Windows Vista For Dummies
by Andy Rathbone
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Book Reviews of Windows Vista For Dummies
Book Review: If you can turn on a computer and click a mouse, you don't need this book.
Summary: 1 Stars
Windows Vista for Dummies is light on details and missing so much important information you'd be better off skipping this book entirely. I simply cannot believe anyone who has used Windows before would find much of value in this book. It is a basic book for beginners who have never seen a computer before. If you can turn on a computer and click a mouse, you don't need this book.
I got this book because Chapter 1 discusses some of the features in Windows Vista and I thought it would then go into more detail. NOT!! Chapters 2 to 7 are about clicking the mouse, pointing to get to menus, starting progrmas, searching and printing. If you can click Start and then click a program to run (which even my 6 year old can do) you can skip these chapters entirely. If you can click Print in a program you can skip these chapters entirely. Oh and if you can click Start, type a search and then click, you can skip these chapters too.
Things go downhill from there as the next two chapters (chapter 8 and 9) are rehashes of web browsing and sending email!! By this time it was clear the author can write cute little anecdotes but doesn't have a thimbles worth of knowhow when it comes to computers.
Many features are left out entirely or mentioned in passing since it seems you're supposed to buy a different dummies book if you actually want to be able to do something. The only actual programs covered are in Chapter 15: Playing and Copying Music in Media Player and Chapter 16: Fiddling with Photos and Movies. These chapters are so skimpy they might not as well even be in the book. That's it for multimedia, there's nothing else!! Only these 2 lousy chapters!! If you can click Start and then click one of these programs you can learn more on your own in 5 minutes. The goal seems to be to make sure you buy the dummies multimedia book.
Book Review: I'm not proud. I needed help. I found it here.
Summary: 5 Stars
Last summer, I bought a new laptop with Windows Vista. Although I was able to fumble out transfering files back and forth with my desktop that was still on XP, I became highly frustrated by the new interface in the MSWord program. Very simple things had been made hard to find, I felt.
My pleasure in my new machine was gravely hampered until I bought this book at my local brick and mortar bookstore, paying more for it than I had to--but it turned out to be worth the money. I easily found the section I needed from the table of contents and in five minutes, armed with an understanding of how the software worked, I was able to do everything I could do before. In addition, I am aware of the capabilities of the new program. I no longer hate Vista. My stress level is down and once again, I am as happy with my new laptop as I was when I took it out of the box.
Based on past experience with computer manuals, I might never need to look at this book again. But having it ready to hand makes me confident that I shall never have to waste time trying to guess where Vista keeps a function I need.
I want to praise the author and publisher of this valuable series for making it easy for me to find and go straight to the information that I needed. My caution for potential purchasers of the book is obvious--there is much in this book that I didn't use or look at so this review is based on partial knowledge. But life is too short to spend too much time with computer instruction manuals--this book lets you take what you need and does so in clear language so that a single reading is enough. Based on my experience, I recommend this book to all the Vista-haters out there. Quit hatin' and start relatin'!
Book Review: Great Way to get Up and Running Quickly
Summary: 5 Stars
Having been around Windows as long as Windows has been around, I know that I need two books on Windows Vista.
First I want something quick and easy. Something that will give me the overview that tells me simple things like, 'what version do I want.' Vista comes in five main versions: Basic, Premium, Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate. A quick glance on pages 18 & 19 tell me I need the Business version.
Microsoft always throws in a bunch of new things just when you aren't expecting it. Vista, for instance, comes on a DVD, not a CD. I don't watch movies on my PC's, and they were constructed for business, not entertainment. So to use Vista, I've got to buy at least one DVD drive -- RATS. And this AeroGlass things seems to require high end graphics. How do I turn that off to work with low end graphics cards -- see page 376. Parental control, no kids here. Anyway you get the idea.
This Dummies book is exactly what I need to get through these kinds of problems. It is easy to read, easy to find what you need, quickly tells you how to do simple things like turn off parental controls.
The second book I'll need is something more complex, when you have a question like, 'how many open web sessions can Vista/Bussiness have' don't expect to find it in this book. Most likely I'll get Windows Vista Inside Out. It will cost at least double, have three times as many pages, and be much harder to find things.
Start with this one. With it you can get started quickly and begin to find where your real problems are.
Book Review: Finally, the Dummies Series is Kaput - R.I.P.
Summary: 2 Stars
This marks the ultimate... although not the Windows Vista Ultimate edition!... of Dummies titles gone wrong.
What began years ago, Dos for Dummies, has turned into a mish-mesh of topics that do not relate, do not connect, and do nothing more than confuse newcomers.
As an advanced Windows user and programmer, I understood the concepts herein. It was my first exposure to Vista. But all through the book I kept wondering HOW anybody who does not already consider themself a master at operating systems could go from one point to the next.
The topics appear almost randomly.
The Dummies publisher does this intentionally, and it used to work because it would be a surprise and not a planned, contrived way to just look, well, dumb.
The more traditional titles, especially Sams Teach Yourself Microsoft Windows Vista All in One (Sams Teach Yourself), go out of their way to address BOTH the newcomer's needs as well as getting the more advanced user up to speed.
This Dummies title, and unfortunately many others these days, rely on their series gimmicks to fill the book and rely far less on content that will truly help the newcomer to the topic.
If you know Vista or don't, you will get little value. I do like the cartoons! And I do like the top ten lists, but is the book worth buying just for those?
Book Review: An average-caliber book
Summary: 3 Stars
I'm probably a real dummy. I'm dummy enough that I wished what I bought was an electronic file of the book, a searchable pdf book. I'm a busy dummy perhaps, and I needed fast searching. When I had proble with Vista, I decided that the best way was to restore my laptop to factory settings! Then re-study how this Vista works before reinstalling any of my programs and files. Then whenever, I had problem, I just either go to google or microsoft website, and I found that most of my problems were not so unique to me, and they had solutions already laid out for me. So I really didn't have to read this book so much, and with its physical size, it took up much space on my tiny table. My suggestion to the author is this: either you put your book on a summarized format, then put it in foldable paper format just like the maps that I carry in my car, or put the book in a searchable electronic file (but probably you already have it). Readers dont really have much energy now to carry books around, not even read them. I guess my point to the readers is, if you really want to buy this book, you better buy the electronic format, because you wont have enough time to read the whole book anyway. You only read it, whenever you think it might help to "consult" it. But I guess, most people will just use the power of google...