477 lines
26 KiB
HTML
477 lines
26 KiB
HTML
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0//EN">
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<html>
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<head>
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<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
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<title>Debian Tutorial (Obsolete Documentation) - Introduction</title>
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<link href="index.html" rel="start">
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<link href="ch-about.html" rel="prev">
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<link href="ch-start.html" rel="next">
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<link href="index.html#contents" rel="contents">
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<link href="index.html#copyright" rel="copyright">
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<link href="ch-about.html" rel="chapter" title="1 About this manual">
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<link href="ch-introduction.html" rel="chapter" title="2 Introduction">
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<link href="ch-start.html" rel="chapter" title="3 Getting started">
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<link href="ch-basics.html" rel="chapter" title="4 The Basics">
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<link href="ch-docs.html" rel="chapter" title="5 Reading documentation and getting help">
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<link href="ch-shell.html" rel="chapter" title="6 Using the shell">
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<link href="ch-files.html" rel="chapter" title="7 More on files">
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<link href="ch-editor.html" rel="chapter" title="8 Creating and editing text files">
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<link href="ch-custom_shell.html" rel="chapter" title="9 Customizing the shell">
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<link href="ch-X.html" rel="chapter" title="10 The X Window System">
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<link href="ch-text_tools.html" rel="chapter" title="11 Text tools">
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<link href="ch-file_tools.html" rel="chapter" title="12 File tools">
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<link href="ch-disks.html" rel="chapter" title="13 Using disks">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html" rel="chapter" title="14 Removing and installing software">
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<link href="ch-troubleshooting.html" rel="chapter" title="15 Troubleshooting">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html" rel="chapter" title="16 Advanced topics">
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<link href="ch-next.html" rel="chapter" title="17 Where to from here?">
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<link href="ch-helping.html" rel="chapter" title="18 Contributing to Debian: How can I help?">
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<link href="ap-apps_appendix.html" rel="appendix" title="A A brief survey of available applications">
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<link href="ap-components_appendix.html" rel="appendix" title="B Summary of GNU/Linux system components">
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<link href="ap-booting_appendix.html" rel="appendix" title="C Appendix C: Booting the system">
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<link href="ap-misc_appendix.html" rel="appendix" title="D Miscellaneous">
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<link href="ch-about.html#s-acknowldgements" rel="section" title="1.1 Acknowledgements">
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<link href="ch-introduction.html#s-introduction-debian" rel="section" title="2.1 What is Debian?">
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<link href="ch-introduction.html#s-introduction-DFSG" rel="section" title="2.2 What's free software?">
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<link href="ch-introduction.html#s-introduction-how" rel="section" title="2.3 How to Read This Book">
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<link href="ch-introduction.html#s-introduction-ldp" rel="section" title="2.4 The Linux Documentation Project">
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<link href="ch-start.html#s-start-multi" rel="section" title="3.1 A multiuser, multitasking operating system">
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<link href="ch-start.html#s-start-login" rel="section" title="3.2 Logging in">
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<link href="ch-start.html#s-start-keys" rel="section" title="3.3 Keys">
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<link href="ch-start.html#s-start-commandline" rel="section" title="3.4 Command history and editing the command line">
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<link href="ch-start.html#s-start-root" rel="section" title="3.5 Logging in as root">
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<link href="ch-start.html#s-start-VC" rel="section" title="3.6 Virtual consoles">
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<link href="ch-start.html#s-start-shutdown" rel="section" title="3.7 Shutting down">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-commandline" rel="section" title="4.1 The command line and <samp>man</samp> pages">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-files" rel="section" title="4.2 Files and Directories">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-processes" rel="section" title="4.3 Processes">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-shell" rel="section" title="4.4 The shell">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-jobs" rel="section" title="4.5 Managing processes with Bash">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-bash" rel="section" title="4.6 A few Bash features">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-identity" rel="section" title="4.7 Managing your identity">
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<link href="ch-docs.html#s-docs-sources" rel="section" title="5.1 Kinds of documentation">
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<link href="ch-docs.html#s-docs-info" rel="section" title="5.2 Using info">
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<link href="ch-docs.html#s-docs-textfiles" rel="section" title="5.3 Viewing text files with more and less">
