If you're a developer or system administrator lured to Mac OS X because of its Unix roots, you'll quickly discover that performing Unix tasks on a Mac is different than what you're accustomed to.
Mac OS X for Unix Geeks serves as a bridge between Apple's Darwin OS and the more traditional Unix systems. This clear, concise guide gives you a tour of Mac OS X's Unix shell in both Leopard and Tiger, and helps you find the facilities that replace or correspond to standard Unix utilities.
You'll learn how to perform common Unix tasks in Mac OS X, such as using Directory Services instead of the standard Unix /etc/passwd and /etc/group, and you'll be able to compile code, link to libraries, and port Unix software using either Leopard and Tiger. This book teaches you to:
- Navigate the Terminal and understand how it differs from an xterm
- Use Open Directory (LDAP) and NetInfo as well as Directory Services
- Compile your code with GCC 4
- Port Unix programs to Mac OS X with Fink
- Use MacPorts to install free/open source software
- Search through metadata with Spotlight's command-line utilities
- Build the Darwin kernel
And there's much more. Mac OS X for Unix Geeks is the ideal survival guide to tame the Unix side of Leopard and Tiger. If you're a Unix geek with an interest in Mac OS X, you'll soon find that this book is invaluable.
Ernest E. Rothman is a Professor of Mathematics at Salve Regina University (SRU) in Newport, Rhode Island, where he is also Chair of the Mathematical Sciences Department. Ernie holds a PhD in Applied Mathematics from Brown University and held positions at the Cornell Theory Center in Ithaca, New York, before coming to SRU. His interests are in scientific computing, applied mathematics and computational science education, and the Unix underpinnings of Mac OS X. Ernie lives in South Kingston, Rhode Island with his wife Kim and two Newfoundland dogs Max and Joe. You can keep abreast of his latest activities at http://homepage.mac.com/samchops.Brian Jepson is an O'Reilly editor, programmer, and co-author of Mac OS X Panther for Unix Geeks and Learning Unix for Mac OS X Panther. He's also a volunteer system administrator and all-around geek for AS220, a non-profit arts center in Providence, Rhode Island. AS220 gives Rhode Island artists uncensored and unjuried forums for their work. These forums include galleries, performance space, and publications. Brian sees to it that technology, especially free software, supports that mission.Rich Rosen is one of the co-authors (along with Brian Jepson and Ernie Rothman) of the fourth edition of Mac OS X for Unix Geeks, which will be published in the fall of 2008. He has been actively working with Macs for over twenty years, currently using a Mac Mini as his home server, an iMac as the centerpiece of his home recording studio, and a MacBook for live musical performance and writing.Rich also collaborated with Leon Shklar on Web Application Architecture: Principles, Protocols & Practices, a textbook on advanced Web application development that has an updated edition coming out later this year. He began his career eons ago at Bell Labs, where his work with relational databases, Unix, and the Internet prepared him well for the world of Web application development. He currently works at Interactive Data Corporation writing software for the Fixed Income Systems group. Rich holds an M.S. in Computer Science from Stevens Institute of Technology, and he lives in New Jersey with his wife, Celia, whose singing provides a sweet counterpoint to the cacophony he produces in his studio.
