  The Linux Reading List HOWTO
  by Eric S. Raymond
  1.2, 29 November 1997

  This document lists the book I think are most valuable to a person
  trying to learn Unix (especially Linux) top to bottom.

  1.  Introduction

  1.1.  Purpose of this document

  This document lists what I consider to be the essential book-length
  references for learning Unix (especially Linux) and how to program
  under it.

  1.2.  New versions of this document

  New versions of the Linux Reading List HOWTO will be periodically
  posted to comp.os.linux.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://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/HOWTO/Reading-List-HOWTO.html>.

  1.3.  Feedback and Corrections

  If you have questions or comments about this document (or just want to
  suggest a book that you think should be on it), please feel free to
  mail Eric S. Raymond, at esr@thyrsus.com. I welcome any suggestions or
  criticisms.

  1.4.  Related Resources

  For on-line HOWTOs, magazines, and other non-book material, see the
  Linux Documentation Project home page
  <http://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/HOWTO>.

  Some years ago I wrote a less Linux-focused Unix bibliography that may
  still be of some interest and retains a certain amusement value.  You
  can find the Loginataka at
  <http://www.ccil.org/~esr/faqs/loginataka.html>.

  1.5.  Conventions Used In This Document

  Comments not in quotes below are either mine, or I have seen no reason
  to change them from those of Jim Haynes (previous maintainer of this
  document).  Comments sent in by others are in quotes, and have the
  name of the commentator before them (JH is Jim Haynes).

  "See" URLs attached to publishing information point directly into the
  publisher's web catalog and typically take you to a page containing a
  cover shot, blurbs, and ordering information.  Books that don't have
  these lack them because the publisher is using frames and the catalog
  pages can't be bookmarked.

  Topic listings go roughly from the outside in (culture to user-land
  programming to kernel programming to hardware).  Within sections I
  have tried to list the most useful books first insofar as I am
  familiar with them.  It's just an embarrassing coincidence that this
  lists one of my books first, honest! (Suggestions for a better
  organization cheerfully accepted.)
  2.  Books on Culture, History, and Pragmatics

     The New Hacker's Dictionary (Third Edition)
        Raymond, Eric S.; MIT Press; 1996; ISBN 0-262-68092-0; 547pp.
        See  <http://www-mitpress.mit.edu/book-
        home.tcl?isbn=0262680920>.

        Um, er.  A guide to Internet culture. Lots of people like it.
        HTML at the Jargon File Resource  Page <http://www.ccil.org>.

     A Quarter Century of Unix
        Salus, Peter H.; Addison-Wesley; 1994; ISBN 0-201-54777-5;
        256pp.
        See  <http://www.awl.com/cp/authors/salus/unix/unix.html>

        Linux is part of the Unix tradition.  This book is an oral
        history of Unix -- how it originated, how it evolved, how it
        spread -- by the people who were there.

     The Mythical Man Month (Anniversary Edition)
        Brooks, Frederick P.; Addison-Wesley 1995 (ISBN 0-201-83595-9).
        See  <http://heg-school.awl.com/cseng/authors/brooks/mmm-ae/mmm-
        ae.html>.

        The one book on software engineering that everyone should read.

        Alan Cox: "This I'd recommend not for its technical value but
        for its application of common sense and reality to computing
        projects." JH: "Ah, yes.  What if Linus had been given 200
        programmers and had been told to produce Linux in 3 months!"

     Bell System Technical Journal, July-August 1978, Vol. 57, No. 6,
        part 2
        AT&T; 416 pp.

        Many early papers on Unix, including Ritchie & Thompson, "The
        UNIX Time Sharing System"; Thompson, "UNIX Implementation";
        Ritchie, "A Retrospective"; Bourne, "The UNIX Shell"...

  3.  Books on General Unix/Linux

  3.1.  Linux Installation and Administration

     Linux Installation and Getting Started
        Welsh, Matt; LDP; 1997.  Available on the LDP home page, or
        directly at  <http://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/gs>.

        How to bring up Linux.  Explains a lot of Linux basics.  Covers
        basic system administration.

     Linux System Administtrator's Guide
        Wirzenius, Lars; LDP; 1997.  Available on the LDP home page, or
        directly at  <http://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/sag>.

        An excellent first book on how to maintain and administer a
        Linux system.

