Hacking Linux

File compression tools for Linux Share Print Comments Among the confusion new Linux users often face is the variability among archived and compressed formats used by downloaded applications. "Should I use the tar.gz file, the zip file, or the tar.bz2 file?" they may wonder. Here's what you need to know about compression formats in order to easily install any application. First, consider the distinction between archiving and compression. Archiving means combining a number of files together into one file. The idea is to achieve easier storage and transportation. It's like having a briefcase in which to keep all your files. The archive must contain some information about the original files, such as their names and lengths, for proper reconstruction. This ensures that your paperwork will remain as-is when you open your briefcase. Some popular archive file formats are tar and zip. Compression, on the other hand, is the process of using encoding schemes to store inf...

Cron This file is an introduction to cron, it covers the basics of what cron does, and how to use it. What is cron? Cron is the name of program that enables unix users to execute commands or scripts (groups of commands) automatically at a specified time/date. It is normally used for sys admin commands, like makewhatis , which builds a search database for the man -k command, or for running a backup script, but can be used for anything. A common use for it today is connecting to the internet and downloading your email. This file will look at Vixie Cron, a version of cron authored by Paul Vixie. How to start Cron Cron is a daemon, which means that it only needs to be started once, and will lay dormant until it is required. A Web server is a daemon, it stays dormant until it gets asked for a web page. The cron daemon, or crond , stays dormant until a time specified in one of the config files, or crontabs . On most Linux distributions crond is automatically in...