidelines. Exceptions, however, include firmware and fonts, in the Main category, [42] because although they are not allowed to be modified, their distribution is otherwise unencumbered. Non-free software is usually unsupported (Multiverse), but some exceptions (Restricted) are made for important non-free software. Supported non-free software includes device drivers that can be used to run Ubuntu on some current hardware, such as binary-only graphics card drivers. The level of support in the Restricted category is more limited than that of Main, because the developers may not have access to the source code. It is intended that Main and Restricted should contain all software needed for a general-use Linux system. Alternative programs for the same tasks and programs for specialized applications are placed in the Universe and Multiverse categories.

In addition to the above, in which the software does not receive new features after an initial release,Ubuntu [43] Backportsis an officially recognized project to backport newer software from later versions of Ubuntu. The repository is not comprehensive; it consists primarily of user-requested packages, which are approved if they meet quality guidelines. Backports receives no support at all from Canonical, and is entirely community-maintained. The-updatesrepository provides updates to stable releases of Ubuntu and are generally installed through update-manager. Each release is given its own -updates repository (e.g. intrepid-updates). The repository is supported by→Canonical for packages in main and restricted, and by the community for packages in universe and multiverse. All updates to the repository must meet certain requirements and go through the-proposedrepository [44] before being made available to the public. Updates will continue to be available until the end of life for the release. In addition to the -updates repository, the unstable-proposedrepository contains uploads which must be confirmed before being copied into -updates. All updates must go through this process to ensure that the patch does truly fix the [45] bug and there is no risk of regression. Updates in -proposed are confirmed by either Canonical or members of the community.

Availability of third-party software [46] Ubuntu has a certification system for third party software. Some third-party software that does not limit distribution is included in Ubuntu's multiverse component. The packageubuntu-restricted-extrasadditionally contains software that may be legally restricted, including support for MP3 and DVD playback, Microsoft TrueType core fonts, Sun's Java runtime environment, Adobe's Flash Player plugin, many common audio/video codecs, and unrar, an unarchiver for files compressed in the RAR file format. Additionally, several third party application suites are available for purchase through the Canonical web-based store, including software for DVD playback and media codecs.

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Ubuntu (operating system) Releases

Version Code name 4.10Warty Warthog 5.04Hoary Hedgehog 5.10Breezy Badger 6.06Dapper Drake 6.10Edgy Eft 7.04Feisty Fawn 7.10Gutsy Gibbon 8.04Hardy Heron 8.10Intrepid Ibex 9.04Jaunty Jackalope

9.10

Release date 2004-10-20 2005-04-08 2005-10-13 2006-06-01 2006-10-26 2007-04-19 2007-10-18 2008-04-24 2008-10-30

[47] 2009-04-23

[48] [49] Karmic Koala2009-10-29

There are two Ubuntu releases per year, using the year and month of the release as the version number. The first [50] Ubuntu release, for example, was Ubuntu 4.10 and was released on October 20, 2004. Version numbers for future versions are provisional; if the release is delayed the version number changes accordingly. Ubuntu releases are also given code names, using an adjective and an animal with the same first letter (e.g., "Dapper Drake" and "Intrepid Ibex"). With the exception of the first two releases, code names are in alphabetical order, allowing a quick determination of which release is newer. Commonly, Ubuntu releases are referred to using only the [51] adjective portion of the code name.

Releases are timed to be approximately one month after GNOME releases (which in turn are about one month after releases of X.org). Consequently, every Ubuntu release comes with a newer version of both GNOME and X. Selected releases (such as 6.06 Dapper Drake and 8.04 Hardy Heron) have been labeled as Long Term Support (LTS) versions, to indicate that they will be supported (with updates) for three years on the desktop and five years on [52] [53] the server, compared to the 18-month support period for non-LTS releases. The current release is 9.04 "Jaunty Jackalope" and the next is 9.10 "Karmic Koala", due in October 2009.

Variants

Several official and unofficial Ubuntu variants exist. These Ubuntu variants install a set of packages that differ from the original Ubuntu distribution. Official variants store packages and updates in the same repositories as Ubuntu, so that the same software is available for each of them and is generally compatible between the official variants. The Ubuntu [10] derivatives that are fully supported by Canonical are

•→Kubuntu, a desktop distribution using→KDE rather than→ GNOME •→Edubuntu, a GNOME-based subproject and add-on for Ubuntu, [54] designed for school environments and home users •Server Edition Ubuntu

→Kubuntu is an official variant of the Ubuntu distribution which uses → KDE rather than→ GNOME

