Switching to a Mac for Dummies

If you are familiar with the "Dummies" series of books, then you won't be surprised or disappointed surprised with this edition.

I am a novice Mac user and I have been attempting to make the adjustment from using a PC to a Mac. I thought written information would assist in my transition and, after receiving my dummies book, I immediately began reading through it. The Table of Contents makes it easy to find subjects you are looking for. The first chapters of the book are very basic, exactly what you would expect if you were new to the world of Macs. I will say that throughout the book, the author writes as an enthusiastic fan of Mac products and his cheery attitude builds excitement for making the change to Mac. As I skimmed through the information I was familiar with, I learned about the command key and other unique features of the Mac. Chapter 5 was the most helpful one for me because it contained a great table comparing terminology between Windows and Mac. Also included in Chapter 5 was a list of keyboard shortcuts. Tips, things to remember, and warnings are highlighted throughout the book making it easy to thumb through chapters and find important items. The author spent quite a bit of time discussing passwords and security. One important thing I learned was that the author does not recommend downloading virus protection unless you are also planning to install Windows on your Mac. I was especially interested in learning about Snow Leopard but was disappointed when reviewing the book. Although the book's cover states "get the most from Mac OS X Snow Leopard" I didn't find any specifics. The book does state that Snow Leopard is an updated version of the Mac operating system and is version 10.6. Information on what makes Snow Leopard a better operating system would have been helpful, even if release notes from Apple had been included. What helped me: Chapter 5: Mac OS X for Windows Users. This chapter, as I stated earlier in my review, has terminology, keyboard shortcuts, and information on Time Machine and Time Capsule and other differences between Macs and Windows. What I have yet to explore: IPhoto (Chapter 12), Producing Movies and Music (Chapter 13), and Building Your Space on the Web (Chapter 14). I have uploaded photos to my Mac and my son has used IPhoto to play a slide show accompanied by ITunes music. The slide shows are so much fun to view. Bottom line recommendation about book: This book provides a good overview of the differences between Macs and Windows. The author definitely is a Mac fan and recommends Macs for their quality. You can find terminology, program information, and lots of tips if you have questions and don't want to search Help on Apple's web site.

I was a Microsoft PC user for over 15 years and I recently decided to buy an IMAC. With the new ITouch and new IPhone out, I wanted to combine that with a Mac Machine so that everything can work together easily. This book gave me a great start to understanding a Mac. Even though I'm good with computers and most of the information I already knew just from playing around with a Mac, the book did give me useful shortcuts and great inside information. Like other "Dummies" books, this was very easy to understand!

I switched from a desktop running Windows to a MacBook the day after Thanksgiving. Although I do have 3 software engineers in the family (2 at Google and 1 at Microsoft) they got my new toy all set up, transferred my files and promptly left me to return to their techie lives in Seattle. I could continually bombard them with questions via email and phone (they wouldn't mind.... really!) but I decided it would just be more practical to have a Dummies book on hand so I don't look quite so dimwitted when I need the answer to the same question a second or third or fourth time. Thus, I find myself reading "Switching To A Mac For Dummies". It really helps. The book is very clear and also quite entertaining. I've laughed out loud more than once. Oh yeah, and I'm learning stuff, too.

Susan Veatch Golds, Alaskan Apple User Group Member Product Title: "Switching to a Mac for Dummies" Author: Arnold Reinhold Price: $21.99 USA Publisher/Distributor: Wiley Publishing, Inc. Website: www.wiley.com/wileyCDA/ Pro: This book was constructed so that a non-computer literate could find, learn and use it effectively during the confusing process of switching from a PC to a Mac. Con:Needed a good light and strong reading glasses to see the figures inserted in the texts. But when following along with your computer it makes it easier. There were some miss allocations. Such as figure 5-1, the current application was being called iChat instead of Finder. In the discussion of IPhoto, the term ITunes was used several times inadvertently. But ignoring that, even I was able to understand how to use the application. Moose Rating 1-5 (5 highest): 5 The book's real strength is in the step by step organization of the information. It can help you decide IF you want a Mac; what KIND of Mac do you want; and HOW to set the computer up. Once you have made the decision to switch, you are told how to more smoothly transfer your information from your old PC to the Mac. Security issues are discussed. Ultimately, you are informed as to your choices of how to most securely dispose of your old PC to avoid making public your private files. Then it goes on to the specifics of running the computer with all the tricks to master the most from the machine. Including the various programs that are available on the machine, or available on the internet (either free or for purchase) to help you do anything you could dream you would need while using your new Mac. I was able to even easily use the index and go back and read again the specific areas I needed to re-read to really be able to use the information. I will give you specific examples on how valuable this book has been in the progression of my development as a new Mac owner. I switched to a Mac Book Pro in June of 2007. The process was very frustrating as I could not even figure out how to enlarge anything I was working on. Coming from a PC, I was used to grabbing any part of the frame work of the program I was working on to make it larger or smaller. The email "page" on the Mac was so small that it was not functional. Asking for help at the store where it was purchased was a joke. The clerk told me that the Mac had such a good resolution screen, that it was fine the image was small. It was also very clear! This was to enable me to use several applications at once. But if I wanted, they could figure out how to reduce the resolution of the screen for me. Obviously, I searched for another clerk. Then I found out about the lower right hand region has small diagonal lines on the Mac that was the ONLY location for expanding the viewing of the item. If I had had this book, I would have saved myself lots of time and frustration! Since there is no manual with the Mac Book Pro, I tried to figure out how t