either way - they get the same things: recognition, exposure and hopefully a bigger user base. no?I was a bit disappointed in the review. It didn't seem to give enough info about what the book or videos covered. The book author's web site was helpful, but I wasn't sure whether the book was worth the bucks. Fortunately, I decided to take a chance on it.
Mike Weber did a good job covering DSL and providing a gentle intro to Linux. It is a "work in progess" in the best sense; it was up-to-date on DSL 2.4 and had a few pages on DSL-N 0.1. My book was dated May 7, 2006.
I agree with the review about the need for editing, but it rarely is a problem. The reader can usually catch the bugs by context. The number of real errors is quite small and they don't really detract from the book. More importantly, Weber "gets" DSL, and that makes for a better book.
Book is 391 pages, 8.5 x 7 inch, comb-bound, well-illustrated. It comes with a DSL 2.4 CD & a CD of instructional Flash videos. Contrary to the reviewer, I think Weber was wise to use Flash because it is easy to play on any platform. I played them on DSL after installing the Firefox Flash plugin (using the instructions in the DSL Forum). The videos would be especially helpful for DSL Newbies, particularly if used with the book. The book doesn't have the polish of something from O'Reilly, but DSL is a rapidly evolving and the target market is relativley small. More than "good enough."
Price is US$24.95 plus $4 S&H. Order was shipped on the day after receipt by USPS Priority Mail. Major credit cards, PayPal, etc.
If there is interest, I'd be willing to write up a longer review with a table of contents for both the book and the videos CD.
If you just want to learn Linux skills, there are better books. If you want to rapidly transition from DSL Newbie to DSL Intermediate skills, you will probably like the book.
FWIW, I'd recommend the book to people who: -- have trouble following the help in the DSL forums -- need to understand how to configure fluxbox or jwm -- are "refugees" from big Linux distros or Windows and need to understand the "Tao of DSL"