     Essential System Administration (Second Edition)
        Frisch, Aeleen; O'Reilly; 1995; ISBN 0-937175-80-3; 788 pp;
        $32.95.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/esa2/noframes.html>.

        More in-depth coverage of normal system-administration tasks.
        Not Linux-specific but contains Linux material.

  3.2.  Using Unix & Linux

     Linux in a Nutshell
        Hekman, Jessica P. et al.; O'Reilly; 1997; ISBN 1-56592-167-4;
        438 pp. $9.95.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/linuxnut/noframes.html>.

        According to O'Reilly, "The Desktop Reference for Linux".  For
        Linux users this obsoletes their "Unix In a Nutshell" which was
        SVr4/Solaris-oriented.

     Running Linux (Second Edition)
        Welsh, Matt, & Kaufman, Lar; O'Reilly; ISBN 1-56592-151-8; 1996;
        650pp; $24.95.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/runux2/noframes.html>.

        Everything you need in order to understand, install, and use the
        Linux operating system.  Excellent beginner's book.

  3.3.  System Security

     Practical Unix Security
        Garfinkel, Simpson, and Spafford, Gene; O'Reilly Associates;
        ISBN 0-56592-148-8; 1991.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/puis/noframes.html>.

        Ronald P. Miller: "Some overlap with Essential System Admin.,
        but all in all a solid book on security, especially for those
        aspiring to allow multiple-user, dial-up/net access to their
        Linux boxes."

     Firewalls & Internet Security
        Cheswick, William R. & Bellovin, Steven M.; Addison-Wesley;
        1994; ISBN 0-201-63357-4; 320pp.
        See  <http://www.awl.com/cp/Ches.html>.

  4.  Books on Shell, Script, and Web Programming

     Programming Perl (Second Edition)
        Wall, Larry & Christiansen, Tom & Schwartz, Randal; O'Reilly;
        1997; ISBN 0-56592-149-6; 644pp.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/pperl2/noframes.html>.

        Shell (as a programming language for more than trivial
        scripting) is dead.  Perl rules in its place.  This is the
        second edition of the definitive Perl book -- vastly better
        organized than the first, and it covers Perl 5.

     Programming Python
        Lutz, Mark; O'Reilly; 1997; ISBN 0-56592-197-6; 880pp.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/python/noframes.html>.

        The next step beyond Perl.  Python is beautifully designed, has
        better integration with C, and scales up better to large
        projects.

     HTML: The Definitive Guide (2nd Edition)
        Musciano, Chuck & Kennedy. Bill; O'Reilly; 1997; ISBN
        0-56592-235-2; 552pp.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/html2/noframes.html>.

        The best HTML tutorial/reference I have ever seen, and the only
        HTML book you need unless you want to do CGI.

     The Unix Programming Environment
        Kernighan, Brian, and Pike, Rob; Prentice-Hall; 1984; ISBN
        0-13-937681-X; 1984.

        A true classic -- possibly the best single-book exposition of
        the Unix philosophy.

  5.  Books on Text Formatting

  5.1.  Tex and LaTeX

     The LaTeX Companion
        Goossens, Michael & Mittlebach, Frank, & Samarin, Alexander;
        Addison-Wesley; 1994; ISBN 0-201-54199-8; 530pp.
        See  <http://www.awl.com/cp/tlc.html>.

        `If you are one of those users who would like to know how LaTeX
        can be extended to create the nicest documents possible without
        becoming a (La)TeX guru, then this book is for you' --- from the
        Preface.  Bruce Thompson adds: "A very nice book providing a lot
        of information about the new extensions to LaTeX, provides a
        large number of examples showing precisely how your document's
        layout can be manipulated"

     LaTeX: A Document Preparation System (Second Edition)
        Lamport, Leslie; Addison-Wesley; 1994; ISBN 0-201-52983-1;
        256pp.
        See  <http://heg-
        school.awl.com/cseng/authors/lamport/latex/latex.html>.

        Bruce Thompson: "The ultimate reference on LaTeX 2.09 by its
        author.  A new edition covering LaTeX2e (the version included in
        the current TeX/LaTeX distribution) is in preparation.  LaTeX
        2.09 is fully supported by LaTeX2e.  A must for anyone wanting
        to use LaTeX.  Provides a gentle introduction to document
        preparation and the various tools that LaTeX provides for
        producing professional quality documents.  Lots of examples."

