When you first connect a freshly installed desktop machine to the Internet, there are several important things to bear in mind. Two obvious considerations of securing a desktop machine include frequently running package updates and configuring a few firewall rules to help keep the bad guys out. With just two simple steps it's genuinely possible to make a difference to your desktop security.

You can download videos from over 1,000 online content providers using this crafty Python script. In this quick tip we show you how to install and use youtube-dl to download videos for offline viewing!

The 2nd video covering LPIC101 exam objective 101.1 - determine and confugre hardware settings.

In preparation for taking the Linux Professional Institute Certification exam LPI-302 for systems administrators, learn how to set up and store passwords, integrate Samba with LDAP, and use ACLs to protect your Linux installation.

Samba uses Trivial Database files to store both persistent and temporary data as part of its job integrating file and print sharing between Linux and Windows. In preparation for the Linux Professional Institute Certification exam LPI-302, learn all about the Samba Trivial Database (TDB) format that Samba uses to store information, how to look inside TDB files, and how to back them up.

Learn how to manage print queues and user print jobs on Linux using CUPS and the LPD compatibility interface. Use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification or to learn for fun.

Learn how to configure mail aliases and mail forwarding for the sendmail program on Linux. Learn about some alternative mail transfer agents. Use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification or to learn for fun.

Learn how to configure the syslog daemon on your Linux system and how to send log output to a central log server or accept log output as a central log server. Learn about the systemd journal subsystem and rsyslog and syslog-ng as alternative logging systems. Use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification or to learn for fun.

Learn how to set your Linux system clock and synchronize your time with an Internet NTP time server. You can use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification or to learn for fun.

Learn how to use locale and time zone settings to put your Linux system in the right time and place. You can use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification or to learn for fun.

Redirection is the ability to redirect the input and output of various commands to and from files or devices. We are going to see how redirecting works in Bash: the default shell in the majority of Linux distributions.

ACLs are a second level of discretionary permissions, that may override the standard ugo/rwx ones. When used correctly they can grant you a better granularity in setting access to a file or a directory, for example by giving or denying access to a specific user that is neither the file owner, nor in the group owner.

LPI has released an inspiring new video as part of its rebranding exercise.

Editor's note: this is a direct link to the youtube video.

Learn how to query databases and manipulate data by using basic SQL commands. You can use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification, or to learn for fun.

Learn to set and check disk quotas on your Linux filesystems to prevent individual users from using more space than allowed and to prevent whole filesystems from filling up unexpectedly. You can use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 101 exam for Linux system administrator certification, or just to learn about quotas.

Learn how to check the integrity of your Linux filesystems, monitor free space, and fix simple problems. Use the material in this tutorial to study for the Linux Professional Institute (LPI) 101 exam for Linux system administrator certification -- or just to check your filesystems and keep them in good working order, especially after a system crash or power loss.

Learn how to customize existing scripts or write simple new bash scripts using standard shell syntax, looping and control structures, and tests for success or failure. You can use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification, or to learn for fun.

Learn how to use the vi editor, found on almost every UNIX and Linux system. You can use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 101 exam for Linux system administrator certification, or just to learn for fun.

Learn how to customize your Linux shell environment and write simple bash functions. You can use the material in this tutorial to study for the LPI 102 exam for Linux system administrator certification, or to learn for fun.

Use this roadmap to find IBM developerWorks articles that will help you learn and review basic Linux tasks. And if you're also pursuing professional certification as a Linux system administrator, these articles can help you study for the Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) exam 101 and exam 102. This roadmap is organized according to the 43 objectives in the 101 and 102 exams, which you are required to pass for LPI level 1 certification.

LinuxCertified,Inc. a leading provider of Linux training, will offer weekend Linux system administration bootcamp on April 18th - 19th, 2015 in South Bay (CA). This workshop is designed for busy information technology professionals and is designed to cover the most important Linux administration areas.

Before we talk about what is a Sticky bit let's start by explaining why do we need it. For example we have a directory /var/share somewhere on the filesystem with a full access for all permission groups that is owner, group and any, thus all permission bits are set to "on".

We get asked about Linux certification frequently. Candidates generally want to know if it is worth their time and effort to pursue a certification. In my opinion, the answer changes on a case-by-case basis.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: October 23, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, will offer its popular LPIC-1 certification exams at SUSECon 2013, November 12-15, 2013, at the Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida (http://www.susecon.com/). Both LPIC-1 exams will be available free of charge to paid conference attendees through the SUSECon scholarship program.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: September 4, 2013) - The Linux Professional Institute (LPI), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced the launch of LPI Academy, a Linux education program for accredited degree / diploma-granting academic institutions, high schools, middle schools, and government training programs. The LPI Academy will assist educators to prepare students and employees for careers in Linux and Open Source technology (http://www.lpi.org/partnerships/academy).

