Starter Guide

Mandriva Linux 2006

http://www.mandriva.com

NeoDoc

Camille Bégnis, Christian Roy, Fabian Mandelbaum, Roberto Rosselli del Turco, Marco De Vitis, Alice Lafox, John Rye, Wolfgang Bornath, Funda Wang, Patricia Pichardo Bégnis, Debora Rejnharc Mandelbaum, Mickael Scherer, Jean-Michel Dault, Lunas Moon, Céline Harrand, Fred Lepied, Pascal Rigaux, Thierry Vignaud, Giuseppe Ghibò, Stew Benedict, Francine Suzon, Indrek Madedog Triipus, Nicolas Berdugo, Thorsten Kamp, Fabrice Facorat, Xiao Ming, Snature , Guylhem Aznar, Pavel Maryanov, Annie Tétrault, Aurelio Marinho Jargas, Felipe Arruda, Marcia Gawlak Hoshi, Bob Rye, Jean-Luc Borie, Roberto Patriarca.

Legal Notice

This material may be distributed only subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Open Publication License, v1.0 or later (the latest version is presently available at opencontent.org).

  • Distribution of substantively modified versions of this document is prohibited without the explicit permission of the copyright holder.

  • Distribution of the work or derivative of the work in any standard (paper) book form is prohibited unless prior permission is obtained from the copyright holder.

Mandriva” and “DrakX” are registered trademarks in the US and/or other countries. The related “Star logo” is also registered. All rights reserved. All other copyrights embodied in this document remain the property of their respective owners.

About the Making of this Manual

This manual is written and maintained by NeoDoc. Translations are ensured by NeoDoc, Mandriva and other translators.

This document was written in DocBook XML. The set of files involved were managed using the Borges Collaborative Content Creation System (C3S). The XML source files were processed by xsltproc, and jadetex (for the electronic version) using a customized version of Norman Walsh's stylesheets. Screen shots were taken using xwd or GIMP and converted with convert (from the ImageMagick package). All these programs are free software and all of them are available in your Mandriva Linux distribution.

