Who This Book Is For

This book is written for the power user. Power users want the most out of their system: the most speed, the most glitz, the most sounds, or the most security. This book shows how to do just that.

Although you don't have to be a programmer to get the most out of this book, you should be familiar with Linux and how to edit files. In particular, knowing how to download, install, and use the basic operating system is a must. You should be familiar enough with the Linux bash shell to create and traverse directories, search for applications, read man pages, and edit system files using whatever editor you are most familiar with. You should be familiar with commands like grep, find, and sudo.

Under Linux and Ubuntu, there are many ways to get the same results and many competing applications. There is rarely only one solution. Yet, some applications can trigger emotional responses. For example, debating the best editor (vi versus emacs) or the best desktop (e.g., Gnome, KDE, or Xfce) can quickly turn into religious wars. Although the examples in this book may use one type of editor or desktop, tasks can usually be accomplished just as easily with some other application.

Warning 

This is not an introductory book on Ubuntu. Most bookstores have a shelf dedicated to introductory books on Linux-most should be good for beginners. This book is for intermediate and advanced users. It contains hacks, tips, and techniques for power users.

This book does not completely encompass all the things you can do with Ubuntu. For most of the applications covered, there are dozens of alternate tools. And even the tools covered contain additional options and settings for doing more things than described here. The goal of this book is to show you some of the tricks, hacks, and tweaks that you can do with the system so you can better customize it to your needs. I fully expect people to build on and extend these hacks.