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Windows Vista: The Missing Manual

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. Readers will learn how to: Navigate Vista's elegant new desktopLocate anything on your hard drive quickly with the fast, powerful, and fully integrated search functionUse the Media Center to record TV and radio, present photos, play music, and record any of the above to DVDChat, videoconference, and surf the Web with the vastly improved Internet Explorer 7 tabbed browserBuild a network for file sharing, set up workgroups, and connect from the roadProtect your PC and network with Vista's beefed up securityAnd much more.This jargon-free guide explains Vista's features clearly and thoroughly, revealing which work well and which don't. It's the book that should have been in the box!

Series: Missing Manual

Paperback: 828 pages

Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1 edition (January 6, 2007)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0596528272

ISBN-13: 978-0596528270

Product Dimensions: 7 x 1.7 x 9.2 inches

Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (84 customer reviews)

Best Sellers Rank: #1,166,277 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #9 in Books > Computers & Technology > Operating Systems > Windows > Windows Desktop > Windows Vista #356 in Books > Computers & Technology > Hardware & DIY > Personal Computers > PCs #1226 in Books > Textbooks > Computer Science > Operating Systems

It's been over five years in the making and it's nearly perfect. No, I'm not referring to Microsoft's vast new operating system named Windows Vista, but to the reference book "Windows Vista: the Missing Manual," by author David Pogue. The Missing Manual series is the benchmark of quality for computer manuals. Unless you're a system administrator, programmer, or uber-geek, this is probably the only reference source you'll need to learn Microsoft's Vista. Vista is the long-awaited successor to Windows XP and it is a major overhaul and upgrade of that operating system. It was designed primarily to address long-standing security issues with XP and its predecessors, but it also has a vastly new look and feel graphically and in operating features. It comes with a large number of new programs and features. This Missing Manual uses every bit of 827 pages (including index) to provide similar descriptive and informational material as the built-in Vista sources, but provides much, much more: One. Beyond mere description of features and functions, the book explains and evaluates all of the major (and many of the minor) changes from Windows XP to the new Vista. The introductory chapter itemizes all of the most important changes providing perspective on what Microsoft has done with the new operating system. It also highlights some of the more significant interface changes - the new search tool, the revised Start Menu, and the new "ribbon" bar. Two. The author notes the options a user has in either using a new Vista feature, or in reconfiguring the operating experience to return to pre-existing features and the aesthetic elements of Windows XP and earlier versions of the operating system. Three.

Author David Pogue, now well known for his acclaimed "Missing Manual" series from O'Reilly, once again stuns us with his latest title, Windows Vista: The Missing Manual. The latest in this marvelous series of "Missing Manual" guides will surely get the attention of potential buyers when they peruse the abundance of computer books now filling the shelves. More importantly, Vista is a major new operating system from Microsoft, not just another security update, and this makes this title even more important.With Microsoft's latest operating system, Windows Vista, this lack of a manual has created an opportunity for others to fill the gap. To the rescue comes this wonderful guide to Windows Vista that easily can serve as the manual that should have accompanied the software. Filled with hundreds of screen shots, this guide includes numerous step-by-step instructions for using almost every Windows Vista feature, including those you may not even have quite understood, let alone mastered.Author Pogue has organized this book into eight parts, including The Windows Vista Desktop, Vista Software, Vista Online, Pictures, Movies, and Media Center, Hardware and Peripherals, PC Health, The Vista Network, and the Appendixes.In this Missing Manual title, the author also discusses concerns regarding upgrading, versus a clean install of Windows Vista, and the all important issue of whether to even consider loading Vista on an existing machine, versus purchasing a brand new machine with Vista already installed. Readers will also be glad to know that the author includes comments on all the five (5) versions of Vista that will be available. These include Vista Home Basic, Vista Home Premium, Vista Business, Vista Enterprise, and Vista Ultimate.

Windows Vista is a complete overhaul to the Windows operating system that took over five years to complete. It includes an all new user interface and major improvements to security. With the all new look, new programs, new explorers five different versions it is a lot to fathom. But you get on screen help but no manual. I personally still want and need a book to sit down and study. I found Windows Vista - The Missing Manual the solution for me. I don't have Vista but worked with the beta product and found that the manual walked me through the changes that impacted me. It has also given me the incite necessary to determine which version of Windows Vista I eventually will use.The book published by O'Reilly is written for advanced beginners or intermediate computer users. For beginners it includes "Up to Speed" articles and for advanced users there are the "Power Users' Clinic" highlights. The Missing Manual's over 800 pages comprise eight parts and four appendixes.I found the "Where'd It Go" appendix an excellent reference. It shows you where the old features you were used to using are hidden in Vista. Part One covers the "Vista Desktop" showcasing several new features. It prepares you for what you might see when first starting Vista.We have all heard about the Aero interface and the book clearly explains the features. I was interested in the new Sleep feature. This is a two step energy conservation feature. For the first 15 minutes all of your open programs and settings are saved in Ram. So restarting only takes a matter of seconds. After 15 minutes the full Sleep mode starts. At that point like Hibernation the image is saved on the hard drive and it takes longer to restart, but is still much faster than a full start up.

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