Unix in Plain English

A dictionary-like alphabetical list of Unix commands, Unix in Plain English, Second Edition, features a handy cross-reference that you can use to translate MS-DOS commands into their Unix equivalents.

The book is designed to remedy the problem of looking up one of Unix's cryptically named commands in an alphabetical list, which is often impossible unless you know which command does what you want. (After all, who would guess that xv displays image files?) That's why Reichard and Foster-Johnson have divided this book into sections, each containing a particular family of commands, such as printing commands, graphic commands, and Internet commands. Each command's name appears next to a brief description of what it does.

The reference also includes a "wish list" of tasks that people might want to accomplish in Unix, such as, "Change a file's date to the current date." Each wish appears next to the appropriate command. Assuming that many Unix newbies have experience with MS-DOS systems, there's also a table that lists every DOS 6.0 command and its Unix equivalent.

This book is an excellent choice for the new Unix user who knows what needs to be done, but is frustrated by Unix's seemingly arcane command set. Sometimes the options tables are hard to read, but altogether, this is a fine book. --David Wall