September 2005


Table of Contents

Preface
1. About Mandriva Linux
1.1. Contacting the Mandriva Linux Community
1.2. Join the Club!
1.3. Subscribing to Mandriva Online
1.4. Purchasing Mandriva Products
1.5. Contributing to Mandriva Linux
2. About this User Guide
3. Note from the Editor
4. Conventions Used in this Book
4.1. Typing Conventions
4.2. General Conventions
1. Installing Mandriva Linux
1. Installation Warning
2. Before Installation
1. Configuring your BIOS
2. Supported Hardware
3. Installation with DrakX
1. The Mandriva Linux Installer
1.1. The Installation Process
1.2. Installation Options
2. Choosing your Language
3. License Terms of the Distribution
4. Installation Class
5. Configuring your Keyboard
6. Security Level
7. Partitioning your Disk
8. Package Selection
8.1. Media Handling
8.2. Supplementary Installation Media
8.3. Choose Package Groups to Install
8.4. Choosing Individual Packages to Install
9. Root Password
10. Adding a User
11. Installing a Bootloader
12. Checking Miscellaneous Parameters
12.1. Summary
12.2. Time Zone Options
12.3. Configuring X, the Graphical Server
12.4. Selecting Available Services at Boot Time
13. Installing Updates from the Internet
14. It's Done!
14.1. Advanced Options
15. How to Uninstall Linux
2. Discovering Mandriva Linux
4. Migrating to Linux from Windows® and Mac OS® X
1. Where's my...?
1.1. Start Menu
1.2. Applications
1.3. Control Panel/System Preferences
1.4. Command Shell
1.5. Network Neighborhood
1.6. C: Drive
1.7. CD/DVD Drives
1.8. Other Removable Media (floppy, USB key, etc.)
1.9. My Documents
2. A Brave New World!
2.1. A Multiuser Environment
2.2. Multiple Tasks
2.3. Multiple Desktops
2.4. Full Desktop Customization
2.5. Thousands of Free Applications
2.6. No More Reboots!
5. Linux for Beginners
1. Introduction
2. The Bootloader Menu
3. Getting Ready for your Session
4. Beginning your Session
5. Using your Graphical Environment
5.1. The Mandriva Linux Desktop
5.2. Accessing Applications
5.3. Opening a Window on the Desktop
5.4. Managing Desktops
6. Logging Out of Your Session
6. Accessing Documentation
1. Mandriva Linux-Specific Documentation
1.1. Mandriva's Own Documentation
1.2. Internet Resources
2. GNU/Linux Useful Resources
2.1. The /usr/share/doc Directory
2.2. The Man Pages
7. Using KDE
1. Discovering the K Desktop Environment
1.1. The Desktop
1.2. The Panel
1.3. Virtual Desktops
2. Personalizing your Desktop
2.1. Changing your Desktop's Appearance
3. Searching For Files
4. KDE Sessions
3. Communicating with the Wired World
8. Sending E-mails and Reading News
1. Writing E-mails and Reading News
1.1. KMail
1.2. Akregator
9. Surfing The Web With Firefox
1. A First Glance at Firefox
2. Using the Sidebar
3. Managing Bookmarks
4. Tabbed Browsing
5. Extensions
6. Themes
7. Installing Plugins
7.1. Javatm, Flash® and Real Player
4. Free Software Daily
10. Office Work
1. Word Processor
1.1. OpenOffice.org Writer
1.2. Using the Word Processor
1.3. Going Further
2. Spreadsheet
2.1. OpenOffice.org Calc
2.2. Using the Spreadsheet
2.3. Going Further
3. Managing Your Files
3.1. Sidebar
3.2. Accessing Storage Media
3.3. Manipulating Files
3.4. Browsing Web Pages
3.5. File Sharing
4. Printing and Faxing from Applications
4.1. Accessing KPrinter
4.2. KPrinter's Interface
4.3. Building PDF Files
4.4. Sending Faxes
11. Audio, Movie and Video Applications
1. Audio Applications
1.1. amaroK Audio Player
1.2. KsCD CD Player
1.3. Using the KMix Mixer
2. Movie Applications
2.1. Introduction
2.2. Kaffeine
2.3. Other Movie Applications for Linux
3. CD Burning
3.1. Getting Started
3.2. Burning Data CDs
3.3. Burning Audio CDs (CDDA)
3.4. Duplicating a CD
3.5. Audio CD Extraction (Ripping)
3.6. Erasing CD-RW media
5. Configuring and Tweaking Your Box
12. Introduction to the Mandriva Linux Control Center
1. MCC's Components
2. Managing Configuration Profiles
2.1. Profile Handling
3. The Drakbug Reporting Tool
13. Package Management through Rpmdrake
1. Install Software
1.1. Selecting Packages to Install
1.2. Searching Packages
