Excellent Downloadable eBooks To Teach Yourself Linux

So you have heard of all the advantages and geeky babble about how Linux is better and you have finally decided to try it? Just one thing, you don’t know an awful lot about Linux to get you started. How about some free downloadable ebooks to teach yourself Linux, that you can download today? Would that help?

Free – you ask? Yes, free. Welcome to the world of Linux where things are free both as in free speech and also as in free beer (mostly)!

If you are starting out on your journey towards Linux awesomeness, here are a few free downloadable ebooks to teach yourself Linux that should help you along nicely:

Newbie’s Getting Started Guide to Linux

(Download)

MakeUseOf’s very own Newbie’s Guide to Linux, tells you how to choose a distribution and then teaches you how to perform a basic Linux install. You can then use the guide to familiarize yourself with the Linux desktop and some basic commands.

Stefan did a great job in keeping it simple and to the point, the way beginners want it. Also don’t forget to check out our other MakeUseOf Manuals.

Introduction to Linux – A Hands on Guide

(Download)

Takes you from the absolute basics to basics. This hands on guide tells you everything right from logging in, basic file management, backup techniques up to basics of networking. It is what you need if you are having difficulty figuring out how to get to that resume file you saved just now. The guide explains Linux file structure and introduces to basic commands and text editors as well.

GNU/Linux Command line tools Summary

(Download)

One important aspect of working in Linux is that you have to familiar with the command line. This book shows you how to use the command line in Linux to your advantage. Apart from the ins and outs of the shell, this book also introduces various commands and the situations where you would use them. There are chapters that deal with specific tasks and list various commands you can use to achieve the task. If you can study online, there is another excellent manual you can refer to.

Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference

(Download)

Ubuntu is one of the most popular distributions, new users look up to when trying out Linux. If it is Ubuntu specific information that you are after then you should definitely check out Ubuntu Pocket Guide and Reference. The guide takes you from installing and configuring Ubuntu to adding and managing software and securing your system. A must read book if you use Ubuntu.

Rute User’s Tutorial and Exposition

(Download)

This one is not for the faint hearted! There is enough Linux juice in this book to keep even the intermediate to advanced users interested. The book begins humbly by presenting the basic commands and tools, however before you know it, you are learning everything from regular expressions to shell scripting to C programming to networking.

There is plenty of great material out there if you are trying to learn Linux, similar to these downloadable ebooks to teach yourself everything you ever wanted to know about Linux. If you have read a book or a tutorial that you found particularly useful, feel free to tell us about it in the comments below.

Current and Future Developments in Embedded Mobile Linux

An increasing number of manufacturers are adopting Linux for their mobile phones since it enables them to use the same operating system on a large range of different products. It also gives them greater flexibility in differentiating devices, without being locked into proprietary schemes.

Mobile phones running Linux include
- Motorola A760, A768, A780, and E680
- Panasonic P901i
- NEC N901ic
- Samsung SCH-i519
- Telepong
- Wildseed
- ROAD S101 devices

The Sharp Zaurus PDAs have been leading in the area of handheld Linux devices for many years.

Additional Resources

You can find more information about embedded Linux and Linux for mobile devices, including the latest on Linux gadgets and software applications here.

Comparison with Other Embedded Operating Systems

Compared with other embedded operating systems, like QNX, Windows CE, Embedded NT, or Palm OS, Embedded Linux has the advantages of being Open Source, stable and well supported, having a small footprint (2MB), and requiring no royalty payments.

Embedded Mobile Linux Processors and Vendors

Processor Architectures used with Embedded/Mobile Linux

Besides the ARM processors, embedded Linux has been adapted to a variety of processors, including
- IBM PowerPC embedded processors
- Tensilica’s Xtensa microprocessors
- Intel’s processors for wireless devices
- Freescale's PowerPC and PowerQuicc processors

Embedded Linux Vendors

Organizations developing embedded/mobile Linux products include
-µClinux
- RTLinux
- LynuxWorks
- Wind River
- MontaVista, which has released Mobilinux, the first version of its Linux operating system specifically designed and optimized for mobile phones and wireless devices.

Mobile Linux vs. Standard (x86-based) Linux

The methodical design of Linux, a UNIX-based operating system, made it possible to adapt it to a wide range of computing platforms. Originally developed for Intel 386 processors and their successors, Linux was soon ported to DEC Alpha processor architectures and runs today on many other widely adopted CPUs. Of particular interest in this context are the ARM based architectures, as many embedded systems and mobile devices are powered by ARM processors. Being able to extract the core functionality of Linux and minimize its footprint made it possible to adopt Linux as an open standard for small and inexpensive devices.

Embedded Linux for Mobile Devices

The first operating systems for mobile phones and other mobile consumer electronic devices were custom developed, which means they were expensive to develop and maintain, as all hardware drivers and interfaces had to be written from scratch in a low level programming language.

Soon developers started to look for higher-level approaches that would facilitate re-use of software components. A typical installation of embedded Linux requires only about two megabytes, which was therefore a good candidate for use as operating system of resource limited devices. Furthermore, Linux is Open Source and therefore well suited as basis for standards.

A group of companies interested in the development of Linux products formed The Embedded Linux Consortium (ELC) in order to promote Linux and develop standards for the embedded computing markets. Standards are also developed for managing power consumption of devices, designing user interfaces, and real-time operation of embedded Linux software. One of the results of this effort is the Embedded Linux Consortium Platform Specification (ELCPS).

Power Combination: Mobile Linux and Mobile Java

While Linux is evolving into a major standard for mobile device operating systems, Java is becoming a standard at the software application level. The J2ME/MIDP specifications have been adopted by all major mobile phone manufacturers, which enables software developers to write applications that can be run, without modifications, on all such devices that adhere to these specifications. The MIDP (Mobile Information Device Profile) is comprised of a set of Java APIs, that provides a J2ME (Java 2 Micro Edition) runtime environment for mobile information devices. It standardizes functions such as user interface design, persistent storage, and networking.

Introduction to Embedded Mobile Linux

To understand the exciting, relatively new, mobile Linux technology, you need background knowledge on embedded Linux, real-time Linux and handheld Linux.

What is Embedded Linux

Linux for mobile phones and other mobile devices is part of the field of "Embedded Linux". "Embedded" refers to the concept of integrating a computational system (a small computer) into a machine or device, other than an ordinary computer, in order to make such machines smarter and more flexible. That is, the primary function of such a machine is something other than being a computer. For example, a specialized computer could be embedded in a car to control ignition, fuel injection, anti-lock braking, and the many other functions of a modern car.

Real-Time is Important

For such applications it is important that the computer system responds quickly and reliably to any tasks given to it, that is, it needs to be run by a "real-time" operating system.

What is a Mobile Computing Device

Mobile simply means portable, easy to be moved about. Several technologies help to make a computing device mobile. First, the size has be small, preferably handheld. It should be powered with rechargeable batteries, and wireless technologies for transmitting and exchanging data have become important as well.

Hot Stuff - Embedded Computer Systems That are Also Mobile

Although an embedded system can be part of a stationary device (e.g., a home security system), and not all mobile devices have embedded or real-time components (e.g., a personal digital assistant or PDA), the greatest interest right now is in embedded computer systems in mobile devices, such as mobile phones.