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<link href="ch-docs.html#s-docs-howtos" rel="section" title="5.4 HOWTOs">
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<link href="ch-docs.html#s-docs-support" rel="section" title="5.5 Getting help from a person">
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<link href="ch-docs.html#s-docs-sysinfo" rel="section" title="5.6 Getting information from the system">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-shell-variables" rel="section" title="6.1 Environment variables">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-shell-path" rel="section" title="6.2 Where commands live: the <samp>PATH</samp> variable">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-custom_shell-aliases" rel="section" title="6.3 Aliases and shell functions">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-shell-io" rel="section" title="6.4 Controlling input and output">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-shell-modifiers" rel="section" title="6.5 Specifying how and when to run commands">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-shell-wildcards" rel="section" title="6.6 Filename expansion ("Wildcards")">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s6.7" rel="section" title="6.7 Interactive/non-interactive">
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<link href="ch-files.html#s-files-permissions" rel="section" title="7.1 Permissions">
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<link href="ch-files.html#s-files-tour" rel="section" title="7.2 What files are on my system? Where can I put my own files?">
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<link href="ch-files.html#s-file-manager" rel="section" title="7.3 Using a filemanager">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-textfile" rel="section" title="8.1 What's a text file?">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-editor" rel="section" title="8.2 Text editors">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi" rel="section" title="8.3 Creating and editing a text file with <code>vi</code>">
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<link href="ch-custom_shell.html#s-custom_shell-dotfiles" rel="section" title="9.1 .rc files and <samp>ls -a</samp>">
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<link href="ch-custom_shell.html#s-custom_shell-etc" rel="section" title="9.2 System-wide vs. user-specific configuration">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-starting" rel="section" title="10.1 Starting the X environment">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-intro" rel="section" title="10.2 Intro: What is X">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-basics" rel="section" title="10.3 Basic X operations">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-startup" rel="section" title="10.4 Customizing your X startup">
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<link href="ch-text_tools.html#s-text_tools-regexps" rel="section" title="11.1 Regular expressions">
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<link href="ch-file_tools.html#s-file_tools-backup" rel="section" title="12.1 Backup tools">
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<link href="ch-file_tools.html#s-file_tools-compression" rel="section" title="12.2 File compression with <samp>gzip</samp>">
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<link href="ch-file_tools.html#s-file_tools-split" rel="section" title="12.3 Splitting files into smaller pieces">
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<link href="ch-file_tools.html#s-file_tools-find" rel="section" title="12.4 Finding files">
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<link href="ch-file_tools.html#s-file_tools-file" rel="section" title="12.5 Determining a file's contents">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-disks-concepts" rel="section" title="13.1 Concepts">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-disks-mount" rel="section" title="13.2 <samp>mount</samp> and <samp>/etc/fstab</samp>">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-network-ppp" rel="section" title="13.3 PPP">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-dpkg-dpkg" rel="section" title="14.1 The <code>dpkg</code> package utility">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-dpkg-what" rel="section" title="14.2 What a package maintenance utility does">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-dpkg-apt" rel="section" title="14.3 Apt">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-dpkg-dselect" rel="section" title="14.4 Using dselect.">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-dpkg-commandline" rel="section" title="14.5 Using dpkg manually">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-dpkg-compiling" rel="section" title="14.6 Compiling software yourself">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-dpkg-proprietary" rel="section" title="14.7 Proprietary software not in .deb format">
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<link href="ch-troubleshooting.html#s-troubleshooting-frozen" rel="section" title="15.1 Debian is frozen or crashed!">
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<link href="ch-troubleshooting.html#s-troubleshooting-termgarbage" rel="section" title="15.2 My terminal isn't behaving properly">
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<link href="ch-troubleshooting.html#s-troubleshooting-vi" rel="section" title="15.3 The computer beeps when I press a key, and my screen shows a text file and/or a lot of <samp>~</samp> symbols.">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-scripting" rel="section" title="16.1 Introduction to shell scripting">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files" rel="section" title="16.2 Advanced files">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-kernel" rel="section" title="16.3 Compiling the kernel">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-security" rel="section" title="16.4 A few words on security">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-programming" rel="section" title="16.5 Programming on Linux">
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<link href="ch-next.html#s-next-manuals" rel="section" title="17.1 Other Debian manuals to read">
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<link href="ch-next.html#s-next-resources" rel="section" title="17.2 Other resources">
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<link href="ch-helping.html#s-helping-bugs" rel="section" title="18.1 Submit bug reports">
