University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
School of Information and Library Science

INLS 183: Distributed Systems and Analysis

Online Resources

General Information about Unix and Linux

• How to pronounce Linux, according to Linus Torvalds (of course, you may choose to pronounce it differently)
• Looking for a book recommendation? Try the Reading-List HOWTO

Search Engines, HOWTO

• The Linux Documentation Project (LDP). Includes all types of documentation and links to additional resources. (HOWTOs are also on your Linux system, if you installed them). There are several free online books in their documentation collection.
• freshmeat.net, more access and info for Linux software; lots of new releases. sorceforge.net is a related site to foster open source development.
• searchlinux.com includes some good resources, and a nice search engine.
• Linux Online at linux.org. All things Linux. Links to distribution info, documentation, projects, groups, vendors, etc.

Linux and Related Communities

• Slashdot, discussion forum for all things geek, with a strong Linux and open source focus.
• The Free Software Foundation, home of GNU
• The Cathedral and the Bazaar, and other writings by Eric Raymond (a.k.a. ESR).
• LinuxNews contains announcements, daily news, and a shopping section.

Software

• GNU's software list
• FTP to ftp.ibiblio.org, an excellent general software mirror sites. You can also go directly to ibiblio's Linux subdirectory. Here is a HTTP link to the same place.
• Want new software for security and/or hacking? Try securityfocus and @Stake

RedHat Resources

• RedHat.com, lots of useful support information. See especially their support page. Includes online documents, errata, and a bugs/solutions database.
• The RedHat contributed software directory (includes RPMs, source, etc.), mirrored at MetaLab. Note that these are not necesssarily the most current versions of software - you might need to go to the authoritative source where the software originated!

Tutorials, Explanations and Indexes

• Yahoo!'s Unix category (lots of general Unix help and tutorials are listed towards the bottom of the page)
• Yahoo!'s vi category. Try:
  • A Beginner's Guide to vi and ex (reference to common features)
  • vi Tutorial (step by step)
• Emacs reference materials at geek-girl.com's Unix Reference Desk

Drivers, Distributions

• Got some new hardware that's not recognized? SUSE Linux is a distribution that often has drivers for the latest stuff soonest.
• LinuxHarware.org has reviews, information and discussiona about lots of hardware issues.
• Got a DVD player in your PC? Drivers are available, but not yet incorporated in Linux distributions. See http://www.free-dvd.org.lu/. The main site of the DVD for Linux project is http://www.linuxvideo.org/
• LinuxCentral, lots of Linux software for sale at bargain prices
• Linux System Labs, more Linux software at bargain prices
• Ordering books online? Fatbrain.com offers at least 10% off and free expedited (UPS 2nd day) shipping with the discount code uncdisc00. (Be sure to select "expedited shipping"). This is not an additional discount unless the book wasn't already discounted at least 10%.

Other stuff

• Transitioning from Windows to Linux (50-page FAQ from IBM)
• Unix FAQs at faqs.org
• Humor: Stupid Shell Tricks