Overview of Internet Tools

The most important client Internet program these days is the Web browser. Red Hat Linux includes the Mozilla software package, which includes a Web browser along with other Web client software for reading mail, participating in newsgroups, and creating Web pages (to name a few). Other Web browsers, some of which incorporate Mozilla features, also come with Red Hat Linux. These include:

• Epiphany — This Web browser is integrated with the GNOME desktop, allowing you to take advantage of GNOME themes, drag-and-drop, and translation features. On the inside, Epiphany relies on Mozilla's rendering engine.

• Konqueror — Although Konqueror is the file manager for the KDE desktop, it can also display Web content. Using Konqueror, you can easily go back and forth between Web sites and local files and folders.

Running a close second to Web browsers is the e-mail reader (referred to in network standards terms as a Mail User Agent, or MUA). Ximian Evolution is the recommended e-mail client for Red Hat Linux. Another option is the Mozilla integrated e-mail client. Mail programs that have been around in Linux and other UNIX systems since the time when most mail was plain text include mutt, pine and mail.

You can choose from thousands of newsgroups to participate in discussions on the Internet. Red Hat Linux has several newsreaders available. Again, Mozilla includes an application for participating in newsgroups. Also, the pan and slrn newsreaders are available.

Besides browsing, e-mail, and news, there are many ways of communicating with other computers and users on the Internet. Older UNIX commands such as rlogin, rsh, and rcp are supported in Linux to do remote login, run remote commands, and copy files remotely. In recent years, OpenSSH commands (ssh, scp, and sftp) have become preferable to the "r" commands because they offer greater security.