Who Is This Book Written For?

This book is not just for Linux users. Folks who use Windows (in other words, most people) will find that Knoppix is darn handy to keep in their toolkits as well. Many are the Windows machines that I've fixed with nothing more than patience, my trusty Knoppix CD, and a pinch of luck.

This book is aimed at intermediate to advanced computer users. If you've used Linux a bit, the topics will be a bit easier for you, but Linux experience is not absolutely required as long as you keep an open mind and want to learn.

You need access to a computer that can run Knoppix, of course. Right now, this means an Intel-compatible CPU that's at least a 486, a bare minimum of 96MB of RAM, a bootable CD-ROM drive or a boot floppy and standard CD-ROM, a standard SVGA-compatible video card, and a serial, PS/2, or USB mouse.

Those are the official Knoppix recommendations. In reality, here's what I'd try to have: a Pentium III or the AMD equivalent, a decent video card with at least 4MB of VRAM, and 128MB of RAM at the bare minimum—256MB of RAM is better, and 512MB is positively sweet.