Macworld Mac OS 9 Bible
by Lon Poole and Todd Stauffer
http://www.mac-upgrade.com
IDG Books Worldwide
http://www.idgbooks.com
ISBN 0-7645-3414-9, 899 pages
$39.99 U.S., $59.99 Canada, £36.99 U.K.
If I were stranded on a desert island, I wouldn’t care if I had Madonna, Metallica, or Mozart in my MP3 player, as long as I had Lon and Todd (or their books) to keep me company. These two authors consistently deliver Book Bytes Award-winning titles on a huge range of Macintosh subjects. I wish each of them (and their editorial and publication teams) a long life full of royalties and appreciative readers.
What’s new here? All six previous OS Bibles were written primarily by Lon Poole. This latest edition brings Todd Stauffer and many fine collaborators to the party. Nice work, everyone!
The Macworld Mac OS 9 Bible appears and weighs about the same as its immediate predecessor, which covered OS 8.5 and a few earlier operating systems. What’s different is that this newer book looks ahead more than backward, taking into account the many changes in OS 9 and the great leap forward coming with OS X (or 10).
The “what’s new†and “what’s hot†and “what’s cool†opening chapters present OS 9’s latest and greatest bells and whistles and “under the hood†improvements in 60 pages. The writing is thoughtful and instructive, enhanced with tons of screen shots. Do you know how to use the new Help Viewer? You should!
Macworld Mac OS 9 Bible is divided into six major parts and 31 chapters, covering mundane and snazzy topics from “Get Organized with the Finder†to “Automate with Scripts†to chapters on utility software, plus “tips and secrets†followed by “more tips and secrets.†These writers are good, and we are the beneficiaries.
Even if your new computer came with OS 9 pre-installed, you should take the time to read the two final chapters, which cover Operating System installation in exquisite detail. In a hurry and planning to skip these 30 indispensable pages? Don’t call me for help, because I won’t call you back.
Book Bytes is not going to attempt to evaluate the HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Macworld Mac OS 9 Bible in such a brief review, except to say that its mighty text, tips, graphics, and cross-referenced items are essential reading and reference material for all power users and serious Mac persons running OS 9. Forty bucks? A bargain! Nuff said?
MacMice Rating: 5
Database Nation:
The Death of Privacy in the 21st Century
by Simson Garfinkel
http://www.simson.net
O’Reilly and Associates
http://www.oreilly.com
ISBN 1-56592-653-6, 312 pages
$24.95 U.S., $36.95 Canada
One of the few disadvantages in reviewing over 150 books annually for Book Bytes is when a good reading book comes along I don’t have sufficient time to study it patiently. Such is the case with Database Nation, the first and last word in privacy protection and personal data security from author Simson Garfinkel.
Here I am, stuck on page 60, reading how “Biometrics will be used to open the doors to office buildings and to unlock computer files,†wishing I had an extra few days to evaluate this exceptional book on a personal and reviewer basis. Thanks to the author, I have already ordered, received, and corrected my credit report. I have learned enough about identity theft to be very careful in future on many fronts.
The price is reasonable, the information is applicable to every Book Bytes reader (plus most of the rest of the population!), the text is well-presented, and the advice is sobering. With high-profile hackers insinuating themselves into your lives, and with government and business burrowing deep into your personal privacy, the cost of Database Nation, just like good insurance, will repay itself in mistakes you don’t make.
Simson’s home page contains additional information on this subject (plus some enjoyable personal facts and photos of him and his family). The book consists of chapters with chilling titles such as “Who Owns Your Information?â€, “Buy Now!â€, and “Kooks and Terrorists.†The annotated bibliography and footnotes are fascinating for serious students of this penetrating topic.
The publisher may need Ralph Nader’s “graphic and blistering indictment†endorsement on the cover to sell copies of Database Nation to the paranoid public, but astute followers of Book Bytes know we don’t make false claims here. Garfinkel has a long history of involvement with the issues under discussion, going back to his undergraduate days at MIT.
Too busy or too cheap to pick up a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED copy? Ha! You’ll be sorry.
MacMice Rating: 4
Okay — now I have an hour to read further.
How to Do Everything with Your iBook
by Todd Stauffer
http://www.mac-upgrade.com/ibook
Osborne / McGraw-Hill
http://www.osborne.com
ISBN 0-07-212419-9, 636 pages
$24.99 U.S.