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<link href="ch-helping.html#s-helping-other" rel="section" title="18.2 Other things">
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<link href="ap-apps_appendix.html#s-A_apps-whatever" rel="section" title="A.1 (Subheadings could copy the structure of the menu system)">
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<link href="ap-misc_appendix.html#s-unix-history" rel="section" title="D.1 Unix History">
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<link href="ap-misc_appendix.html#sD.2" rel="section" title="D.2 GNU/Linux History">
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<link href="ap-misc_appendix.html#sD.3" rel="section" title="D.3 The Linux kernel's version numbering">
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<link href="ch-introduction.html#s-introduction-debian-os" rel="subsection" title="2.1.1 What's an operating system, and what sort of operating system is Debian?">
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<link href="ch-introduction.html#s-introduction-debian-how" rel="subsection" title="2.1.2 Who creates Debian?">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-commandline-description" rel="subsection" title="4.1.1 Describing the command line">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-files-intro" rel="subsection" title="4.2.1 Introduction to files">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-files-using" rel="subsection" title="4.2.2 Using files: a tutorial">
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<link href="ch-basics.html#s-basics-bash-completion" rel="subsection" title="4.6.1 Tab Completion">
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<link href="ch-docs.html#s-docs-support-posting" rel="subsection" title="5.5.1 Dos and Don'ts of asking a question">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-shell-variables-parents" rel="subsection" title="6.1.1 Parent and child processes">
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<link href="ch-shell.html#s-interactive-shells" rel="subsection" title="6.7.1 Interactive shells">
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<link href="ch-files.html#s-files-permissions-groups" rel="subsection" title="7.1.1 File Ownership">
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<link href="ch-files.html#s-files-permissions-mode" rel="subsection" title="7.1.2 Mode">
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<link href="ch-files.html#s-files-permissions-tutorial" rel="subsection" title="7.1.3 Permissions in practice">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi-creating" rel="subsection" title="8.3.1 Creating a file">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi-editing" rel="subsection" title="8.3.2 Editing an existing file">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi-editing-movement" rel="subsection" title="8.3.2.1 Moving around in a file">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi-editing-deletion" rel="subsection" title="8.3.2.2 Deleting text">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi-editing-moremoving" rel="subsection" title="8.3.2.3 Sophisticated movement">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi-editing-numbers" rel="subsection" title="8.3.2.4 Repeating commands">
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<link href="ch-editor.html#s-editor-vi-editing-advanced" rel="subsection" title="8.3.2.5 Advanced reference">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-basics-mouse" rel="subsection" title="10.3.1 The mouse">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-basics-clients" rel="subsection" title="10.3.2 X clients">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-basics-trouble" rel="subsection" title="10.3.3 Troubleshooting">
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<link href="ch-X.html#s-X-basics-leaving" rel="subsection" title="10.3.4 Leaving the X environment">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-disks-mount-mounting" rel="subsection" title="13.2.1 Mounting a filesystem">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-disks-mount-cdromexample" rel="subsection" title="13.2.2 Example: Mounting a CD-ROM">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-disks-mount-fstab" rel="subsection" title="13.2.3 <samp>/etc/fstab</samp>: Automating the mount process">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-disks-mount-removable" rel="subsection" title="13.2.4 Removable disks (floppies, Zip disks, etc.)">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-network-ppp-introduction" rel="subsection" title="13.3.1 Introduction">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-network-ppp-preparation" rel="subsection" title="13.3.2 Preparation">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-network-ppp-wvdial" rel="subsection" title="13.3.3 The Easy Way: <samp>wvdial</samp>">
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<link href="ch-disks.html#s-network-ppp-pppd" rel="subsection" title="13.3.4 Doing It Manually">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-apt-config" rel="subsection" title="14.3.1 Configuring Apt">
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<link href="ch-dpkg.html#s-apt-usage" rel="subsection" title="14.3.2 Using apt-get.">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-scripting-why" rel="subsection" title="16.1.1 What and why">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-scripting-example" rel="subsection" title="16.1.2 A simple example">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-hardlinks" rel="subsection" title="16.2.1 The real nature of files: hard links and inodes">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-types" rel="subsection" title="16.2.2 Types of files">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-types-symlinks" rel="subsection" title="16.2.2.1 Symbolic links">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-files-misc-types-devices" rel="subsection" title="16.2.2.2 Device files">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-types-devices-null" rel="subsection" title="16.2.2.2.1 <samp>/dev/null</samp>">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-types-pipes" rel="subsection" title="16.2.2.3 Named pipes (FIFOs)">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-types-sockets" rel="subsection" title="16.2.2.4 Sockets">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-proc" rel="subsection" title="16.2.3 The <samp>proc</samp> filesystem">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-permissions" rel="subsection" title="16.2.4 Advanced aspects of file permissions">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-permissions-absolute" rel="subsection" title="16.2.4.1 Using numeric arguments with <samp>chmod</samp>">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-chattr" rel="subsection" title="16.2.5 chattr">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-copying" rel="subsection" title="16.2.6 Large-scale copying">
