Praise for Marcel Gagné’s Moving to Linux: Kiss the Blue Screen of Death Goodbye! “This is kind of a funny book for me to be recommending to readers of a Windows newsletter, but a lot of people ask me about this topic, so here goes. Author Marcel Gagné is a columnist for Linux Journal, and in Moving to Linux he’s prepared a step-by-step guide to converting a Windows PC to Linux—or just trying it! The book includes a bootable CD with a version of Linux that you can poke around in without touching or changing anything about your Windows installation. If your boss is asking, `What’s with this Linux stuff?’, moving to Linux is a great way to show that you know what you’re talking about.” —Brian Livingston, Editor, WindowsSecrets.com“Pros: Too many to list in the available space. We liked the book from the very first page right through to the end. Gagné has done a solid job of exposing Linux and all its components in a way that is both inviting, useful, and easy to understand . . . We really liked this book—highly recommended.” —Howard Carson, Kickstart News, www.kickstartnews.com“Marcel walks the user through each technique in a very chatty and comfortable style. In fact, when I put the book down, I had a momentary impression that I’d just finished watching a good cooking show with an entertaining chef. (Australian readers may understand if I say that it felt like having just watched Ian Parmenter do an episode of `Consuming Passions.’)” —Jenn Vesperman, Linuxchix.org“Gagné’s Moving to Linux is a straightforward exposition of just how a non-hacker PC user can get rid of `The Blue Screen of Death’. If you have a friend, a co-worker, a significant other, or a relative who periodically screams, sighs, bursts into tears, or asks for help, here’s the simple solution. It comes with a bootable CD of Knoppix, Klaus Knopper’s variant of Debian.” —Peter H. Salus, writing in ;login: The Usenix Magazine“This is a book aimed not at you, dear developer/techie/guru, but at your friends, acquaintances, and family who are lowly users of Windows. Yes, such people do exist even in the tightest of families. Fear not, however, because salvation is at hand should any of them decide that this Linux thing might be worth investigating. No longer will you be faced with the unenviable task of walking them through the process of switching OS. Moving to Linux: Kiss the Blue Screen of Death Goodbye! is a big, bold, and friendly guide to help them along. The emphasis is firmly on using Linux as a desktop system—this isn’t a book about Linux as a file, print, or Web server.” —Tech Book ReportsSay Goodbye to Windows®-Related Crashes, Viruses, Hassles, and Costs! Today, Linux is more powerful, useful, and practical than ever before! Moving to Linux, Second Edition, can help you migrate from Windows to the latest and best versions of Linux in just hours. By the time you’re finished, you’ll be able to do virtually anything in Linux—without the aggravation, crashes, security risks, or high costs of running Windows! This is not a book for techies! It’s for people who write documents, create spreadsheets, surf the Web, use email, listen to music, watch movies, and play games—and want to do it in Linux, without becoming technical experts. Convert your Windows PC to a Linux system that does more for less money—one step at a time Take control of Linux the easy way, with the quick, efficient KDE graphical environment Browse the Internet using Firefox, the fast, powerful browser that’s quickly replacing Microsoft Internet Explorer Send and receive email and instant messages using your existing AOL, MSN, and Yahoo! accounts Manage all your digital photos, without the hassle, using digikam Rip music, burn and play CDs, and watch movies Discover the world of Linux games and learn how to run Windows games on your Linux PC There’s more! Create documents, spreadsheets, and presentations with OpenOffice.org 2.0—the free office suite for Linux that’s now easier, more powerful, and even more compatible with Microsoft Office. Say goodbye to expensive software upgrades, burdensome Microsoft licensing, Windows viruses, and “blue screens of death.” Say hello to computing the way it’s supposed to be—with Linux!

