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iBook Book Review : "The iBook for Dummies " Written by David Pogue
This
is the only iBook book, by the way, that was
written AFTER Apple shipped the AirPort
wireless-Internet card. So it's the only
iBook book with a step-by-step tutorial in
setting up the AirPort base station--and then
surfing the Internet from your TV couch!
" The
iBook For Dummies suggested retail price is
$19.99 and is published by
IDG.
The
408 page Paperback Edition of
"The
iBook For Dummies"
is now shipping. You can order it now and Amazon
will ship it to you
. And "The iBook for
Dummies" book is no exception. Mr. Pogue laces
the potentially dry materials of a computer
manual with his own special brand of humor,
while still providing detailed and accurate
information. For beginning iBook owners, this
book is a "must have"! You'll learn to use your
iBook to its fullest potential. Wielding his own brand
of humor, David Pogue points out that one might
not want to carry a book with the phrase "for
dummies" on the cover. Open the outside cover to
reveal the new improved cover. The geeky yellow
exterior with the triangular headed kid is
replaced with the title: "iBook Methodologies in
Theory and Practice". You'll smile as you read
the hi-lites describing simple concepts with
sophisticated phrases! And so begins the
fun. This book covers the
gamut from the very basics to some moderately
complicated troubleshooting, including chapter
1-1/2, "High-Tech made easy." (As if this could
be done!) Virgin
territory... The first part of this
book, appropriately named: "For the Absolute
Computer Virgin", will be of use to people new
to computers or to the MacOS. It describes
starting the iBook, putting it to sleep, dealing
with MacOS windows, desktop, icons, control
panels and more. Even if you have a good handle
on these topics, it makes good reading and a
great review. The later part of this
section includes some very useful information
about working with printers and backing up files
(and the hardware you will need to consider
purchasing to do this). The section on printers
describes connecting USB printers, older non-USB
printers, and laser printers. He deflates the
value of this information by explaining how to
get a printedimage without using a
printer.... The next section is
called "The Internet defanged". If you want to
connect your tasty little iBook to the Internet,
you'll learn what you need to know here. Mr.
Pogue does an excellent job describing the
difference between America Online (AOL) and a
regular Internet Service Provider (ISP) using
the analogy of a grocery store compared to a
farmer's market. How-tos include step by
step directions on configuring your iBook to
access either AOL, a regular ISP, or both. This
is followed by details on the popular parts of
both AOL and the Internet in general. Getting
even more practical he explains how to open
files downloaded from the Internet and how to
handle all those weird compressed, encrypted,
and Wintel generated files. (including a
description of several very common "PC"
three-letter suffixes and what to do with them).
All very useful information. WWWelcome
to the wwweb... The chapter on the WWW
explains how to get there and what to do once
you have arrived. Too bad our site (iBook User)
wasn't hi-lighted in the book like "iBook
World". In this chapter he shows you how to
navigate the web, basic search strategies, using
Sherlock, discusses the Netscape/Microsoft
browser debate, how to speed up web browsing,
locking the "bad" stuff away from the kids, and
provides a list of useful and entertaining web
sites to visit (including his own home page,
with the unique name of "davidpogue.com".) The email section
demystifies email programs using Outlook Express
as an example ( hey, its free and came on your
iBook ! ). It also has a useful section on
dealing with email attachments, a real problem
area with email. Section three is called
"Software Competence". Since your iBook didn't
come with any written manuals for the titles
that were included, this sectionfills the gap.