2. Remove Software
3. Mandriva Linux Update
4. The Software Media Manager
14. Hardware Setup
1. Configuring your Hardware
1.1. Hardware Detection and Configuration
1.2. Problems/Troubleshooting
2. Controlling the Graphical Configuration
2.1. Changing the Monitor
2.2. Changing Resolution
2.3. Controlling All Video Parameters
3. Changing your Keyboard Layout
4. Changing your Mouse
5. Configuring Printers with PrinterDrake
5.1. Initial Configuration
5.2. The Printer Management Interface
5.3. Print Server General Configuration
5.4. The Printer Configuration Wizard
5.5. Reconfiguring an Existing Printer
5.6. Expert Mode
6. Installing and Using Scanners
6.1. Configuring your Scanner
6.2. Using Image Acquisition Software
6.3. Advanced Configuration
6.4. Other Scanner Interface Software
7. Setting up your UPS
15. Setting up your Network and Accessing the Web
1. Network and Internet Connection Management
1.1. Set Up a New Network Interface
1.2. Internet Settings
1.3. Reconfigure Interfaces
1.4. Monitoring Connections
1.5. Removing a Connection
1.6. Proxy Settings
1.7. Wireless Connection Management
2. Internet Connection Sharing
2.1. The Gateway Connection Wizard
2.2. Configuring the Clients
16. Personalizing your System
1. Customizing your Menus with MenuDrake
1.1. Adding a New Menu Entry
1.2. Advanced Features
2. Configuring Start-Up Services
3. Managing Available Fonts on your System with DrakFont
4. Setting your Machine's Date and Time
5. Monitoring System Activity and Status
5.1. Browsing System Logs
6. Managing Users and Groups
6.1. The Interface
6.2. Adding a New User
7. Backing Up and Restoring your Files
7.1. A Practical Example Using the Wizard
7.2. Restoring Backups
7.3. Automating Periodic Backups
7.4. Advanced Backup Wizard Configuration
17. Mount Points and Remote Directories
1. Managing your Hard Drive Partitions with DiskDrake
1.1. The Interface
1.2. DiskDrake's action buttons
1.3. Resizing an Old Partition and Creating a New One
2. Managing Removable Devices
3. Importing Remote SMB Directories
4. Importing Remote NFS Directories
5. Allowing Users to Share Folders
6. Setting up WebDAV Mount Points
18. Securing your Linux Box
1. Securing your Machine through DrakSec
1.1. Setting your Security Level
1.2. Customizing a Security Level
2. Controlling File Permissions with DrakPerm
3. Securing your Internet Access via DrakFirewall
19. Boot Device Configuration
1. Configuring the Login Mode
2. Changing your Boot-up Configuration
2.1. Configuring the Bootloader
2.2. Managing Boot Entries
3. Customizing your Boot Theme
20. Mandriva Online Services
1. Initial Configuration
2. The Web Management Interface
2.1. Subscribing New Machines
2.2. Host Management
2.3. Scheduling Updates
3. Mandriva Online Applet
21. Troubleshooting
1. Introduction
2. A Boot Disk
2.1. Using the Mandriva Linux CD Rescue Mode
3. Backup
3.1. Why Backup?
3.2. Preparing your System
3.3. What to Backup?
3.4. Where to Back Up?
3.5. When to Back Up?
3.6. Backup Example Using tar
4. Restore
4.1. Restore Example Using tar
4.2. Making a Recovery CD-ROM
5. Problems Arising at Boot Time
5.1. System Hanging During Boot
5.2. Filesystem Check on Boot Fails
5.3. X Doesn't Start
6. Bootloader Issues
6.1. Bootloader Reinstall
6.2. Backing Up and Restoring the MBR
7. Filesystem Issues
7.1. Repairing a Damaged Superblock
7.2. Recovering Deleted Files
8. Recovering from a System Freeze
9. Killing Misbehaving Apps
9.1. From the Console
9.2. Using Graphical Monitoring Tools
10. Miscellaneous
10.1. Legacy-Free Systems
10.2. nVidia and ATI 3D Graphics Cards
10.3. Winmodems
10.4. My Computer is “slow
11. Mandriva Linux's Specific Troubleshooting Tools
12. General Guidelines for Solving a Problem under Mandriva Linux
12.1. Search the Internet
12.2. Mailing Lists and Newsgroups Archives
12.3. Directly Contacting the Person in Charge
12.4. Mandriva Business Services
13. Final Thoughts
1. The GNU General Public License
1. Preamble
2. Terms and conditions for copying,  distribution  and  modification
Index

