Roughly a month after buying the book I've finished reading it.
All my initial impressions were right on the spot: it is really a great book and was worth every euro.
During the holidays I managed to read the remaining chapters and learned a lot and also refreshed some concepts. Loved chapters 3 "Using the shell", 4 "Working with files" and 5 "Manipulating text". All 3 chapters were really useful and covered with tips applicable to the everyday use of the shell.
Chapter 6 "Playing with multimedia" was one of those chapters that I left for the end as the subject didn't appeal much and thought I wouldn't enjoy it. Well I was wrong, it was very enjoyable and didn't regret reading it one bit.
The only chapter I found lacking was the last one "Locking down security". I was expecting security tips to harden my server but the entire chapter was very light and shallow, and ended up not learning anything new or helpful for that matter.
Appendix A, B and C are top notch specially for anyone using Vim.
When at the computer during my holidays I did browse it as a quick-reference whenever I couldn't remember that exact command in Vim and also used it to fine tune some aspects of a recent OpenSUSE 11.0 install. The book's straight to the point approach is very practical, which aligned with the fact that the book is around 300 pages makes it ideal to carry around and quickly consult it.
Now I'll be searching for another gem but if I don't manage to find anything in the local bookstore I'll probably order something online. Absolute FreeBSD, FreeBSD Basics and Building a Server with FreeBSD have caught my eye so I'll try to get my hands on them.
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