If Todd Stauffer’s iBook offering is comparable to his similarly-named iMac book (see this issue’s Bonus Book Bytes, plus the Book Bytes Archives), serious users of Apple’s consumer portable computer are in for a treat. It is no secret that I am a huge fan of Todd’s books, so expect a highly subjective treatment in this commentary.
On the Book Bytes bookshelf I’m gazing across a half-dozen competing titles on the iBook, ranging in skill level from absolute newbie to experienced user, and all within $6 U.S. of one another. How is the person already familiar with Mac OS and its applications to choose the best possible title?
Consider these components: 26 chapters in four major parts, with each chapter divided and subdivided into focused articles and step-by-step assignments, plus hundreds of notes, tips, shortcuts, and screen shots. Getting more specific, what’s in and what’s out?
IN:
• boxed “How to†sidebars featuring special projects and hidden features
• thorough hardware and software setup and get-acquainted chapters
• comprehensive coverage of Mac OS and iBook applications
• gaming, Internetting, America Onlining, and QuickTiming
• plenty more, as you will see when you flip through the pages
OUT:
• Not much!
Chapter Eight is a personal favorite, with detailed explanation on using AppleWorks to “Create Printed Documents.†The entire 140-page midsection in How to Do Everything with Your iBook is a book-within-a-book on Apple’s powerful integrated software package.
The final section is right on target for Todd’s intended experienced-user audience, with specific chapters on: troubleshooting, networking, cross-platforming, upgrading, and customizing your iBook.
If you or someone you care about wants the best possible book on the entire range of How to Do Everything with Your iBook, stop horsing around and spend the modest $$$ required to own and use this HIGHLY RECOMMENDED beauty. It will serve you well for introductory and intermediate-level system, application, and hardware resource and learning purposes, and will repay its purchase many times over.
Room for improvement? How about a freeze-dried iBook enclosed with each review copy! Is that too much to ask, publisher?
Author Todd Stauffer explains:
My stated goal with the How to Do Everything series is to take a user who is a beginner (although, admittedly, someone who is reasonably familiar with the idea of a mouse and screen) and make them an intermediate-to-expert user of the given product: in this case, the iBook.
So I’m not necessarily shooting for the “experienced user,” although that term obviously gives a wide berth. Still, it is a book targeted at someone who wants to know as much as possible (not as little as possible) to succeed with their iMac or iBook.
MacMice Rating: 5
Crossing Platforms:
A Macintosh/Windows Phrasebook
by Adam Engst
http://www.tidbits.com/adam
and David Pogue
O’Reilly and Associates
http://www.oreilly.com
ISBN 1-56592-539-4, 321 pages
$29.95 U.S., $43.75 Canada
I have never met David or Adam in person, but I feel I know each of them fairly well. They are two of the premier Macintosh authors, having exceptional talent in writing with skill and wit for all levels of the Mac community. Their hearts are firmly entrenched with us Applefiends, but they realize Windows is here to stay (and vice versa).
Crossing Platforms is structured like a foreign-language dictionary, with A-Z Windows terminology for Macintoshers in the first half, and Mac lingo for Windozers alphabetized in the second half. Warning: ignore “The Ten Most Important Windows Differences†on pages two and three at your peril, and tell your Winpals to take the same approach on pages 166 and 167.
It’s funny, but I find myself spending more time in the second half than the first, because the authors explain Macstuff so well I want to make certain I understand our favorite OS as thoroughly as they do. The cost of Crossing Platforms is not inherently a bargain, but all you gurus and consultants are well-advised to have the knowledge in this second section securely embedded in your grey matter.
(A recent check of book prices at Amazon.com and other online bookstores yielded discount prices of up to 30 percent on this book and many other Book Bytes titles. Let me know your favorite online and mail-order sources for books, please!)
Most intended purchasers will be experienced Mac folks, like me, who use Windows by necessity, rather than choice. We need all the help we can get with: Character Map (translation: Key Caps); Safe Mode (translation: Extensions Off); and “parity/non-parity RAM†(translation: I haven’t a clue!); plus dozens more.
