Windows Vista: The Missing Manual

Windows Vista "the missing link" is too technical for me. It assumes the reader has complete mastery of Windows XP which I dont have, so I am not using the book much. I needed more of a cookbook!

The book is the best I have seem for this operating system. It answers all the questions that are difficult to find in the "help" files on the vista operarong system while in the computer

When I upgraded from the horrible Windows 98 to Windows XP, I purchased David Pogue's Missing Manual for Windows XP and was so glad I did. It was worth every penny because of the amount of information it contained. I didn't have to use it that much but whenever there was any information I did need, it was there inside the book and easy to find.

The same holds true for Mr. Pogue's book on Windows Vista. I initially wasn't crazy about switching to Vista because of the negative comments I had heard about it, plus my own experience using it on other people's computers. My main reason to try it - because I felt like a change. Before I did, however, I purchased this book to be familiar with it before installing. Like the book on XP, this one contains all the information most people would want for using Vista, in a clear, concise, easily understandable and organized format. The writing style is friendly and never a chore to read, there are sections covering every major aspect of Vista, and it is easy enough to find what you want to know.

That said, if you are really into the technical aspects of the program, this book is probably not the best for that; but for the average person who wants a reference book for using the operating system, this is an excellent choice. By the way, I am much more pro-Vista now after having installed it on my own computer (so far no problems whatsoever) than I was with my experiences using it on other people's computers.

I have not used this book extensively to date. It has been helpful in those limited areas that I have consuted. At this point, I am pleased that I purchased the book and believe that it will prove its worth in future use.

Title: Windows Vista: The Missing Manual
First Edition: December 2006
Series: The Missing Manuals
ISBN 10: 0-596-52827-2
ISBN 13: 9780596528270
Pages: 848


Book description from O'Reilly:

"Windows Vista: The Missing Manual offers complete and comprehensive coverage of all five versions of Vista. In his inimitable witty style, New York Times columnist and bestselling author David Pogue illuminates this subject with clear technical insight and hard-nosed objectivity. He explains Vista's features clearly and thoroughly, revealing which work well and which don't. Written for beginners, veteran stand-alone PC users, and those who know their way around a network, this jargon-free guide is the book that should have been in the box!


Windows Vista is Microsoft's most important software release in more than a decade. It offers users an abundance of new and upgraded features that were more than five years in the making: a gorgeous, glass-like visual overhaul; superior searching and organization tools; a multimedia and collaboration suite; and above all, a massive, top-to-bottom security-shield overhaul.


There's scarcely a single feature of the older versions of Windows that hasn't been tweaked, overhauled, or replaced entirely.


But when users first encounter this beautiful new operating system, there's gonna be a whole lotta head-scratchin', starting with trying to figure out which of the five versions of Vista is installed on the PC (Home, Premium, Business, Enterprise, Ultimate).


Thankfully, Windows Vista: The Missing Manual offers coverage of all five versions. Like its predecessors, this book from New York Times columnist, bestselling author, and Missing Manuals creator David Pogue illuminates its subject with technical insight, plenty of wit, and hardnosed objectivity for beginners, veteran standalone PC users, and those who know their way around a network."


This description can hardly start to reveal how good this book is. I did both types of installation: the complete wipe [second] and that other install I will not name. The author claimed the "other install I will not name" would take 5 days, but it only took 4 for me. The performance was not there and I was too research oriented to take his remarks seriously. I thought if the first type of install did not work right, the other would make up for it. The clean install 'might take 15 minutes' according to the author. It took about 4 hours and I still ended up with three partitions and 12 GB of stuff on my hard drive when I was looking for about 4-5GB. Sounds like a book of my own to write someday...


I do love Vista, do not get me wrong. This book really helped me do things I did not think of before I got the Business edition. It would have been very hard to figure out problems that occurred if you were not online to get the Windows version of the fix without this book. It would take at least two computers: the one you are loading with Vista and the other one that is online and searching for fixes.


There are some mistakes in the book, but you can deal with most of them. Page 58, the author means 'translucent' when he writes 'transparent...blurry image...underneath'. Some errors are more troublesome, such as page 350 where 'personal folder==>appdata==>roaming==>etc' does not exist.


This book is worth 5 stars and every penny charged for it, taking everything into account. A balanced point of view is being used by the author in parts of the text. Well done.


I really like Windows Vista: The Missing Manual and find it to be an impressive book and operating system.


Frederick J Eccher Jr
MBA
M.S. Management of Information Systems
A.B. Psychology
B.A. Biology
CIO, Community Partners
President, Board of Directors, Saint Louis Visual Basic Users Group
rick@stlvbug.net