An introduction to Student Linux Roger Herz-Fischler

Transcription

1 [Revised: ] An introduction to Student Linux Roger Herz-Fischler I would like to go to the fields and glean among the ears of grain... Ruth, chapter 2, verse 2 In brief, Student Linux is a pre-configured version of PCLinuxOS using the KDE desktop environment. For more about Linux, PCLinuxOS, KDE, and the technical statements, see the end of this text. Updates and new material are available at: LINUX/STUDENT LINUX.html Starting and, optionally, installing Student Linux You have three choices: 1. The simplest thing to do is to run Student Linux from the DVD. Once you remove the DVD no trace is left on your computer. This is very convenient if you want to try outstudent Linux or if you are using a computer where you cannot store things on the hard drive. [You have to be doubly certain to BACK UP your work on a USB travel stick.] i. Boot the computer and hold down the delete key (this is the usual way, but some computers may use a function key e.g. F2 or F10; it usually says at boot up). Then go to boot and then boot order and make sure that CD/DVD is first. Before you leave, insert thestudent Linux DVD. ii. After boot up an option screen will appear. Choose the first option which is Live CD. iii The only thing that you have to decide is which keyboard layout you want, probably, US keyboard. A login screen will then appear. Click on student, and give the password, which is also student. iv. When you are done, just click on the application launcher (the PC icon on the far left of the top panel), choose leave and then shut down. You will 1

2 be be prompted to remove the DVD. 2. You have an older computer and can use the entire hard drive for the installation ofstudent Linux. i. This is the same as step i of option 1. ii. After boot up an option screen will appear. Choose option 6, install. iii. Several screens will appear. The first is keyboard and US keyboard will be highlighted. This is probably the one you want; just click to continue. The second is installation wizard ;just click to continue. You will next come to installation method ; choose item 3, erase and use entire disk. Push enter andstudent Linux will be installed. iv. When done, the system will shut down and prompt you to withdraw the DVD. The system will then reboot and you are asked to give the root password. For method 1, the root password is admin-student, but you can choose what you want. Store your password safely, because you will not be able to add new software, etc. without it (unless you reinstall; just in case always BACK UP your work). v. A login screen will appear with root (administrator) and student. Click on student, and give the password, which is also student. The role of the administrator is discussed at the end of this introduction. 3. You have a computer withwindows on it and you want to installstudent Linux. You will then have a dual-boot computer. At start-up you can choose which of the two operating systems you want. The default isstudent Linux, but this can be changed by becoming the administrator, going to the control centre and then clicking on the boot. i. BACK UP important material, just in case. ii. Log in to Windows; click on run (= command) and type chkdsk/r. If there are no problems, type defrag to defragment and compactify your windows partition. iii. Follow steps i and ii of option 2. iv. Several screens will appear. The first is keyboard and US keyboard, will be highlighted. This is probably the one you want; just click to continue. The second is Installation wizard, just click to continue. You will next come to installation method ; choose item 3, Use free space. Push enter and Student Linux will be installed. v. This is the same as step iv of option 2. vi. This is the same as steps v of option 2. Using Student Linux 1. WhenStudent Linux boots up the log-in screen will appear. Choose student. The password is student. If you want to change the password, click on the 2

3 Konsole icon: type passwd (NOT password ), enter student and then the new password. 2. When you enter Student Linux you will see a panel on the top. On the left is the application launcher (the PC icon). Just to the right there are four squares. These represent different desktops. The philosophy of Student Linux is that, as much as possible, each desktop should be used for one specific activity instead of having windows piled on top of one another. You switch to desktops 1, 2, 3, 4 by using Ctrl + F1; Ctrl + F2; Ctrl + F3; Ctrl + F4 respectively. The applications that are running are shown just to the right of the squares. You have the option of clicking on an application to return to it. If you want to quickly see how this works: i. Type Ctrl + F3 to go to desktop 3. Click the Octave icon. ii. Type the following four lines at the Octave prompts. Here.001 represents the distance between points; the semi-colons suppress displaying the thousands of values for x and y and * means multiply. All this is explained in An Introduction to Octave. octave:1> x = [pi:.001:pi]; octave:2> y = 2*sin(5*x); octave:3> plot(x,y) octave:34> print -dpng first plot.png iii. Type Ctrl + F4 to go to desktop 4. Start Okular (the all-purpose viewer). Open up the file [first plot.png]. iv. Type Ctrl + F1 to go to desktop 1. Open Konqueror (file manager). Highlight [first plot.png]; you may have to hold the control key. Right click and choose rename. Change the file name to [my first plot.png]. A partial list of applications available [N.B. A indicates that detailed information appears in the sub-directory LEARN or in one of the specialized directories OCTAVE, TEXand LaTEX. The LEARN icon, which appears on every desktop, will lead you to the documentation. Check for updates by opening Firefox; thestudent Linux page will open automatically. General Applications Ctrl + F1... Ctrl + F4 indicate that there is an icon on desktops respectively. These are the suggested desktops for running the applications. Of course an application can be run from any desktop. You can have the same application opened on several desktops at once. A quick way of starting any application is to type ALT +F2. A small command line will open at the top of screen. If you start by oc then Octave will appear. 3