Author Adam Engst offers a clarification:
The way a Mac user will get help is to look up Key Caps to learn about the Character Map in Windows, look up Extensions Off to learn about Safe Mode, etc. We’ve had to be very careful about things like this to avoid confusing people.
With plentiful screen shots and diagrams, Crossing Platforms is a joy to study. Suggestion: the type is too small for aging eyes. You guys and your publisher can afford to use a larger font next time, so please do so.
In this concise, no-nonsense book, Adam and David don’t have the opportunity to wow us with the pithy prose they use in their regular TidBITS http://www.tidbits.com and Macworld http://www.macworld.com columns, but don’t let that deter you from buying and studying every word in this RECOMMENDED and ground breaking new book from Book Bytes Award winners.
MacMice Rating: 4
Sams Teach Yourself the iBook in 24 Hours
by Gene Steinberg
http://www.macnightowl.com
Sams Publishing
http://www.samspublishing.com
ISBN 0-672-31849-0, 366 pages
$19.99 U.S., $29.95 Canada, £14.50 U.K.
Gene Steinberg is back, and this time he is toting his favorite blueberry (or is it tangerine?) hingeless portable Mac. In “24 proven one-hour lessons†readers go from “Setting Up Your iBook†through all the basics of iBook system and application software to printing, problem-solving, peripherals, backing-up, working with Windows, and taking the whole show on the road.
What distinguishes Sams Teach Yourself the iBook in 24 Hours from the competition is the lessons. You can hop around, follow them in sequence, or use them for reference purposes. With many other iBook titles available, this one will appeal most to new users who appreciate a step-by-step method of learning a new skill.
The pages contain hundreds of screen shots, tips, and warnings. Gene is particularly good in his explanation of the System Folder and its contents. Throughout the book he features desktop and Internet usage equally, although readers who plan to delve deep into the Net will require more help than is available here.
Book Bytes is pleased to see a helpful Q&A section at the end of every unit, containing such pertinent discussion material as: “My dealer tells me that if I try to install RAM on my computer, the warranty will be null and void. Is that true?†Hint: for the answer, turn to page 307 in Lesson 21.
If every new iBook person put as much time into studying and working through the tutorials as the author and publisher have devoted to Sams Teach Yourself the iBook in 24 Hours, we Mac gurus would have fewer customers (paying and otherwise), and the Macintosh community would be very much smarter.
MacMice Rating: 3
Under the Radar:
How Red Hat Changed the Software Business —
and Took Microsoft by Surprise
by Robert Young and Wendy Goldman Rohm
Coriolis Group
http://www.coriolis.com
ISBN 1-57610-506-7, 197 pages
$27.50 U.S., $37.50 Canada, £17.99 U.K.
This is the most important book you won’t read in the next year, if ever. The authors take you to the front lines of expanding awareness in the fields of open source software evolution and business development. In a week or a month or a year you will need to know this stuff, and you won’t be prepared. The book is overpriced, but the material is valuable. Am I making sense?
Bob Young is the CEO of Red Hat http://www.redhat.com, an important, small North Carolina company which provides support services for heavy-duty Linux server applications. Linux is undergoing continuous revision by professional and volunteer software experts worldwide, with an expanding user base that hopes to derail the Redmond juggernaut of Microsoft Windows NT, or Win 2000.
The story is told in a series of brief episodes, uneven in style and substance. A majority of the book deals with Red Hat’s mushrooming business plan, which can be skimmed by most readers. The key chapter, “Gods and Apostles,†is a mere 14 pages long, but contains the reason for existence of the book: a mini-bio of Linus Torvalds, founder of the Linux software “kernel.â€
Last month I reviewed Eric Raymond’s The Cathedral and the Bazaar, which can be considered a companion work in the discussion of the value of open source software. Eric and other open source evangelists are featured throughout Under the Radar, breathing personality into an otherwise dry and esoteric topic. Some of these characters are real characters!
Linus and his hard-working colleagues have to deal with the same mundane pressures as their counterparts in mainstream “binary†software engineering and marketing, but the Linux crowd shares a vision of participatory development. They are on our side, and deserve our recognition and moral support.
Most Book Bytes readers will not want to purchase Under the Radar, because it’s a quick read for a high price. Therefore, in the spirit of open source, I propose you consider buying-and-sharing with friends and co-workers, then donating the book to a public library or school.
