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ROMs or flash memory cards, change the type of filesystem on existing partitions, and mount or unmount hard drives or other devices. According to Red Hat Software, this command should be used instead of the control-panel's fstool command.
| CAUTION |
Editing or changing the characteristics of Linux, DOS, or other partitions is inherently dangerous, and could cause you to lose data. Always keep a backup of your /etc/inittab file, which contains a database of the various filesystems available to Linux. |
Use the cabaret command with care! Navigate through the command dialog boxes by using the Tab key. Don't press the Enter key unless you're absolutely sure you know what you're doing!
The mouseconfig command probes your system, looking for different pointing devices installed on your system. If you have a two-button mouse, you this command enables you to set your mouse to emulate three buttons.
The sndconfig command represents a breakthrough in sound configuration for Linux. Until sndconfig, you generally had to recompile the Linux kernel to add sound or support for different types of sound cards. The sndconfig command uses loadable modules, found under the /lib/modules/2.0.31/misc directory to configure your kernel to handle your sound system.
The sndconfig command presents a dialog box from which you can select one of five different Sound Blaster or Sound Blaster-compatible sound cards. After you select a card, press the Enter key; you can then edit the hardware's input/output value, IRQ, or DMA channels.
| TIME SAVER |
Be sure to have your sound card's documentation on hand when you use the sndconfig command. Don't play guessing games with values for five different sound cards and 20 different settings. It's best to enter correct values and not waste time configuring Linux for sound. |
The sndconfig program then tests your configuration by trying to play a sample sound, called sample.au, located in the /usr/share/sndconfig directory (if you hear the sample, you'll hear Linus Torvald's voice, and know how to pronounce the word Linux!). Tell the sndconfig command that you heard the sound by tabbing to the Yes button and pressing the Enter
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key, and the correct settings for your sound card and the kernel module, sound.o, will be written into the file conf.modules, found under the /etc directory.
The timeconfig command is used to set the location and timezone of your computer. This command can be handy if you travel with your computer and need to tell Linux the current local time.
The Xconfigurator command is used to configure the X Window System to run on your computer's hardware. For details about configuring X11, see Hour 3, "Configuring the X Window System."