(Sacramento and Portland, OR, USA: August 27, 2013) - The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced that DetaCloud (http://www.detacloud.com), a provider of enterprise cloud solutions built on OpenStack?, has joined LPI's Corporate Membership Program. DetaCloud will collaborate with LPI on accelerating Open Source Cloud technologies adoption and experiential training.

The Linux Professional Institute (LPI), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced promotional exam labs for their Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) at Ohio LinuxFest 2013 on Sunday September 15, 2013.

This two-day introduction to Linux broadens attendees horizons with a detailed overview of the operating system. Attendees learn how to effectively use a Linux system as a valuable tool. They get familiar with the architecture and various components of the operating system, learn both graphical and command line tools, and learn to do basic networking. August 10th - 11th, 2013 .

Sacramento, CA, USA: July 31, 2013 - The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced a Corporate Membership Program for partner organizations interested in promoting growth opportunities in Linux and Open Source Software. The program enables partner organizations to directly develop and recruit Linux and Open Source talent through targeted multi-media, product promotions and other educational resources provided to LPI alumni and other Open Source professionals. Organizations such as Cloudera (http://wwww.cloudera.com), Dice (http://www.dice.com), Medialinx IT-Academy (http://www.medialinx-academy.de), oDesk (http://www.oDesk.com), Open Source Software Institute (http://oss-institute.org), Rackspace (http://www.rackspace.com) and uCertify (http://www.ucertify.com) have recently joined this new initiative.

The Linux Career IT Skills Watch brings to you the updated statistics, which refer to the period between May and Jun 2013. The results of LinuxCareer.com research reflect up to date, approximate IT skills demand leaning towards the Linux and Unix environment. The biggest drop was made by the LPI certification, which seems to be losing ground in comparison to other major certification providers. The reason for this could be the generic nature of the LPI certification, which does not appear to be very appealing for many employers right now.

(Sacramento, CA, USA - Athens, Greece: July 23, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced that its affiliate, LPI-Greece (http://www.lpi.org.gr/) recently signed HP Hellas (http://www8.hp.com/gr/el/home.html) as an LPI Approved Training Partner in Greece. HP Hellas is a subsidiary of HP in Europe, Middle East and Africa.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: July 9, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced it has become a member of the European e-Skills Association (EeSA: http://eskillsassociation.eu/). EeSA supports the development of e-skills and digital literacy in Europe in partnership with the European Commission, public authorities across Europe, SMEs and other stakeholders. LPI joins the following other EeSA members: the Council of European Professional Informatics Societies (CEPIS), Cisco, CompTIA, ECDL Foundation, The European CIO Association, EXIN, HP, Microsoft and Oracle.

(Sacramento, CA, USA - Thessaloniki, Greece: July 3, 2013) - The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced promotional exam labs for their Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) at openSUSE 2013 Conference in Thessaloniki, Greece (http://conference.opensuse.org/) on July 20, 2013.

LinuxCertified,Inc. a leading provider of Linux training, will offer weekend Linux system administration bootcamp on June 29th - 30th, 2013 in South Bay (CA). This workshop is designed for busy information technology professionals and is designed to cover the most important Linux administration areas.

(Sacramento, USA: June 18, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced it has completed an extensive review and update of the exam objectives for their LPIC-2 and LPIC-3 certification programs. The new exams for LPIC-2 will be available November 1, 2013 in English and LPIC-3 will be available October 1, 2013 in English. Other language for both certification programs TBA.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: June 11, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced a promotional exam lab for their Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) at EuroPython 2013 (https://ep2013.europython.eu/). LPI's affiliate, LPI-Italy (http://www.lpi-italia.org) is hosting the exam lab and is a certification sponsor of EuroPython 2013.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: June 4, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced a partnership initiative with Big Data Cloud (http://www.bigdatacloud.com/) -- a not-for-profit organization evangelizing the new technology movement regarding Big Data and the Cloud. The partnership initiative will promote events and other educational resources for LPI alumni on topics related to Big Data and the Cloud. Big Data Cloud hosts annual events and monthly meetups and has over 2700+ members. It is founded and operated by Third Eye Consulting Services & Solutions LLC (http://thirdeyecss.com/).

