Rating: 
Summary: Decoder Ring Highly Recommended
Review: I originally purchased Mark's book on Mastering Windows 2000 Server and enjoyed the style of writing and the content that kept me glued to the book that I thought I would send Mark an email thanking him for such an excellent book and mentioned that I wish he would write one on Linux since I'm partial to Linux. Mark replied that he had written the Decoder Ring which I purchased immediately. I found the Decoder Ring to be equally excellent and sent him an email which I told him that his style of writing and knowledge coupled with Dan's and Craigs's knowledge quenched my thirst for more on Linux and hoped he writes more Linux books and that I would promise to buy his books and read every single page. I strongly recommend that if any Linux newbies/intermediates want a Linux Book that is not cryptic and breaks things down to easy reading then you should "Get This Book".
Rating:
Summary: I get it too!
Review: I've been waiting for a book like this for a long time. Every other Linux book that I had tried was either for the newbie or the well experienced. No one has taken the perspective that there are people out there who are familiar with servers and networking and might have a clue or two. I've been an MCSE for over 5 years now so my mind and methods were assimilated by the Microsoft way. Learning Linux was an exercise in futility since I couldn't link the methods of the two operating systems together. This book has changed everything. I got the book about a week ago and have gone through half of it already. The author keeps me interested in the material and presents it in a way that any NT administrator can understand. I can safely say that I have learned more about Linux in the first 6 chapters than I have learned from the 4 other Linux books I have purchased in the past. If you know NT/2000 and want to learn Linux, get this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Mostly a good book
Review: It's a great resource to have, coming from the Windoze world. For a beginner in Linux though, gets a little too deep and spends a lot of time on Xwindows. This may prove very useful later, but for now, I just skipped most of that. Would I buy it again? Absolutely. I've got mine filled with sticky notes to note key pages for troubleshooting, etc.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, a book for NT-centric admins hungry for Linux info!
Review: Mark Minasi is a sort of hero of mine. He has a friendly & personable writing-style that really engages the reader. I've read his NT books and his articles in Windows 2000 magazine, and the way in which he conveys important info has really helped me become a more knowledgeable admin.I hold an MCSE and have worked in and around Windows systems for several years now, and I have always wanted to really get some of that valuable Unix experience under my belt to round out my resume. With the rise of Linux as a major contender in the enterprise space, no Windows admin should be without some working knowledge of it. "Linux for Windows NT/2000 Administrators" is a godsend for people like me, and Mr. Minasi takes great care to explain that the book is aimed squarely at folks like me and not for experienced Unix/Linux techies. After reading this book cover to cover, I now have the foundation I was looking for to help me expand my Linux experiences and convert them into dollars...in a marketplace that is getting ever hungrier for the Penguin. If you are a Windows admin with a year or two or more of experience, and you've been wanting the ONE book that can explain the Linux phenomenon in English, by all means, get this one. Now.
Rating: 
Summary: It gets you most of the way, but leaves out some stuff
Review: Overall, this book is well worth purchasing. Mark does a good job of keeping the practical information and weeding out the useless .... There's a good, detailed discussion about how to get linux installed and running on your machine, including setting up basic services like www, dns, samba, etc. (I found the samba section especially good) The chapters are well organized and flow nicely together. Additionally, the index (which is what I use the most) is detailed and easy to navigate -- you can generally find the right page the first time. However, you'll find it won't suffice as your only linux book. There are too many basic topics that aren't covered, such as: * How to do basic troubleshooting? What's the linux equivalent of the NT event viewer? What are some basic steps to take if you're having networking problems? * How do you update drivers? (especially NIC drivers) It talks about configuring NIC properties, but not updating the actual driver. * What's the linux equivalent of a service pack? Where do you go to get it and how do you install it? Again, overall, this book is well worth the money and does a good job of preparing you to use linux. It will get you about 70% of the way there. For the remaining 30%, you'll want to pick up a more comprehensive linux book.
Rating:
Summary: Great!
Review: Really a great book because of the references to NT. Being able to put Linux terms/references in an "NT" model really helps the adjustment from one OS to the other, and it's also written in a casual and non dry way. I enjoyed this, and highly recommend it if you're familiar with NT, and starting to play around with the power of Linux.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: The overall content of the book is adequate for those new to Linux but is a bit dated (Written for OS versions well over two years ago) With new book available I would recomend buying Linux Administration: A Beginner's Guide, a great book. This book focuses entirely too much on Windows rather than Linux which is what it is supposed to be about.
Rating:
Summary: Book for NT admins
Review: The overall content of the book is adequate for those new to Linux but is a bit dated (Written for OS versions well over two years ago) With new book available I would recomend buying Linux Administration: A Beginner's Guide, a great book. This book focuses entirely too much on Windows rather than Linux which is what it is supposed to be about.
Rating:
Summary: Just what I was looking for
Review: This book has it all! Being a Windows 2000 administrator this book knows where I'm coming from. Explains the information very good. The only problem is the book isn't laid out as nice as I would like it to be so I have to do a little more hunting for things than I would like to. Overall an Excellent book!
Rating:
Summary: Rosetta Stone for Operating Systems
Review: This book has made Linux an inviting place to explore, instead of a place where GUI users dare tread. NT-knowledgeable people will benefit, but if you know DOS as well then this is the book for you. Troubleshooting is not specifically covered, but basic setup and configuration is. The once obscure commands now make sense, especially with the easy to use examples. A
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