1. Introduction
A basic Debian installation will usually set up several peripherals, including disks (floppies, IDE and SCSI), networking devices and the screen-related stuff (if you're lucky and your video card is supported).
However, it will usually NOT include many essential devices, such as sound cards, TV cards, and a lot of other exotic boards I don't know about but which I'll help you set up.
 | Pre-requisites: Well, I'll try to make it as simple as possible, to explain difficult stuff, and to guide you step by step. So I don't think any special knowledge is required, however, I'll assume you're familiar with Unix concepts such as 'kernel' and 'root' and 'compiling'. But that's all. If you don't feel like that at all, just tell me, and I'll update this paragraph. |
 | This documentation is strongly tainted by the fact that I only use an i386 (a PC) architecture. The software configuration should be platform-independent, but not the first few paragraphs, about hardware configuration. |
As usual, comments, both positive (good for the mood) and negative are welcome. Really.
 | CAUTION: Your Mileage May Vary. Read thoroughly the documentation that comes with new hardware, including FAQs and HOW-TOs to be found on the vendor's website. They may include specific step-by-step instructions, help you avoid some traps, etc. |
1.1. Credits
Thanks to the people at the NewbieDoc project, especially to Jon Eisenstein for his constant good will to critique our work.
1.2. Feedback
Not-quite-real press reviews:
"Great stuff ! Keep up the good work" -- New York Time
"One of the best docs around" -- Computer Quarterly
If you wish to comment on this doc, do not hesitate to email me. Some points may be wrong, and others may need clarifying. Note: I'm not a native english speaker, so I make grammatical mistakes, do not hesitate to correct them and send a patch.