How to Use This Book

You can read this book from cover to cover if you want, but each hack stands on its own, so feel free to browse and jump to the different sections that interest you most. If there's a prerequisite you need to know about, a cross-reference will guide you to the right hack.

Although you do not have to proceed through the beginning chapters sequentially, they are ordered the way in which a user approaches a Linux system: from the boot process to various methods of logging in, using the graphical X11 system, and exploiting the power of KDE and GNOME. Each chapter covers different approaches to enhancing each step in the chronological sequence, so you can construct an entirely personal desktop experience as you choose the alternatives you like best from each chapter. In the end, you will undergo an original experienceone that does not resemble anyone else's experience from reading these same chapters.

Linux Desktop Hacks also covers some basic instructions, such as how to build a Linux kernel so that even ambitious newcomers can learn how to benefit from some of the more difficult hacks.