By Dru Lavigne
ISBN13: 978-1-4302-2641-3
ISBN10: 1-4302-2641-2
Publisher: Apress
I was afforded the opportunity to review this book before the actual print date. For those who don’t already know PC-BSD is a well polished system and I commend the gang over at iXsystems for sponsoring it’s development. Dru Lavigne has out done herself with equally well polished volume. At first glance one would think why do I need a book about PC-BSD.
If the operating system is so good then who needs a book really? The book proves that the operating system is perfectly suitable for use by average PC users. Sure you can get by without such a text, digging through man pages and what not but if you are new to PC-BSD this book will help you go from newbie to power user in record time. One could easily re-purpose an older PC extending is usable life by installing PC-BSD.
Even if you are a veteran FreeBSD ranger, there are a lot of nuances to PC-BSD and the book does a lot to explain the why of PC-BSD. Dru does her best to explain common and advance UNIX tasks in a non-patronizing manner. Even as a long time user of FreeBSD I couldn’t help but discover some new ways of doing things.
My only gripe is that the book does not come with a PC-BSD live demo/install DVD. While you can download and burn the media easily enough, I have always found that people are more likely to drop a test drive disc in their system if one is included with the book. I personally feel that the topics covered are easier learned when one can follow along.
In any event the book has a lot of valuable information. For example in chapter 5 you will find a table listing the equivalents to common Windows applications. Since it is trivial to install these applications via PC-BSD’s PBI system even the novice user can look like a pro.
This book is the perfect compliment to a very good operating system. Yes you can muddle your way through on your own or, or you can jump start your progress with this handy guide by your side.
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