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<link href="ch-advanced.html#s-advanced-files-undocumented" rel="subsection" title="16.2.7 Other concepts not yet covered, but should be">
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</head>
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<body>
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<p><a name="ch-introduction"></a></p>
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<hr>
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<p>
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[ <a href="ch-about.html">previous</a> ]
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[ <a href="index.html#contents">Contents</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-about.html">1</a> ]
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[ 2 ]
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[ <a href="ch-start.html">3</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-basics.html">4</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-docs.html">5</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-shell.html">6</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-files.html">7</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-editor.html">8</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-custom_shell.html">9</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-X.html">10</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-text_tools.html">11</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-file_tools.html">12</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-disks.html">13</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-dpkg.html">14</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-troubleshooting.html">15</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-advanced.html">16</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-next.html">17</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-helping.html">18</a> ]
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[ <a href="ap-apps_appendix.html">A</a> ]
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[ <a href="ap-components_appendix.html">B</a> ]
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[ <a href="ap-booting_appendix.html">C</a> ]
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[ <a href="ap-misc_appendix.html">D</a> ]
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[ <a href="ch-start.html">next</a> ]
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</p>
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<hr>
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<h1>
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Debian Tutorial (Obsolete Documentation)
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<br>Chapter 2 - Introduction
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</h1>
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<hr>
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<h2><a name="s-introduction-debian"></a>2.1 What is Debian?</h2>
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<p>
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<em>Debian</em> is a free operating system (OS) for your computer. An
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operating system is the set of basic programs and utilities that make your
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computer run. At the core of an operating system is the <em>kernel</em>. The
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kernel is the most fundamental program on the computer: it does all the basic
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housekeeping and lets you start other programs. Debian uses the <em>Linux</em>
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kernel, a completely free piece of software started by Linus Torvalds and
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supported by (probably over 1000) programmers worldwide. A large part of the
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basic tools that fill out the operating system come from the (<code><a
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href="http://www.gnu.org">GNU project</a></code>), and these tools are also
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free. Of course, what people want is application software: programs to help
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them get what they want to do done, from editing documents to running a
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business to playing games to writing more software. Debian comes with over
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1000 <em>packages</em> (precompiled software bundled up in a nice format for
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easy installation on your machine) --- all of it free.
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</p>
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<p>
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It's a bit like a tower. At the base is Linux. On top of that are all the
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basic tools, mostly from GNU. Next is all the application software that you
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run on the computer: much of this is also from GNU. The Debian developers act
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as architects and coordinators --- carefully organizing the system and fitting
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everything together into an integrated, stable operating system: Debian
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GNU/Linux.
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</p>
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<hr>
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<h3><a name="s-introduction-debian-os"></a>2.1.1 What's an operating system, and what sort of operating system is Debian?</h3>
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<p>
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An operating system is the collection of software that makes a computer usable.
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It manages hardware devices and provides utilities and applications.