Titles covered include Appleworks, Palm Desktop,
Bugdom,WorldBook Encyclopedia, and the Internet
safety kit. The depth ofinformation varies, but
the information on Appleworks and Palm Desktop
is quite comprehensive. "Living on DC" details
everyday use of your battery, including
charging, conserving power, using the sleep
feature, and preserving memory. All useful
information to an iBook owner. Take
out theTrash... The chapter on the
System folder offers a basic description of
the
extensions, control
panels, and other things included in the stock
system folder of an iBook. Along with each
description you get his opinion as to whether
you should trash, turn off, or keep each of
them. I didn't agree with every one of his
recommendations, but following his advice is a
good way to trim the contents of a hard drive
and can speed the start up process. The next chapter offers
a diverse set of useful tricks and techniques
that
make using your
computer easier. These are primarily tricks and
short cuts
used by intermediate
to power users. For instance silencing the trash
warning, hiding and returning background
applications, working with alias', changing the
background image, and viewing your windows in a
variety of fashions. Get
connected... "High Powered
Connections" offers essential information on
connecting things to your iBook. Not only does
it discuss the basics of adding a new USB
device, but also the methods of connecting older
Non-USB equipment to your iBook. He also offers
detailed descriptions on how to connect your
iBook to another Macintosh as well as creating a
full office network. Granted the description
doesn't deal with every problem which can occur,
but is detailed enough that a beginner could
give it a try. Wireless Networking
gives you the skinny on wireless networks.
You'll learn to set up and use a AirPort as a
networking base station. The information is
detailed enough so that most inexperienced
people can follow the process. He also descries
how to us another Mac with a wireless networking
card as a base station (in place of the AirPort)
and connecting two iBooks together using their
wireless cards. You
Lookin' fer Trouble ?... The Troubleshooting
section of this book addresses a number of
common Macintosh as well as some specific iBook
related troubles and includes suggestions on how
to deal with them. Included are dealing with low
RAM problems, crashes, freezes, start up
problems, and a variety of hardware related
problems. To
resolve these bad things he shows the reader how
to rebuild the desktop, zap the PRAM, "force
Quit" an application, deal with Extension
conflicts, how to give an application more RAM,
and performing a "Clean Install" of the system.
The suggestions he makes and the applications he
recommends are all excellent choices.
The
final section of the book considers a variety of
hardware items you can add to you iBook, things
you can do with your iBook you might not realize
such as watch movies,( Like Phantom
Menace ! )
listen to CDs and let it speak to you etc.
Ease
of Use.... Like the Macintosh a
book about the iBook should be well laid out and
easy to use. How easy is it to find information
you need in this book? Real easy ! There is a
cheat sheet, two tables of contents, a short
version and a long version that lists every sub
topic, which makes it easy to locate a specific
section. The index can be used to find sections
of the book pertaining to a specific phrase.
Overall, a novice user should be able to find
information easily in this book. Conclusion... All in all this book in
filled with practical, information, useful to
both
new and intermediate
iBook users. iBook-User gives "The iBook For
Dummies" five iBooks out of five. If you are interested in
buying this book on-line, click on the link
below
to go directly to
Amazon.com or on the Book cover at the
top
page. Happy
Reading!
Ted
Bade has
been using Apple computers since 1982 and Macs
since 1985. Dedicated to the Macintosh, he has
been a member and leader of a Computer user
group since 1983. He has a degree in electrical
engineering and loves to write. To date he has
published a number of articles in
MacHome
Journal
magazine, writes for iBook-User
and writes regularly for H.U.G.E.
a computer
user group newsletter, and freelances whenever
he can find the time and need. While he's not
playing Quake Arena or Unreal Tournament with
his Macintosh G4 or PowerBook G3. Books
By David Pogue Macworld
Mac SECRETS, 5th Edition Macs
for Dummies, 6th Edition (new for Mac OS
8.5) MORE
Macs for Dummies, 3rd Ed. The
iMac for Dummies (NEW SECOND
EDITION!) PalmPilot:
The Ultimate Guide (2d
Edition) The
Great Macintosh Easter-Egg
Hunt
The First web site Dedicated to Apple's iBook ! iBook-User © is a Publication of P1 Publishing LLC 2001 |
For
beginning iBook owners, this book is a "Must Have"
! "Wielding
his own brand of humor...You'll smile... and so
begins the "If
you want to connect your tasty little iBook to the
Internet, you'll learn what you need to know here
!" "How
easy is it to find information you need "...Overall,
a novice user should be able to find information
easily in this book !" |
