[buug] Re: Jackpot!

[Rick Moen]

> I disagree, Rick.

Whatever works for you, then.  _But:_

> As an alternative to "Running Linux", I heartily recommend "Using
> Linux" by Bill Ball.

You know, I think that that book really, really sucks, and that
recommending it to _other_ people throws additional obstacles in their
way.  And I can tell you exactly why:

It's a "kitchen sink" approach, that makes the classic error of trying
to be both a tutorial and a reference at the same time.  I therefore
find it to comprise a horrid mush, from an entire line of horrid-mush
books that are deliberately designed that way.

> The book, "Teach Yourself KDE 1.1 in 24 Hours" I found a delight to
> use, very digestible, and extremely informative/useful for a newbie
> Linux user, without boggling him down with technical elaboration.

See, the problem with every KDE book I've ever seen is that they tell
you nothing of any lasting value, by which I mean zero _fundamental_ 
knowledge.  They show you how things work as to surface knob-twiddling,
but without -=any=- understanding of underlying unifying principles and
key pieces.  None.  And without that knowledge of Unix fundamentals,
you're screwed.  You really cannot get by in Unix by just memorising the
mechanics of menus -- for a large number of reasons that I hope I don't
have to detail.  You remain a visiting alien, as disoriented by a
slightly different Linux system as a non-English-speaking foreigner
whose directions have blown away in the breeze.

> You didn't say, so I assume that my messages are now coming through
> wrapped at a margin of 80 or less.

Around 55.  Which is fine, albeit a little eccentric.  I usually re-wrap
anything I quote to a more standard 70 characters or so.

-- 
Cheers,                                      Right to keep and bear
Rick Moen                                  Haiku shall not be abridged
rick (at) linuxmafia.com                      Or denied.  So there.