List of Figures

3.1. Very First Installation Welcome Screen
3.2. Available Installation Options
3.3. Choosing the Default Language
5.1. The Login Window
5.2. The KDE Desktop
5.3. KDE File Manager
7.1. The KDE Desktop
7.2. The KDE Panel
7.3. Changing KDE's Color Scheme
7.4. Changing KDE's Background Wallpaper
7.5. Kat Catalogs View
7.6. Sample Search Using Kat
8.1. KMail's Startup Interface
8.2. Configuring a POP3 Mail Account
8.3. Setting the Outgoing Mail Server
8.4. KMail Client Interface
8.5. The Message-Compose Window
8.6. Akregator's Interface
8.7. Adding a Feed
9.1. Firefox Interface
9.2. Bookmarks and History in the Sidebar
9.3. Bookmarks Manager Dialog
9.4. Firefox Tabs
9.5. Firefox Extension Page
10.1. OpenOffice.org Writer's Main Window
10.2. OpenOffice.org Calc's Main Window
10.3. Simplifying Data Entry Using Auto-Completion
10.4. A 3D Chart Inside the Spreadsheet
10.5. Konqueror's Main Window
10.6. KPrinter Window
10.7. Printer Properties Window
10.8. Changing Printer Resolution
10.9. Generating a PDF File
10.10. Faxing Main Window
10.11. Fax Settings
11.1. amaroK's Main Window
11.2. KsCD's Main Window
11.3. KMix Main Window
11.4. Kaffeine's Interface
11.5. K3b's Interface
11.6. Burn CD Image Options
11.7. Selecting Files and Directories to Include on a CD
11.8. Setting Writing Parameters
11.9. Selecting Audio Tracks to Include on the CD
11.10. Setting Options to Copy a CD
11.11. CD Ripping Options
11.12. Setting CD-RW Blanking Options
12.1. The Control Center's Main Window
12.2. The Control Center's Profile Menu
12.3. Reporting a Bug
13.1. Software Management in the Mandriva Linux Control Center
13.2. The Software Package Installation interface
13.3. Rpmdrake — dependency alert box
13.4. Rpmdrake — package alternatives
13.5. The “Software Media Manager
13.6. Rpmdrake — adding Media
13.7. Rpmdrake — managing keys
13.8. Rpmdrake — configuring a proxy
14.1. Selected Device
14.2. Choosing a New Monitor
14.3. Changing the Resolution of your Screen
14.4. XFdrake Main Window
14.5. Choosing a Different Keyboard Layout
14.6. Choosing a Different Mouse
14.7. Activate Printing
14.8. Activating Network Printers
14.9. A New Printer Is Detected
14.10. Managing Printers
14.11. CUPS Printer Server Configuration
14.12. Client Mode Configuration
14.13. Printer Type
14.14. Choosing the Printer Model
14.15. Choosing a Name for your Printer
14.16. Configuring the Printer's Options
14.17. Testing the Printer
14.18. Modifying an Existing Printer
14.19. Configuring a Remote Printer
14.20. Installing your Scanner
14.21. The Tree-list of All Known Scanner Models
14.22. Acquiring Images with xscanimage
14.23. Sharing Scanners within a LAN
14.24. XSane Multiple Windows
14.25. Kooka's Main Window
14.26. Kooka's Configuration Window
14.27. DrakUPS Setup
14.28. Selecting the Manufacturer and Model
14.29. Name, Device and Port Names
15.1. DrakConnect Tools
15.2. Entering Dial-up Connection Parameters
15.3. Configuring the Internet Access
15.4. Manage Network Connections
15.5. Real-Time Network Connection Monitoring
15.6. A Simple Gateway Configuration
15.7. Configuring The LAN
15.8. Configuring a Client to Use DHCP
16.1. Launching MenuDrake in System or User Mode
16.2. MenuDrake's Main Window
16.3. Adding a New Menu Entry
16.4. A New Menu Entry with MenuDrake
16.5. Choosing a Menu Style
16.6. Choosing the Services Available at Boot Time
16.7. DrakFont's Main Window
16.8. Changing Date and Time
16.9. Browsing and Searching through System Logs
16.10. The User List in UserDrake
16.11. Adding a New User in the System
16.12. Adding Users to a Group
16.13. Selecting What to Backup
16.14. Selecting Where to Store the Backup
16.15. Setting Optical Media Parameters
16.16. Review Configuration Parameters
16.17. Choosing the Restore Type to Perform
16.18. Daemon Options Window
16.19. Miscellaneous Options Window
17.1. DiskDrake's Main Window
17.2. The /home Partition Before Resizing
17.3. Choosing a New Size
17.4. Defining the New Partition
17.5. The New Partition Table
17.6. Confirming the Writing of the Partition Table
17.7. Changing a Parameter
17.8. Scanning the Whole Network
17.9. Authenticating on a Remote Samba Server
17.10. Choosing the Remote Directory to Import
17.11. Controlling Exports
17.12. Choosing the Export Protocol
17.13. Managing WebDAV Mounts Points
17.14. WebDAV Menu
18.1. Choosing the Security Level of your System
18.2. Modifying Standard Options
18.3. Configuring File-Permission Checks
18.4. Adding a File-Permissions Rule
18.5. The DrakFirewall Window
18.6. The Internet Interface
19.1. Choosing the Login Mode
19.2. Choosing the Boot Mode
19.3. DrakBoot Theme Window
20.1. Existing or New Mandriva Online Account?
20.2. Authentication on Mandriva Online
20.3. Uploading Your Configuration
20.4. Mandriva Online Hosts List
20.5. Up-To-Date Mandriva Online Host
20.6. Outdated Mandriva Online Host
20.7. Select Packages to be Updated
20.8. Mandriva Online Applet
21.1. Available Rescue Mode Actions

List of Tables

8.1. KMail's Toolbar Buttons
8.2. Message-Composition Toolbar Buttons
10.1. Suggested Styles
10.2. Konqueror Sidebar Icons
11.1. K3b's Toolbar Buttons
12.1. Overview of Graphical Tools