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</p>
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<p>
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Debian GNU/Linux is based on the Unix operating system, which has a long
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history (see <a href="ap-misc_appendix.html#s-unix-history">Unix History,
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Section D.1</a>). Debian is basically compatible with Unix, but adds a
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significant number of additional features.
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</p>
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<p>
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The design philosophy of GNU/Linux (and Unix) is to distribute its
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functionality into small, multipurpose parts. That way, you can easily achieve
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new functionality and new features by combining the small parts (programs) in
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new ways. Debian is like an erector set; you can build all sorts of things
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with it.
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</p>
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<p>
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When you're using an operating system, you want to minimize the amount of work
|
|
you put into getting your job done. Debian supplies many tools that can help
|
|
you, but only if you know what these tools do. Spending an hour trying to get
|
|
something to work and then finally giving up isn't very productive. This
|
|
manual will teach you about the core tools that make up Debian: what tools to
|
|
use in what situations, and how to tie these various tools together.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<hr>
|
|
|
|
<h3><a name="s-introduction-debian-how"></a>2.1.2 Who creates Debian?</h3>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Debian is an all-volunteer internet development project. There are hundreds of
|
|
volunteers working on it. Most are in charge of a small number of software
|
|
packages and are intimately familiar with the software they package.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
These volunteers work together by following a strict set of guidelines
|
|
governing how packages are assembled. These guidelines are developed
|
|
cooperatively in discussions on internet mailing lists and <em>internet relay
|
|
chat</em> (IRC) forums.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<hr>
|
|
|
|
<h2><a name="s-introduction-DFSG"></a>2.2 What's free software?</h2>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
When Debian developers and users speak of "free software", they refer
|
|
to <em>freedom</em> rather than price. Debian is free in this sense: you are
|
|
free to modify and redistribute it, and will always have access to the source
|
|
code for this purpose. The <code><a
|
|
href="http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines">Debian Free Software
|
|
Guidelines</a></code> describe in more details exactly what is meant by
|
|
"free". The <code><a href="http://www.fsf.org">Free Software
|
|
Foundation</a></code>, originator of the GNU project, is another source of
|
|
information. You can find a more detailed discussion of free software on the
|
|
<code><a href="http://www.debian.org/intro/free">Debian web site</a></code>.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Free software is sometimes called Open Source (R) software --- Open Source is a
|
|
certification mark. Since Open Source (R) is trademarked, only truly free
|
|
software can call itself Open Source (R). You may encounter vendors who try to
|
|
mislead you by claiming their software is "free", while in reality it
|
|
has significant strings attached. The Open Source (R) trademark gives you some
|
|
assurance that the software really is free software. 'Open Source software' is
|
|
occasionally abbreviated 'OSS'.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
You may be wondering: why would people spend hours of their own time to write
|
|
software, carefully package it, and then give it all away? The answers are as
|
|
varied as the people who contribute.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Many believe in sharing information and having the freedom to cooperate with
|
|
one another, and feel that free software encourages this. There's a long
|
|
tradition starting in the 1950s upholding these values, sometimes called the
|
|
Hacker Ethic. (You can read more about it in Steven Levy's enjoyable book,
|
|
<em>Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution</em>.)
