This book only provides a basic introduction to Edubuntu. To learn more you may read the extensive documentation included with the system itself, or access the constantly expanding material that community members maintain on the Edubuntu Web site.
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Documentation for Other Systems |
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Documentation written for Ubuntu also applies to the Edubuntu system. Edubuntu shares a common layout and software with the other operating systems in the Ubuntu family. Material that describes the Debian system may also apply to Edubuntu, although the Ubuntu family differs from Debian in some respects. |
You may also use a range of facilities to communicate with fellow Edubuntu and Ubuntu users over the Internet. As a global community with a strong commitment to sharing and cooperation, Ubuntu has many volunteers who contribute their time to support others. In many cases a polite query may receive an answer in minutes.
This chapter explains the resources available to help you develop your technical skills and overcome any difficulties that you may encounter. For information on how to participate in the Edubuntu community yourself, refer to Chapter 5, Contributing to Edubuntu.
Edubuntu includes several sets of documentation by default. To read these, select -> and choose the relevant link in the Ubuntu Help Center.
You may also use command-line utilities to read the man and info documentation in a terminal such as a text-only virtual console, or a desktop terminal window.
Use the man command to read a man page in
a terminal. For example, to read the page for the file
sources.list, type:
man sources.list
To see the various search options available with man, type:
man man
To load the GNU help system in a terminal, run the info command:
info
To open the manual for a specific GNU utility, add the name of the program after info. For example, this command displays the manual for the chown utility:
info chown
The Ubuntu project and many other groups offer documentation on their Web sites for Debian, Ubuntu, and related Linux systems. All of the providers listed here offer documentation without charge, under licences that enable you freely copy and distribute the material.
Refer to these pages for both on-line documentation and downloadable books produced by the Ubuntu project:
- The main Ubuntu documentation page
- The Edubuntu documentation page
Some of the most well-known providers of free Linux documentation include:
- The Debian Project
- The Linux Documentation Project
- O'Reilly Media
The large number of Linux users today means that any issue that arises is likely to have already been discussed on an Internet venue. Web search engines such as Google are particularly useful for finding relevant information in the text of the numerous on-line discussions held on forums, mailing lists, blogs, and project bug tracking systems.
If you cannot find the answer to your question in the documentation or with a search engine, choose a support venue and post your question there. The section below explains the support venues for Edubuntu.
Search engines provide as many matches as possible for the words or phrases that you specify. To get the most useful and relevant possible set of results from your searches, try to follow these general principles:
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Use the most specific words that you can.
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Include at least three key words in your search.
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If possible use a specific phrase, such as text from an error message.
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Consider whether the advanced or power-user options of the search engine might help you.
Use whichever search engine you prefer. Google users may find that the dedicated Linux search facility at http://www.google.com/linux provides better results than the main Google search page.
The main venues for discussing Edubuntu on-line are:
- The mailing list for Edubuntu users
- The Ubuntu Forums
- The IRC channel for live discussions on using and developing Edubuntu
When you use these facilities, remember that the individuals that answer questions are freely donating their time to help others, and may see many requests for help. If you are new to on-line discussions, please read these pages before you post your question:
- The Ubuntu Code of Conduct
- How to Ask Questions the Smart Way
Refer to this page for information about obtaining commercial support for Edubuntu: Paid Support