     The TeXbook, Volume A of Computers and Typesetting; Knuth, Donald
        A.
        Addison-Wesley; 1986, ISBN 0-201-13448; 496pp.  See
        <http://www.awl.com/cp/TeXbook.html>
        Bruce Thompson: "The definitive user's guide and complete
        reference manual for TeX.  Probably not needed for casual LaTeX
        use, but a fascinating book nonetheless."  I'll strengthen that
        by adding that this book is not for the faint of heart.

     The METAFONT book, Volume C of Computers and Typesetting
        Knuth, Donald A.; Addison-Wesley; 1986; 0-201-13444-6, 1986;
        384pp.
        See  <http://www.awl.com/cp/METAFONTbook.html>

        Bruce Thompson: "The definitive user's guide and reference
        manual for METAFONT, the companion program to TeX for designing
        fonts.  An excellent work if you're planning to design your own
        fonts for use in TeX and LaTeX.  METAFONT is included with the
        normal TeX/LaTeX distribution."  This book is definitely not for
        the faint of heart.

  6.  Books on C and C++ Programming

  6.1.  C and C++

     The C Programming Language (Second Edition)
        Kernighan, Brian W.; Ritchie, Dennis M; Prentice-Hall; 1988;
        ISBN 0-13-110362-8, 272pp.

        The improved second edition, covering ANSI C, of the original
        classic C book coauthored by C's designer, "K&R".  Still the
        best!

     Who's Afraid of C++?
        Heller, Steve; Academic Press; 1996; ISBN 0-12-339097; 508pp.

        The best introductory book on C++ I have seen.

  6.2.  C System Call Interface

     POSIX Programmer's Guide: Writing Portable Unix Programs
        Lewine, Donald; O'Reilly; 1992; ISBN 0-937175-73-0; 607pp.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/posix/noframes.html>.

        An excellent programmer's reference on the POSIX.1 standard.  I
        like this one better than JH's choice.

     The Posix.1 Standard: A Programmer's Guide
        Zlotnick, Fred; Benjamin/ Cummings; 1991; ISBN 0-8053-9605-5;
        379pp.; $35.95 (USA).

        JH: "When I complained about the lack of Section 2 man pages in
        Linux, somebody told me just to get a POSIX book, because that's
        what Linux does.  I like this book because I'm not a
        professional programmer and the author gives copious
        explanations and examples."

  7.  Books on Networking

     Unix Network Programming
        Stevens, W. Richard; Prentice Hall; 1990; ISBN 0-13-949876-1;
        772 pp.; $54 (USA).

        Everything you might want to know about the subject, and some
        things you probably didn't want to know (really, XNS!?).
        Generally regarded as definitive on the basics, though it's pre-
        Web.

     Linux Network Administrator's Guide
        Kirch, Olaf; O'Reilly; 1995; ISBN 1-56592-087-2; 335pp.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/linag/noframes.html>.

        A practical guide to Linux's TCP/IP and related services.
        Accessible on the Web at the Linux Documentation Project page,
        or directly at <http://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP/LDP/nag/nag.html>.

     TCP/IP Network Adminstration
        Hunt, Craig; O'Reilly Associates, ISBN 0-937175-82-X; 1992;
        472pp.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/tcp2/noframes.html>.

        Less Linux-specific than the Kirch book.  Features deeper
        coverage of the TCP/IP core, including routing and BGP.

     DNS and BIND (Second Edition)
        Albitz, Paul, and Liu, Cricket; O'Reilly; 1996; ISBN
        1-56592-236-0; 1992; 438pp; $32.95.
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/dns2/noframes.html>.

        In-depth coverage of DNS, useful for people running complicated
        multiple-subnet installations. Covers BIND library programming.

     Sendmail (Second Edition)
        Costales, Bryan & Allman, Eric; O'Reilly; ISBN 1-56592-222-0;
        1997; 1050 pp; $32.95
        See  <http://www.ora.com/catalog/sendmail2/noframes.html>.

        An exhaustive (and exhausting) guide to Linux's and Unix's
        default mail-transfer agent.

  8.  Books on Unix Kernel Implementation

  8.1.  Ancestors of Linux

     The Design of the Unix Operating System
        Bach, Maurice J.; Prentice-Hall; ISBN 0-13-201799-7; 470pp.; $60
        (USA).

        The book that got Linus started.

