Re: Learning the UNIX Operating System - NetBSD Edition

[Clark Hale <xlark%sdf.lonestar.org@localhost>]

On Thu, Dec 17, 2015 at 04:02:18AM +0100, Joseph wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> Here - https://www.marc.info/?l=netbsd-users&m=144678820111821 - I was recommended by Herb to first go through the book, 'Learning the UNIX Operating System' (O'Reilly). The last, 5th edition (2001) talks about someone from the organization will set me up with a UNIX environment - I guess that will be you.
> 
> Flipping through the table of contents, I guess my best bet would be a live system with X (remember, I was recommended 'Learning the UNIX Operating System' before myself installing BSD myself).
> 
> Flipping through the mailing list archives, there has been requests for live systems before, for similar, educational, purposes. I'm not sure what's the conclusion now, what NetBSD live system can you honestly recommend, if any? Or, alternatively, what FreeBSD live system? OpenBSD? I guess switching from the other BSD live system to installing NetBSD core might not overly confuse me, so I can manage such a transition.
 
I don't know of any NetBSD live-cd or preinstalled virtual images, but I think the basic install 
is simple enough.  I've had good luck with every major hypervisor (VirtualBox, VMWare, KVM).

If you don't need root, you could open an account on SDF, which is a venerable, public access UNIX
system.  It runs NetBSD on alpha and amd64 hardware.  

> Alternatively, feel free to recommend perhaps a more up to date book in a different style, which was presumably not written in a language to folks who 'have to' deal with UNIX, 'in the organization.' (Browsing Amazon introduced me to 'The UNIX Hater's Handbook' as well; at least I understand this might have been a thing in 1994)

The UNIX Hater's Handbook is a really interesting read.  The authors released for free some years ago.

http://web.mit.edu/simsong/www/ugh.pdf

Much of the criticism in the book may not be valid...and it's from a really different era (i.e. before
Windows dominance).  The primary operating systems being compared to UNIX are mostly dead or dying 
now, e.g. VMS, TOPS, Genera, et cetera.

> I really like No Starch Press for geek entertainment, but presumably they don't see a business in a general UNIX book. Their similar title, 'How Linux works' (2nd edition, 2014), might not be 'UNIX-like' enough for my purposes.
> 

I'd avoid any Linux books...especially as you get further away from just using the system, and
into system administration and coding.  

HTH,

-CFH