Mac OS X for Unix Geeks

by Brian Jepson and Ernest E. Rothman

If you're one of the many Unix developers drawn to Mac OS X for its BSD core, you'll find yourself in surprisingly unfamiliar territory. Even if you're an experienced Mac user, Mac OS X is unlike... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0596003560
• ISBN13: 9780596003562
• Release Date: October 2002
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media
• Length: 216 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Very useful!

I am very happy to have found this book. I have been using BSD and Linux based platforms for many years now, and I was a little bit blown away by how much there is to adjust to on OS X. This book provided a fantastic set of hints as to where I should look to discover the OS X way of doing things. Highly recommended!

Exactly what the title announces

As the title say, this is a book to facilitate the transition of Unix experts (or at least, proficient users) to OS X, and it certainly does. We recently bought a Mac Pro to be used as a server but it came with the usual OS X (not the server version) installed. I have worked before in Linux an other Unices. Since our needs are restricted (serve file systems via ssh, open remote desktops and serve web pages) the client version of OS X (which, as Linux, is also server is some capabilities are enabled) can be used. The book gives tips to make this and many other things, apart from pointing to the most useful packages of software to be installed in a machine that is to be used for desktop, server and programming. Summarizing, an excellent book.

Learn how to compile code, install open source software through Fink and MacPorts, and more

Brian Jepson, Ernest E. Rothman and Rich Rosen's MAC OSX FOR UNIX GEEKS, 4TH EDITION now covers Leopard and offers a fine survey of the 'geekier' side of Mac OS X. This book bridges Apple's Darwin OS and traditional Unix systems, offering insights on how to perform common Unix tasks in Mac OS X's different environment. Learn how to compile code, install open source software through Fink and MacPorts, and more.

How I learned Mac OS X

I love Mac OS X, but I could not learn how to use it until I bought this book. Of course I bought "The Missing Manual" by David Pogue, but even with that excellent book, I could not learn how OS X accounts and permissions work from the GUI point of view. Then I bought "Mac OS X for Unix Geeks" and I saw clearly how OS X accounts and permissions work from the Unix-like foundation. Now I can open a Terminal window and type "pwd" to see my home directory is in the "/Users" directory. I can go to the root ("cd /") and list the contents ("ls") to see how the rest of the machine is laid out. Now that I see where everything really is (hidden by the GUI), now I can learn how the multiple accounts and permissions work. And now I can use the GUI, too. My opinion may be in the minority, but I found this book was essential to get me started using my Mac, even to use the GUI that is supposed to be so user-friendly and self-evident.

Great if you are coming from a technical background

I have been using Mac OS X since the first public beta, and have some other Unix experience. I must say, this book has taken me a long way towards applying the things I know about other Unix environments to Mac OS X. Despite my Mac OS X experience, I feel that this book has taught me a lot about the Darwin flavor of Unix. As an added bonus, the book's careful explinations have helped me to better understand the other Unix platforms I have worked with.All and all, this was a good, if technical, book. Perfect for anybody who is interested in porting Unix software to Mac OS X, as well as the Unix admin who wants to get the most out of the new environment. However, unlike the title maintains, you don't have to be a Unix geek to get something worthwhile from the reading - though you may consider yourself one after carefully going through this book.My only complaint is that the book leaves you wanting more information in some areas. Thankfully, it is always quick to point you to other O'Reilly titles that fill in the gaps.