4 Once an application is open you can change the desktop on which it appears by clicking the icon usually the icon for that application on the far upper left (just above file ) and then on move to desktop. There is a LEARN icon on each desktop. 1. Konqueror : The all purpose file manager. [Icon on all desktops] 2. Kfind: File locator. [Icon on all desktops] 3. Kate : A text editor which automatically recognizes the type of file and highlights the commands. [Ctrl + F2] 4. Abiword (word processor). [Ctrl + F1] 5. Konsole : The terminal (console). A terminal is used for typing line commands, e.g. to start TEX, LaTEX or Nano (a tiny text editor). Some applications, such as Octave, always open in a terminal. [Ctrl + F3] 6. Okular : The all purpose viewer. [Ctrl + F3] 7. Firefox. 8. K3B : For copying and burning CDs and DVDs. [Ctrl + F1] 9. Ksnapshot : Ksnapshot is used for taking screen shots. This application is particularly useful when you are learning or when there is a problem. Do not forget to save! You can change the settings. [Ctrl + F1; for other desktops use Alt+ F2., then ksnapshot. 10. Pinta: A complete image manipulator; well designed and easy to use. [Ctrl + F1] 11. Mirage: A quick image viewer. [Ctrl + F1] 12. Kruler: A very useful on screen ruler, in pixels, for use withokular andpinta. Right click for options. [Ctrl + F4] 13. PDFshuffler: Break up or join PDF files. 14. images2pdf (true name: gscan2pdf ): Create a PDF file from png etc. images [Ctrl + F1] Special Applications 1. Octave : A polyvalent, high-level computer program. The manuals are in the directory OCTAVE. [Ctrl + F3; Ctrl + F1] 2. TEX and LaTEX : For professional looking documents, especially in mathematics, engineering, sciences and linguistics. The directories TEX and LATEX have manuals, books and other help. [Ctrl + F3] 3. Unit converter (true name: gonvert ). [Ctrl + F1] 4. If you are interested in applications for particular areas, log in as root and click the applications icon. At the bottom left click on sections and look under science. The categories listed are: astronomy, biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering, geoscience, and mathematics. If you are going to use LaTEX in one of these fields, see [latex symbols.pdf] in the LaTEX directory. 4

5 Administrator activities N.B. There is no need to read this section in detail. Consult it if one of the activities listed in (2) is of interest. The root user is the administratror and in Student Linux all functions that require the root password have been moved to root. 1. When Student Linux boots up the log-in screen will appear. Choose root. The password is admin-student unless you chose another one when installing. 2. Some of the activities for which you need to be the root user are: i. Add new software: click on the software icon. First click reload. Then either choose a section or click on all and then do a search. Click on an application and a brief description appears at the bottom. To install, click on apply. You can see which programs are installed by clicking on status on the bottom left. ii. Change the clock: configure computer = system = localization = time. iii. Allow others to use your computer: configure computer = administration = users. [You can also have an automatic login to student, but do not do this until you are comfortable with Student Linux: configure computer = boot = auto login.] iv. Change the boot time (now set to 30 seconds): configure computer = boot = set up boot. v. To create you own personalized version ofstudent Linux: konsole = type remaster. A new.iso file called [student.iso] will appear this will take some time and depends on the speed of your computer in the sub-directory REMASTER/ of /home/student. Use Konqueror to change the name, e.g. [my very own 01.iso]. Follow the instructions in [/home/student/remaster.txt]. Redistribution and conditions on the manuals and software 1. For the conditions on the redistribution for schools and universities of my manuals, please see the inside front covers. The shell and bashrc files that are included may be freely distributed and modified without restriction. 2. PCLinuxOS [pclinuxos.com] includes the following statement on its web page: PCLinuxOS is a free, easy to use Linux-based Operating System.... The PCLinuxOS name is Copyrighted 2003 and Trademarked through the Linux Mark Institute. All rights reserved. Linux is trademarked by Linus Torvalds.. 3. All the software in Student Linux that was downloaded from the PCLinuxOS repository is subject to the conditions, licenses etc. that are associated with the individual pieces of software. 4. None of various manuals that were downloaded from ctan.org (material related to TEX and LaTEX) have been modified in any way. Their use is subject to the conditions that appear in the individual manuals. 5

6 Linux, PCLinuxOS and KDE Linux belongs to a group of computer operating systems which have several features in common: different applications can be running at the same time and these applications are linked to the central system in such a way that a problem with one application will not cause the entire system to crash (as opposed to monolithic systems such as Microsoft Windows c ); emphasis on security via an administrator ( super user, root,... ) who has to give permission for new software to be installed; the possibility to install one s own commands (e.g. a shortcut to automatically delete all backup files); the possibility of running applications from a command line on a terminal etc.. Among these systems is Unix which dates from the late 1960s and early 1970s. The main problem with Unix was that different groups, commercial and academic, had their own version and applications for one flavour of Unix could not be transferred to another. One version of Unix (or Unix-like system ) isbsd, which is the base of the operating system for Apple c computers. Linux dates from the early 1990s and was initially developed by a Finnish graduate student Linus Torvalds. The great advantage of Linux is that it is open-source. Open-source means that the source code is freely available to anyone who wants to see what is happening when Linux is running. This aspect has several advantages: it is much more difficult to implant undetectable viruses; anyone can make improvements, and subject to the inclusion of statements such as those listed above redistribute the new version; improvements can be eventually incorporated into the main Linux kernel which is then available as the new standard (linuxfoundation.org). Linux is widely used today, not only on main-frame servers used by organizations, but also under other names. The best known of these is Android which is a version of Linux for smartphones. Chromebooks also use a version of Linux and there are numerous specialized versions. There are many versions of Linux (see distrowatch.com for a list of some of these). PCLinuxOS was chosen as the basis for Student Linux because of its organization, its vast software repository (over 13,500 of which about 1400 are contained in Student Linux) and the possibility to remaster the distribution. Loosely speaking a desktop environment is a collection of user interfaces and applications; again there are many of these. The KDE group has a large collection of practical applications, many with common features. They also have the most complete help pages (there is a bookmark in Firefox). Most of the tools in Student Linux come from KDE. Others come from the GNU or GNOME groups and some, e.g. TEX, have been individually developed. All were downloaded from the PCLinuxOS software repository. 6