Table of Contents:
Preface. 1. Introduction.     Is Linux Really FREE?     The GPL     So What Do I Gain?     What Do I Lose?     Some Tips on Using This Book     Help Me!     About the CD     It’s My Philosophy     Resources 2. An Introduction to the WFTL Edition Knoppix Disk.     Ready to Try Linux?     Playing with WFTL Knoppix     Just Looking Around     Configure Now, Remember Me Later     The Persistence of Memory     Setting Up the Network     HELP!     Remember to Share     Resources 3. Ready . . . Set . . . Linux!     Getting Linux     Getting a Free Copy of Linux     Dual Booting     Preserving Your Data     A Linux-Only System     Windows on Linux     Breaking Free!     Resources 4. Getting Your Hands Dirty.     Getting to Know You. . . KDE     Logging In     Becoming One with the Desktop     Your First Application     Windows, Title Bars, and Menus, Oh My!     Resizing Windows     Command Central     A Polite Introduction to the Command Line     Give Me More!     Changing Your Password     User Security     I Need More Help!     Konquest of the Desktop     Resources 5. Konquering Your World.     Files, Directories, and the Root of All Things     Wherever You Go. . .     Enhancing Konqueror     Uh, Roger, Copy That. . .     Creating New Folders     Copying Files and Directories (and Moving, Too!)     Deleting Files and Directories     My World, My Way     Making Your Home a Home 6. Customizing Your Desktop (or Making Your World Your Own).     I Am Sovereign of All I Survey. . .     Save My Screen, Please!     Moving Things Around     Is That a Theme or a Motif?     Adding Icons and Shortcuts to Your Desktop     Miscellaneous Changes     Resources 7. Installing New Applications.     Linux and Security     The Many Faces of Software Installation     SuSE Software Package Installs     Mandrakes’s urpmi     Searching for Common Ground     Kpackage     RPMs, the Shell Way     The Extract and Build Five-Step     Resources 8. Printers and Other Hardware.     Yes, It Runs with Linux     Plug and Play     Getting Familiar with Your Hardware     Printers and Printing     Kprinter     Modems versus Winmodems     What? More Devices?     Resources 9. Connecting to the Internet.     Before You Begin     Getting on the Net     Connecting to the Net with a Modem     Cable Modems and High-Speed DSL     Okay, I’m Connected. Now What?     Kopete     Resources 10. Surfing the Internet.     Konqueror     Cool Konqueror Tricks     Mozilla Firefox     Wrapping Up     Resources 11. Electronic Mail Clients.     Be Prepared. . .     Kontact     KMail     Let’s Communicate!     Evolution     Other Options     Resources 12. Getting Organized.     KOrganizer     Evolution     Other Tools     Resources 13. Word Processors (It Was a Dark and Stormy Night. . .).     OpenOffice.org Writer     Write Now!     Toolbars of Every Kind. . .     Help!     To Word or Not to Word?     Personalizing Your Environment     A Wizard of Words     Navigating Style     Speaking of Document Elements. . .     More! Give Me More!     Other Options     Resources 14. Spreadsheets (Tables You Can Count On).     Starting a New Spreadsheet and Entering Data     Basic Math     Saving Your Work     Complex Charts and Graphs, Oh My!     Alternatives     Resources 15. Presentation Graphics (For Those Who Need No Introduction).     Getting Ready to Impress     Instant Web Presentations     How About a Little Flash? Shocking!     So What’s with the Penguin?     Extra! Extra!     Alternatives     Resources 16. Digital Photography.     Working with a Digital Camera     Picture-Perfect Konqueror     Picture-Perfect digiKam     Scanning. . .     Scanning under KDE-Kooka     Optical Character Recognition     Resources 17. Digital Art with the GIMP.     Ladies and Gentlemen, Start Your GIMP     Printing Your Masterpiece     Tools, Tools, and More Tools     Resources 18. Linux Multimedia (If Music Be the Food of Love. . .).     Adjusting the Levels     KsCD, the KDE CD Player     XMMS     Noatun     Ripping and Burning Songs     KAudioCreator     K3b, for a Friendlier Burn     Put Another Nickel In . . .     Lights, Camera, Action: Moving Pictures     It’s a Wrap!     Resources 19. Fun and Games (Very Serious Fun).     Take Me Out to the Arcade     Deal Those Cards, Ace     B-4. Miss. E-7. Hit!     Educational Games     3D Accelerated Fun     The 13-Year Old’s Picks     More Games! I Need More Games!     Resources Appendix A: The GNU General Public License. Appendix B: Installation. Appendix C: Taking Command of Linux. Appendix D: Working with Editors. Index.