Overview

Looking at the world of the desktop computer, you see a myriad of solutions ranging from Microsoft Windows 98 and other versions, to Macintosh computers of all types, to Linux, the new rising star. While we know that Microsoft Windows and Macintosh have been competitors, more and more eyes are investigating Linux as a solution to rising IT costs. Even so, many are unwilling, or unprepared, to take the plunge and use this opensource operating system. So more information is needed, a readily available resource that both addresses the issues inherent in using Linux in a non-Linux-centric desktop world and provides an information source for IT managers and those system administrators with a clear understanding of Linux basics.

It is necessary to describe the complete scope of this book based on desktop-user requirements. These requirements will dictate the questions to be answered by each subsequent chapter of this book, and stem from two basic questions:

1. Is Linux ready for real use as a desktop?

2. Is Linux ready to be used as a corporate desktop?

The easy answer to both is yes. Linux is ready, but the matter is much more complex than that. Let us look at two distinct scenarios and try to further refine our answer.

The first scenario consists of using Linux as a replacement for all existing machines, from file servers to desktops: a homogenous Linux solution that will not interact with any other types of systems. The second scenario consists of a heterogeneous solution, in...