There are many guides out there; a lot of them are books. Although a book is highly recommended by a lot of people, there are certain things that an author can't or shouldn't mention, because books are permanent (for all practical purposes). You also have to pay for books. This guide is not intended to be a complete substitute for a good Linux book, but you don't have to pay for it in order to read it, it gets updated more often than a book to correct misinformation, and if you send feedback, you even get a link to your e-mail address and your name posted (if you want). A few good books you might want to consider are Using Linux (Que Publishing), Linux in a Nutshell (O'Reilly I think), and Linux Unleashed (Sam's). A book will make your experience much easier and more enjoyable.
This guide was originally written so that I could reference to it, but I put it up on my personal website, and it's been growing ever since. I guess I'm also a sucker for putting up as much knowledge as I can so people from the future will have a piece of my mind. I would have to say that the content here is best accompanied by a few IRC sessions in various #Linux* channels (#LinuxHelp on the Undernet is where I usually hang out as JoshTech). However, I support my work, so if you're wondering about something, you can drop me a note. You can also contact me via AOL Instant Messenger (Almanac38).
Most often, people starting out with Linux are those migrating from the DOS/Windows world. Those users are usually very able and are eager to learn, experiment, and/or simply get away from the Microsoft monopoly (well, just as far as possible). So the language I use is pretty simple, and I won't assume you know anything about Linux, but I'll use terms that are, from my point of view, understandable by the typical computer-literate DOS/Windows user. If you catch me trying to show off, let me know and I'll do what I can to correct the problem.
Enjoy the guide, and don't look at problems you encounter as problems: think of them as learning experiences. It makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside when you finally solve a problem you've been working at for a while. It's also good to clean up all the hair you might have pulled out in frustration.
Comments, questions, suggestions, corrections? Send them all to jtg@computers.iwz.com.
Copyright © 1997-1999 Joshua Go (jtg@computers.iwz.com). All rights reserved. Permission to use, distribute, and copy this document is hereby granted. You may modify this document as long as credit to me is given.