About this book

Copyright " 1997 by Red Hat Software, Inc.

FIRST EDITION

All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher. No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein. Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein. For information, address Sams Publishing, 201 W. 103rd St., Indianapolis, IN 46290.

International Standard Book Number: 0-672-31105-4

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 97-66201

2000 99 98 97 4 3 2 1

Interpretation of the printing code: the rightmost double-digit number is the year of the book's printing; the rightmost single-digit, the number of the book's printing. For example, a printing code of 97-1 shows that the first printing of the book occurred in 1997.

Composed in AGaramond and MCPdigital by Macmillan Computer Publishing

Printed in the United States of America

All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be trademarks or service marks have been appropriately capitalized. Sams Publishing cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark. Red Hat is a trademark of Red Hat Software, Inc. RPM is a trademark of Red Hat Software, Inc.

Acquisitions Editor

Grace M. Buechlein

Development Editor

Jeffrey J. Koch

Production Editor

Kitty Wilson Jarrett

Copy Editor

Kimberly K. Hannel

Indexer

Tina Trettin

Technical Reviewer

William H. Ball

Editorial Coordinators

Mandie Rowell
Katie Wise

Technical Edit Coordinator

Lynette Quinn

Editorial Assistants

Carol Ackerman
Andi Richter
Rhonda Tinch-Mize

Cover Designer

Jay Corpus

Book Designer

Gary Adair

Copy Writer

David Reichwein

Production Team Supervisors

Brad Chinn
Charlotte Clapp

Production

Cynthia Hubler
Chris Livengood
Carl Pierce
Janet Seib

Acknowledgments

Writing a book is similar to entering a long-term relationship with an obsessive partner. Throughout the nine months it took to write this book, life went on: job changes, births, deaths, and even a hurricane. Throughout it all, the book demanded constant attention. Therefore, I'd like to thank the people who made it possible to focus on the book to the exclusion of nearly everything else. My wife, Deb, and son, Matt, supported and encouraged me throughout, even when I was little more than a reclusive houseguest hunched over the computer in the study. Additionally, Deb acted as my editor and indexer, eventually reading the book completely three times! Thank you both.

Thanks also to Marc Ewing and Erik Troan, RPM architects extraordinaire. Without their programming savvy, RPM wouldn't be the elegant tool it is. Without their boundless patience, my many questions would have gone unanswered, and this book would have been much less than it is now. I hope you find this book a worthy companion to your programming handiwork.

Rik Faith provided some much-needed information about PMS and PM, two of RPM's ancestors. Thank you! A tip of the RPM hat also goes to Kitty Jarrett and the rest of the crew at Sams. This book wouldn't have been what it is today without your involvement.

Finally, a great big thank you goes to Jessica and the gang at L'il Dino Subs, Jennifer and her crew at the Cary Barnes & Noble coffee shop, and Mom and her "kids" at Schlotzsky's Deli in Durham. If all of you hadn't let me sit around writing for hours, this book wouldn't be nearly as fat as it is. And neither would I!

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Dedication