Windows Vista Inside Out [With CD-ROM]

This book is not for the beginner. It is the most complete computer book I have ever read. If you are serious about learning Vista, this is the book for you!

This publication does an excellent job of explaining the myriad features of Vista in a clear, concise manner. Particularly noteworthy are the many tips that are highlighted throughout the text - they are extremely useful, and may not be available elsewhere. While the basic facts are probably available on the Microsoft website, it would take me a lifetime to find them. Thanks Microsoft Press.

These guys were my first and best resource for Windows XP and they haven't failed me with Vista. I have 15 pounds of Vista documentation on my book shelf, and one e-book on my hard drive. Guess which one? No one source can hold all information about Vista. I search the electronic version of this book first for my Vista questions and if the perfect solution is not there, I have still learned enough to get to quickly get to the heart of the topic without doing countless fruitless web searches. Windows Vista Inside Out, Deluxe Edition

If you're an administrator and are looking for a title to give you an edge on configuring, managing, deploying, etc. Vista, this title isn't for you; the Windows Vista(TM) Resource Kit is what you're looking for. This book is for average users new to Vista who want to familiarize themselves with the new OS and the bundled applications. For the most part, the first 9 chapters cover the basics of Vista insofar as the user experience is concerned, concentrating on configuration, getting your plug and play hardware to work, understanding and using the embedded software, and using the provided support tools to help yourself and your friends. The coverage in this area is very complete, well written and easy to follow, with very little missing insofar as things "you should know". Although separated by a few chapters, chapters 15 thru 19 continue this coverage with information about the digital media (pictures, video, and music) tools included (Windows Media Player, Photo Gallery, Movie Maker, Media Center, and DVD Maker). Chapters 10 thru 14 deal primarily with security and in-home networking. These sections include understanding what viruses, worms, and spyware are, reviewing the security tools and utilities in Vista that can protect you from these kinds of threats, and keeping your system updated. This is followed by an overview of local account management and parental controls, and finally setting up a peer to peer network and sharing resources. Again, all these sections are very well written and make it easy for those that might be uncomfortable with these areas to read and implement successfully. The remaining chapters step up the technical level to include information on system maintenance, system tune-ups, troubleshooting tools, service management, as well as the registry. Many of these topics, if not properly explained, can cause the reader to have issues with their system when not properly implemented, but the authors have done a good job of explaining the what's and how's, as well as providing good recommendations on when to not do something. If you're looking for a good end-user book to teach you the basics of Vista and then advance your skills on the OS, this is an excellent and inclusive read that won't leave you looking for additional materials later on.

They've done it again. Those who have read Windows XP Inside-Out should proceed straight to Checkout because this Vista edition is the encore of that performance. Suffice it to say this book will fill your heart with the same joy and happiness you got from the last edition and so there is no need for you to read beyond this paragraph. Multiple authors should be able to produce a better product than a lone ranger, and while that is not always realized, these authors have managed that achievement. The authors spent over three years on the book and solicited input from the source - the programmers and technical professionals who developed Vista. The result is a tome that is thorough and comprehensive. Windows Vista Inside-Out covers all user features of all editions of Vista and indicates differences with XP - new or dropped features. The Inside-Out titles are not written for Grandma, and so it is presumed the reader is proficient at basic computing. After the basics, you can ride this tome from novice to power-user status or higher. There is plenty here to use or support Vista in a standalone or workgroup environment. Consider Windows Vista Resource Kit to fill the gaps, including deployment in server environments. Click the book cover to see the table of contents.