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Others want to learn more about computers. More and more people are looking
|
|
for ways to avoid the inflated price of commercial software. A growing crowd
|
|
contribute as a thank you for all the great free software they've received from
|
|
others.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Many in academia create free software to help get the results of their research
|
|
into wider use. Businesses help maintain free software so they can have a say
|
|
in how it develops --- there's no quicker way to get a new feature than to
|
|
implement it yourself or hire a consultant to do so! Business is also
|
|
interested in greater reliability and the ability to choose between support
|
|
vendors.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Still others see free software as a social good, democratizing access to
|
|
information and preventing excessive centralization of the world's information
|
|
infrastructure. Of course, a lot of us just find it great fun.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Debian is so committed to free software that we thought it would be useful if
|
|
it was formalized in a document of some sort. Our <code><a
|
|
href="http://www.debian.org/social_contract">Social Contract</a></code>
|
|
promises that Debian will always be 100% free software. When you download a
|
|
package from the Debian main distribution, you can be sure it meets our Free
|
|
Software Guidelines.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Although Debian believes in free software, there are cases where people want or
|
|
need to put proprietary software on their machine. Whenever possible Debian
|
|
will support this; though proprietary software is not included in the main
|
|
distribution, it is sometimes available on the ftp site in the
|
|
<samp>non-free</samp> directory, and there are a growing number of packages
|
|
whose sole job is to install proprietary software we are not allowed to
|
|
distribute ourselves.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
It is important to distinguish <em>commercial</em> software from
|
|
<em>proprietary</em> software. Proprietary software is non-free software,
|
|
while commercial software is software sold for money. Debian permits
|
|
commercial software to be a part of the main distribution, but not proprietary
|
|
software. Remember that the phrase "free software" does not refer to
|
|
price; it is quite possible to sell free software. For more clarification of
|
|
the terminology, see <code><a
|
|
href="http://www.opensource.org">http://www.opensource.org</a></code> or
|
|
<code><a
|
|
href="http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/categories.html">http://www.fsf.org/philosophy/categories.html</a></code>.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<hr>
|
|
|
|
<h2><a name="s-introduction-how"></a>2.3 How to Read This Book</h2>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
The best way to learn about almost any computer program is at your computer.
|
|
Most people find that reading a book without using the program isn't
|
|
beneficial. The best way to learn Unix and GNU/Linux is by using them. Use
|
|
GNU/Linux for everything you can. Experiment. Don't be afraid --- it's
|
|
<em>possible</em> to mess things up, but you can always reinstall. Keep
|
|
backups and have fun!
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Debian isn't as intuitively obvious as some other operating systems. Thus, you
|
|
will probably end up reading at least the first few chapters. GNU/Linux is
|
|
like a race car, a master chef's kitchen, or a classic novel; its power and
|
|
complexity make it difficult to approach at first, but far more rewarding in
|
|
the long run.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
The suggested way to learn is to read a little, then play a little. Keep
|
|
playing until you're comfortable with the concepts, and then start skipping
|
|
around in the book. You'll find a variety of topics are covered, some of which
|
|
you might find interesting and some of which you'll find boring. After a
|
|
while, you should feel confident enough to start using commands without knowing
|
|
exactly what they do. This is a good thing.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
A helpful thing to know: if you ever mistakenly type a command, or don't know
|
|
how to exit a program, C-c (the Ctrl key and the lowercase letter c held
|
|
simultaneously) will often stop the program.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<hr>
|
|
|
|
<h2><a name="s-introduction-ldp"></a>2.4 The Linux Documentation Project</h2>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
This manual borrows heavily from the Linux Documentation Project's <em>Linux
|
|
User's Guide</em>, by Larry Greenfield. Thanks Larry! That project has a
|
|
number of other excellent manuals, many of them targetted at more experienced
|
|
users and system administrators. The LDP also maintains the Linux HOWTOs, an
|
|
invaluable resource you should become familiar with. You can find the LDP at
|
|
their <code><a href="http://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/">homepage</a></code>.
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<hr>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
[ <a href="ch-about.html">previous</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="index.html#contents">Contents</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-about.html">1</a> ]
|
|
[ 2 ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-start.html">3</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-basics.html">4</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-docs.html">5</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-shell.html">6</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-files.html">7</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-editor.html">8</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-custom_shell.html">9</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-X.html">10</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-text_tools.html">11</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-file_tools.html">12</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-disks.html">13</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-dpkg.html">14</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-troubleshooting.html">15</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-advanced.html">16</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-next.html">17</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-helping.html">18</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ap-apps_appendix.html">A</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ap-components_appendix.html">B</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ap-booting_appendix.html">C</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ap-misc_appendix.html">D</a> ]
|
|
[ <a href="ch-start.html">next</a> ]
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<hr>
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
Debian Tutorial (Obsolete Documentation)
|
|
</p>
|
|
|
|
<address>
|
|
29 Dezember 2009<br>
|
|
<br>
|
|
Havoc Pennington <code><a href="mailto:hp@debian.org">hp@debian.org</a></code><br>
|
|
<br>
|
|
</address>
|
|
<hr>
|
|
|
|
</body>
|
|
|
|
</html>
|
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