(Sacramento, CA, USA: May 23, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http://www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced promotional exam labs for their Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) at the SouthEast LinuxFest (SELF: http://www.southeastlinuxfest.org/) at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., June 9th at the Blake Hotel in Charlotte, NC. In addition, during SELF, Darrell Flewell, LPI CFO, will deliver a presentation on "Preparing For A Fantastic Career In Linux and Open Source" at 2:45 p.m., Saturday, June 8th in the Linode room of the Blake Hotel.

In this configuration tutorial we will guide you through the process of configuring sendmail to be an email relay for your gmail or google apps account. This allows you to send email from your bash scripts, hosted website or from command line using mail command. Other examples where you can utilize this setting is for a notification purposes such or failed backups etc. Sendmail is just one of many utilities which can be configured to rely on gmail account where the others include postfix, exim , ssmpt etc. In this tutorial we will use sendmail for this task.

Sacramento, CA, USA: May 2, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI), the world's premier Linux certification organization (http://www.lpi.org), announced a partnership program with oDesk? (http://www.oDesk.com), the world's largest online workplace, to promote workforce development initiatives for Linux and Open Source professionals. This partnership will connect Open Source talent through oDesk's job marketplace platform and enable LPIC candidates to display their official LPIC badges on their oDesk? profiles.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: April 16, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI: http:/www.lpi.org), the world's premier Linux certification organization, announced that its affiliate LPI-Spain (http://www.lpi.org.es/) will be participating in the first “Tech Learning Day“ hosted by PUE (Proyecto Universidad Empresa/University Enterprise Project: http://www.pue.es/lpi), May 7th in Madrid, Spain at the NH Eurobuilding Hotel.

Guest Writer Dedoimedo shares his wisdom and gives excellent advice for those interested in pursuing a Linux career. The 'hard work ethic' does pay off. Read why.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: April 10, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI), the world's premier Linux certification organization (http://www.lpi.org), announced that "beta" exams for their revised Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) program (LPIC-2 and LPIC-3 levels) will be available at LinuxTag Berlin 2013 (May 22-25: http://www.linuxtag.org/2013/en/program/certified-knowledge....). LinuxTag 2013 also marks the 10th anniversary of "LPI e.V. (www.lpi-german.de) -- the first representation of LPI in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and presently an affiliate of LPI-Central Europe (LPI-CE: http://www.lpice.eu/). LPI-CE will also offer exams at promotional pricing for all of LPI's certification program at the event.

(Sacramento, CA, USA: April 8, 2013) The Linux Professional Institute (LPI), the world's premier Linux certification organization (http://www.lpi.org), announced promotional exam labs for their Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) at the Texas Linux Fest (http://2013.texaslinuxfest.org/) at the AT&T Conference Center in Austin, Texas on May 31, 2013.

LinuxCertified,Inc. a leading provider of Linux training, will offer weekend Linux system administration bootcamp on April 20th - 21st, 2013 in South Bay (CA). This workshop is designed for busy information technology professionals and is designed to cover the most important Linux administration areas.

This two-day introduction to Linux broadens attendees horizons with a detailed overview of the operating system. Attendees learn how to effectively use a Linux system as a valuable tool. They get familiar with the architecture and various components of the operating system, learn both graphical and command line tools, and learn to do basic networking. This class is scheduled for April 13th - 14th, 2013 .

This two-day introduction to Linux broadens attendees horizons with a detailed overview of the operating system. Attendees learn how to effectively use a Linux system as a valuable tool. They get familiar with the architecture and various components of the operating system, learn both graphical and command line tools, and learn to do basic networking. This class is scheduled for April 13th - 14th, 2013 .

(Sacramento, CA, USA: March 27, 2013) - The Linux Professional Institute (LPI), the world's premier Linux certification organization (http://www.lpi.org), announced promotional exam labs for their Linux Professional Institute Certification (LPIC) at FOSSCOMM 2013 Greek Open Source Communities Summit in Athens, Greece (http://hua.FOSSCOMM.gr) on April 21, 2013.

LinuxCertified,Inc. a leading provider of Linux training, will offer weekend Linux system administration bootcamp on March 23rd - 24th, 2013 in South Bay (CA). This workshop is designed for busy information technology professionals and is designed to cover the most important Linux administration areas.

The Linux Professional Institute announced an innovative partnership initiative to deliver an entry-level technology certification program to address the workforce development needs of both employers and aspiring IT professionals. The program will offer a combined training program in both LPI's Linux Essentials "Certificate of Achievement" and either the CIW's Internet Business Associate (IBA) or Network Technology Associate (NTA) certifications. This combined training and accreditation program will be delivered through CIW's Certification Testing Centers.