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Ubuntu (operating system) The following derivatives are recognised by Canonical, use Ubuntu as their foundation and are said to contribute significantly [10] towards the Ubuntu project: •→Xubuntu, a "lightweight" distribution based on the→Xfce desktop environment instead of GNOME, designed to run better on low-specification computers •→Ubuntu Studio, studio version geared to multimedia production •→Mythbuntu, a multimedia platform based on→MythTV There are a set of operating systems derived from Ubuntu that are →Super OS is an un-official remaster recognised or sponsored by Canonical. These are created and maintained by Canonical and the Ubuntu community and their quality assurance and governance is managed by [55] Ubuntu. •as above Xubuntu •Studio as above Ubuntu [56] •→Ubuntu MID Edition, an Ubuntu edition that targets Mobile Internet Devices. [57] [58] •→Ubuntu Netbook Remix, designed for netbooks and other ultra-portables •→Gobuntu, an Ubuntu desktop consisting entirely of free software without software, drivers or firmware with restrictive licenses [59] [60] •→Ubuntu JeOS (pronounced as "juice"), 'Just enough Operating System' for virtual appliances Unofficial variants, derivatives, localizations and customizations are not controlled or guided by→Canonical and [55] are generally fork customizations that have been created for specific goals. [61] There are also a growing number of related derivative distributions, such as→Linux Mint, gOS,→OpenGEU, [62] →Super OS,→CrunchBang Linux,→gNewSense, and Portable Ubuntu for Windows . System requirements [63] The desktop version of Ubuntu currently supports the Intel x86, AMD64, and ARM architectures. Some server [64] [65] [66] releases also support the SPARC architecture Unofficial support is available for the PowerPC, IA-64 (Itanium) and PlayStation 3 architectures. The minimum system requirements for a desktop installation are a 300 MHz x86 processor, 256 MB of RAM, 4 GB [67] of hard drive space, and a video card which supports VGA at 640x480 resolution. The recommended system requirements for the desktop installation are a 700 MHz x86 processor, 384 MB of RAM, 8 GB of hard drive [67] space, and a video card which supports VGA at 1024×768 resolution. The server installation requires a 300 MHz [68] x86 processor, 64 MB of RAM, and a video card which supports VGA at 640×480. Computers that do not meet [69] the minimum recommended system requirements are suggested to try→Xubuntu, based on→Xfce. [70] [70] D ktop & L es aptopServer Required Recommended Processor 300 MHz (x86)700 MHz (x86)300 MHz (x86) Memory 256 MB384 MB* [68] 64 MB Hard drive capacity [67][67][68] 4 GB 8 GB 500 MB Video card VGA @VGA @ VGA @ 640x4801024x768640x480

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Ubuntu (operating system) * - With compositing effects enabled Ubuntu-Title Ubuntu-Title is a hand-drawn, lower case OpenType font created by Andy Fitzsimon for use with the→operating system and its Ubuntu [71] [22] derivatives. It is distributed under the GNU Lesser General Public License. Reception In an August 2007 survey of 38,500 visitors on DesktopLinux.com, Ubuntu was the most popular distribution with 30.3% of respondents [9] claiming to use it. In January 2009 the New York Times reported that Ubuntu had over ten million users and in June 2009 ZDNet reported "Worldwide, there are 13 million active Ubuntu users with use growing faster than any [72] [73] other distribution." Samples of the Ubuntu-Title font. Ubuntu was awarded the Reader Award for best Linux distribution at [74] the 2005 LinuxWorld Conference and Expo in London, has been favorably reviewed in online and print [75] [76] [77] [78] publications, and has won InfoWorld's 2007 Bossie Award forBest Open Source Client OS. Jamie Hyneman, co-host of the television series Mythbusters has advocated Linux, specifically giving the example of Ubuntu, as an alternative to proprietary software, citing software bloat as a major hurdle in proprietary operating [79] [80] systems. Ubuntu has also received negative assessments.PC Worldcriticized the lack of an integrated desktop effects manager, although this did not prevent them from naming Ubuntu the "best all-around Linux distribution available [81] today". The Ministry of Education and Science of Macedonia deployed more than 180,000 Ubuntu Linux based classroom [82] desktops, and has encouraged every student in the country to use Ubuntu-powered computer workstations. Vendor support [83] A number of vendors offer computers with Ubuntu pre-installed. Dell, Tesco, and Gliese IT have provided this [84] option since 2007, while System76 has done so since November 2005. In June 2008, a South African company, Bravium Computers, was incorporated and modeled on System76, offering South Africans the opportunity to [85] purchase computers pre-installed with Ubuntu. Dell and System76 customers are able to choose between 30-day, [86] three-month, and yearly Ubuntu support plans through Canonical. Dell offers Ubuntu-driven computers for sale [87] in Canada, France, Germany, Latin America, Spain, United Kingdom and United States. In addition to the standard Ubuntu installation, select Dell machines running Ubuntu 7.10 and 8.04 come with proprietary DVD [88] playback capabilities using LinDVD. Dell computers running Ubuntu 8.04 include extra support for ATI Video [89] Graphics, Dell Wireless, Fingerprint Readers, HDMI, Bluetooth and MP3/WMA/WMV.

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