Below is a list of packages you need to download for building a basic Linux system. The listed version numbers correspond to versions of the software that are known to work, and this book is based upon them. Feel free to try out newer versions, but if you experience problems with those versions, please try the recommended version first before sending bug reports.
All the URL's, when possible, refer to the project's page at Freshmeat.net. The Freshmeat pages will give you easy access to the official download sites as well as project websites, mailinglists, FAQ's, Changelogs and more.
For your convenience the top of the list contains a link to a file you can use with the wget program. Using this file and the wget program will make it easy to download all the files at once, rather than downloading each and every individual file manually.