A.5 The Debian maze

The Linux system is a very powerful computing platform for a networked computer. However, learning how to use all its capabilities is not easy. Setting up the printer is a good example.

There is a complete, detailed map called the "SOURCE CODE". This is very accurate but very hard to understand. There are also references called HOWTO and mini-HOWTO. They are easier to understand but tend to give too much detail and lose the big picture. I sometimes have a problem finding the right section in a long HOWTO when I need a few commands to invoke.

In order to navigate through this maze of Linux system configuration, I started writing down simple reminder memos in text file format as my quick reference. This list of memos grew larger and I learned debiandoc in the meantime. The product is this Debian Reference.