Designed as a primer for the popular Linux family of operating systems this volume walks the reader quickly but clearly through basic operations and on into more advanced core concepts necessary for a deeper understanding of this open source software environment. Appropriate as a textbook for programmers or intermediate computer science students with a solid working knowledge of computer operating systems, the work provides some step-by-step instructions but focuses more on delivering conceptual understanding of the meaning and usage of commands and procedures for common Linux computing tasks. Each chapter in this volume provides illustrations, code examples, a concept summary and a collection of study exercises. Access to a companion website containing appendices and sample programs is included. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)