Mainstream Linux distributions such as the ever-popular Ubuntu have the potential to contain thousands or tens of thousands of packages and have a wealth of supporting services activated on computer boot ups. Mark G. Sobell’s book A practical guide to Ubuntu Linux, published by Prentice Hall, describes the details of maintaining these complex structures on your own machine.

My first impression of the book was that the content was well chosen and relatively timeless. Rather than dwelling on particular superficial features, Ubuntu Linux’s underlying structures are described in great detail. The benefit of this is that the content will remain valid despite the frequent updates we see in today’s competitive market place.

Even though the author based the content on Ubuntu 7.10, the book is generic enough to be true in most Linux based situations. The book is self-contained with a Live CD and books source code included for quick installation. By the time you have finished reading you should be able to maintain an Ubuntu server or two.

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