About.com Rating
The Bottom Line
I love this book - especially for beginner and intermediate users of Windows 7. If you can only buy one book, you should buy this one.
Pros
- Lots of colorful pictures and white space
- Well written and organized
- Offers reader a wide breath of insight
- Good glossary, TOC and Index
- 45 day free access to Online edition
Cons
- Some pictures with detail might have been larger
- Explanations may be too short for some people
Description
- Chapters 1 and 2 - What's New and Getting Started with Windows 7
- Chapters 3 and 4 - Using the Desktop, Working with Folders
- Chapters 5 and 6 - Working with Files, Printing
- Chapters 7 and 8 - Windows Media Player and Windows Media Center
- Chapters 9 and 10 - Gaming, Browsing the Internet
- Chapters 11 and 12 - Personalizing Windows 7, System Maintenance and Performance
- Chapters 13 and 14 - User Accounts and System Security, Setting Up Programs
- Chapter 15 and 16 - Windows Accessories, Networking Your Home
- Chapter 17 - Using Windows Live Essentials
Guide Review - Book Review: Easy Microsoft Windows 7 by Mark Soper
Easy MS Windows 7 (Retail priced at $21.99) lives up to its name. It follows the best of technical writing principles (of the look, read, do genre) by using lots of color pictures and white space with thoughtful, brief text.
Not only does this book tell readers how to do things, it tells them how to do many, many things and approaches difficult subjects like setting up a home network without scaring the heck out of readers - what a concept.
Explanations in the book are brief - it is not the type of book that will have all the answers and take many pages to explain something. If you want that kind of book, you might try a different one. Also, some pictures could have been larger; maybe the next edition will address that feature.
Windows and computers have a lot of acronyms; that's why I like the included glossary. It provides an easy explanation of the latest terms. Also, note that the Table of Contents and Index are accurate.
I would use this book as a how to guide and fill in any missing information using the Windows Help provided by Microsoft (Start button, Help and Support). No book addresses everything; this one addresses most of the things you'll do with a Windows PC.