Knoppix Hacks, 2nd Edition--New from O'Reilly Media

For Immediate Release
For more information, a review copy, cover art, or interview with the
author, contact:
Mary Rotman (707) 827-7119 or maryr@oreilly.com

Knoppix Hacks, Second Edition--New from O'Reilly Media
Using the Linux Live CD to Hack, Repair, and Enjoy Your PC

Sebastopol, CA--Rather than opt for the expense of a laptop and the
additional worry of losing or damaging it, Klaus Knopper, creator of
Knoppix, made a bootable Linux CD distribution so he could take his
favorite open source tools with him wherever he needed to work. CD in
hand, he was able to go from computer to computer and get right to work
with an operating system and environment that were familiar to him,
without the need to install software on every computer he encountered.
Over the years, he improved hardware support for Knoppix until it was able
to recognize and automatically configure much of the hardware with which
it came into contact.  Knoppix caught on quickly with those who tried it.
Its secret was simple: it got the job done.

Several years and many improvements later, Knoppix is still getting the
job done. "There are a lot of live CDs out there these days," says Kyle
Rankin, author of the newly released "Knoppix Hacks," Second Edition
(O'Reilly, US $34.99). "But I believe that Knoppix, especially with all of
its current features, is still the best all-around live CD." 

In the new edition of his book, Rankin shows readers how to fully use all
of the major features of the latest versions of Knoppix, including
remastering.  "It's been some years since I wrote the initial 'Knoppix
Hacks' book," notes Rankin. "Since then, Knoppix has had a number of
advances, most specifically in the addition of UnionFS (now AuFS) which
allowed a user to 'write' to the live CD just like it was a hard drive
while it was booted. This alone opened up a whole new world of uses for
Knoppix and made some hacks already in the book even easier."

"Knoppix Hacks" offers a collection of tips and techniques for using the
enormous amount of software Knoppix offers--not just to work and play, but
also to troubleshoot, repair, upgrade, and disinfect your system without
having to install a thing. The book includes scores of hacks covering both
the standard Knoppix live CD and the feature-rich DVD "Maxi" distribution
(included with this book).  Readers will learn how to:

-Investigate features of the KDE desktop and its Internet applications
-Save settings and data between reboots with persistent storage
-Use Knoppix as a system administration multitool to replace failed
servers and more
-Use the CD/DVD as a rescue disc to repair filesystems or a system that
won't boot
-Rescue Windows systems with Knoppix to back up files and settings, hack
the registry, and more
-Explore other live CDs based on Knoppix 
-Use Knoppix to automatically detect and configure hardware 
-Remaster Knoppix to include favorite software and custom branding

Kyle Rankin is a system administrator for Quinstreet, Inc., the current
president of the North Bay Linux Users Group, and the author of Knoppix
Hacks, Knoppix Pocket Reference and the upcoming Linux Multimedia Hacks.
Kyle has been using Linux in one form or another since early 1998. In his
free time he does pretty much the same thing he does at work--works with
Linux. 

For more information about the book, including table of contents, index,
author bio, and samples, see:
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/9780596514938/

Knoppix Hacks, Second Edition
Kyle Rankin
ISBN: 0-596-51493-X, $34.99 US, £21.99 
order@oreilly.com
1-800-998-9938
1-707-827-7000
http://www.oreilly.com
1005 Gravenstein Highway North
Sebastopol, CA 95472

About O'Reilly
O'Reilly Media spreads the knowledge of innovators through its books,
online services, magazines, and conferences. Since 1978, O'Reilly Media
has been a chronicler and catalyst of cutting-edge development, homing in
on the technology trends that really matter and spurring their adoption by
amplifying "faint signals" from the alpha geeks who are creating the
future. An active participant in the technology community, the company has
a long history of advocacy, meme-making, and evangelism.

# # #

O'Reilly is a registered trademark of O'Reilly Media, Inc. All other
trademarks are property of their respective owners.