Linux is a freely-distributable implementation of Unix for
inexpensive personal machines (it was developed on 386s, and now supports
486, 586, Pentium, PowerPC, Sun Sparc, ARM and DEC Alpha hardware, and even
the IBM System 390 mainframe!). It supports a wide range of software,
including X Windows, Emacs, TCP/IP networking (including SLIP), and many
applications.
This document assumes that you have heard of and know about Linux,
and now want to get it running. It focuses on the Intel
base version, which is the most popular, but much of the advice
applies on Power PCs, Sparcs and Alphas as well.
If you are new to Linux, there are several sources of basic
information about the system. The best place to find these is at the
at
Linux Documentation Project home
page. You can find the latest version of this
document there.
You should probably start by browsing the resources under General
Linux Information; the Linux
INFO-SHEET and the Linux META-FAQ. The `Linux Frequently Asked
Questions' document contains many common questions (and answers!) about
Linux -- it is a ``must read'' for new users.
The Linux Documentation Project is writing a set of manuals and
books about Linux, all of which are freely distributable on the
net and available from the LDP home page.
The book ``Linux Installation and Getting
Started'' is a complete guide to getting and installing Linux,
as well as how to use the system once you've installed it. It contains a
complete tutorial to using and running the system, and much more
information than is contained here. You can browse it, or download a copy,
from the LDP home page.
Finally, there is a rather technical Guide
to x86 Bootstrapping. This document is NetBSD- rather than
Linux-oriented, but contains useful material on disk configuration and boot
managers for multi-OS setups.
Please do not email me asking for installation
help. Even if I had the time to handle such requests, troubleshooting by
mail is much less efficient than asking help from your local Linux user's
group. You can find worldwide contact information for Linux user groups on
the LDP site.
New versions of the Linux Installation HOWTO will be periodically
posted to comp.os.linux.help and comp.os.linux.announce and news.answers.
They will also be uploaded to various Linux WWW and FTP sites, including
the LDP home page.
You can also view the latest version of this on the World Wide Web
via the URL http://www.icewalkers.com/Linux/Howto/Installation-HOWTO.html.
If you have questions or comments about this document, please feel
free to mail Eric S. Raymond, at <esr at thyrsus.com>. I welcome
any suggestions or criticisms. If you find a mistake with this document,
please let me know so I can correct it in the next version. Thanks.
Please do not mail me questions about how to
solve hardware problems encountered during installation. Consult
Linux Installation and Getting Started, bug your
vendor, or consult the Linux newsgroup comp.os.linux.setup. This HOWTO is
intended to be rapid, painless guide to normal
installation -- a separate HOWTO on hardware problems and diagnosis is in
preparation.
Take our 