     Operating Systems, Design and Implementation;
        Tanenbaum, Andrew S.; Prentice-Hall; 1987.

        Alan Cox (one of the core kernel people) likes this book.
        Tanenbaum designed Minix, which is the system Linus bootstrapped
        Linux up from.

  8.2.  Linux

     Linux Kernel Hackers' Guide
        Johnson, Michael K.

        Accessible on the Web at the Linux Documentation Project page,
        or directly at

     LINUX Kernel Internals
        Beck, Michael & Bohme, Harold & Mirko, Dziadzka & Kunitz, Ulrich
        & Magnus, Robert & Verworner, Dick; Addison Wesley; 1996; ISBN:
        0-201-87741-4; 480pp.
        See  <http://heg-
        school.awl.com/cseng/authors/beck.m/linux/linux.html>.

        A guide to Linux kernel programming; covers 1.2, slightly out of
        date now.

  8.3.  Relatives of Linux

     The Design and Implementation of the 4.4BSD Unix Operating System
        McKusick, Marshall Kirk, Bostic, Keith, Karels, Michael J., and
        Quarterman, John S.; Addison-Wesley; 1996; ISBN 0-201-54979-4;
        608pp.
        See  <http://heg-
        school.awl.com/cseng/authors/mckusick/4.4bsd/4.4bsd.html>.

        The successor to a classic book on the implementation of the 4.3
        BSD kernel, which influenced Linux's design (especially near
        sockets and networking).  This book covers the 4.4BSD base of
        BSD/OS, FreeBSD, and NetBSD.

     Porting Unix to the 386; Jolitz, William F., and Jolitz, Lynne G.
        Dr. Dobb's Journal; Jan 1991-July 1992.

  9.  Books on Intel processor architecture and programming

     80386 Programmer's Reference Manual
        Intel Corp.; ISBN 1-55512-022-9; 1986;

        Part I. Applications Programming, data types, memory model,
        instruction set.  Part II. Systems Programming, architecture,
        memory management, protection, multitasking, I/O, exceptions and
        interrupts, initialization, coprocessing and multiprocessing.
        Part III.  Compatibility (with earlier x86 machines).  Part IV.
        Instruction Set.

     80386 System Software Writer's Guide
        Intel Corp.; ISBN 1-55512-023-7; 1987.

        This explains the 386 features for operating system writers.  It
        includes a chapter on Unix implementation.  A lot of the 80386
        architecture seems to have been designed with Multics in mind;
        the features are not used by DOS or by Unix.

     Programming the 80386
        Crawford, John H & Gelsinger, Patrick P.; Sybex; ISBN
        0-89588-381-3; 774pp.; $26.95 (USA).

        This is the book the Jolitzes used when they ported BSD to the
        386 architecture.

     Pentium Processor User's Manual: Volume 3, Architecture and Pro­
        gramming
        Manual" Intel Corp.; 1993; ISBN 1-55512-195-0;

        Pretty much the Pentium version of the 80386 Programmer's manual
        listed above.

  10.  Books on PC-Class Hardware

  Note: these books are four or five years old and possibly out of date.
  I don't really grok hardware...

     80386 Hardware Reference Manual
        Intel Corp.; 1986; ISBN 1-55512-024-5;

        Pin connections, timing, waveforms, block diagrams, voltages,
        all that kind of stuff.

     The Indispensable PC Hardware Book
        Messmer, Hans-Peter; Addison-Wesley; 1993; ISBN 0-201-62424-9;
        1000 pp.

        JH: "Covers the more recent stuff like EIDE and PCI."

  11.  Administrivia

  11.1.  Terms of Use

  This document is copyright 1997 by Eric S. Raymond. You may use,
  disseminate, and reproduce it freely, provided you:

  ·  Do not omit or alter this copyright notice.

  ·  Do not omit or alter or omit the version number and date.

  ·  Do not omit or alter the document's pointer to the current WWW
     version.

  ·  Clearly mark any condensed, altered or versions as such.

  These restrictions are intended to protect potential readers from
  stale or mangled versions.  If you think you have a good case for an
  exception, ask me.

  11.2.  History

  This was originally a mini-HOWTO maintained by Jim Haynes.  I have
  changed the emphasis somewhat, trying to make it more a standalone
  document and less reliant on the various USENET bibliographic
  postings.  The unattrbuted mini-reviews are mine rather than his.