MacMice Rating: 3
The iBook for Dummies
by David Pogue
Dummies Press
http://www.dummies.com
ISBN 0-7645-0647-1, 383 pages
$19.99 U.S., $29.99 Canada, £18.99 U.K.
In the rarefied world of Dummies-format publications, a couple of authors stand above the crowd for their ability to keep the style light and the substance on target. David Pogue is in this select group. Readers familiar with his humorous, well-informed books and articles will not be surprised to find David in top form this time around.
Who should buy and use The iBook for Dummies? Not me, and probably not you, loyal Book Bytes reader, but I guarantee you know one or more people who need this book during the opening act of their performance with the tangerine or blueberry portable Macintosh. From rudimentary hardware photos and hand-holding during the Mac OS Setup Assistant, through 20 chapters and two appendices, new users with a sense of adventure will benefit from the info on every page.
All the usual suspects are here, including fundamental introductions to: everything Macintosh, AOL, and the Web; printing and wireless networking; AppleWorks and the other bundled software; plus useful troubleshooting advice. David’s lists of recommended additional peripherals will come in handy once the iBooker is familiar with the new computer.
Where appropriate (see “Ethernet Made Eathy†starting on page 275), the author walks readers through detailed steps to make complicated procedures straightforward. Pogue understands computers are complicated, and is able to soften the frustrations most newbies encounter.
Boxed sidebars detail specific pain-reducing words of wisdom, including “How to plug older Macintosh equipment into your iBook,†“Printing your Palm Desktop calendar,†and “El cheapo software (shareware).†Other tips, check lists, and screen shots enhance every page with visual variety and helpful graphics.
This is getting boring. Can’t Book Bytes find something to criticize in The iBook for Dummies? Sure, if you will please provide an out-of-box-experience for your humble reviewer, so I can work through David Pogue’s iBook title for myself. It is a pleasure to HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book for all complete newcomers to Mac OS and the iBook.
MacMice Rating: 4
Teach Yourself the iMac
by Jennifer Watson
IDG Books Worldwide
http://www.idgbooks.com
ISBN 0-7645-3396-7, 359 pages
$19.99 U.S., $29.99 Canada, £18.99 U.K.
Book Bytes is fond of this “satisfaction guaranteed Teach Yourself†series. Well-suited to beginners, the format includes focused two-page lessons, each containing screen shots, tips, keyboard shortcuts, cross-references to related material in the book, plus “personal workbook†quiz and practice material.
Let’s imagine a first-time iMac user who happens to learn best in bursts of tutorial exercises. Author Jennifer Watson (whose earlier books we have applauded) guides her readers through the physical aspects of the computer, then onto the Desktop, and into AppleWorks, the integrated-software application. Her writing is snappy, well-organized, and full of enthusiasm.
The 100-page unit on applications is followed by single-subject lessons on networking in general and the Internet (and AOL) in particular, before wrapping up with chapters on customizing, automating, and troubleshooting the iMac. I would have preferred to see less bulk devoted to AppleWorks and more to the Net, because the “i†in iMac is rapidly becoming the main event for most first-timers.
I wish I had memorized a comparable book (they didn’t exist) when I was getting started, because Jennifer is good and the design/presentation is excellent. She maintains a light-and-lively tone of voice throughout, as in her opening words on QuickTime: “The iMac does more than tickle your eardrum — it can stimulate your visual cortex, too!â€
Book Bytes has no criticisms of the content in the affordable Teach Yourself the iMac, and can RECOMMEND it to appropriate readers. Be prepared to look elsewhere for extensive coverage of the Internet.
MacMice Rating: 3
Next we have TWO GUEST REVIEWS by Jeffrey McPheeters
netizen@psalm1.com
Real World Adobe GoLive 4
http://www.realworldgolive.com
by Jeff Carlson
http://www.necoffee.com
and Glenn Fleishman
with Neil Robertson and Agen Schmitz
Peachpit Press
http://www.peachpit.com
ISBN 0-201-35474-8, 724 pages
$44.99 U.S., $67.50 Canada
A talented team of authors tackles one of the most able web development software products on the market, and this book is for real! The publisher says it is for beginners and experts alike as well as everyone in between. I’ll not be the first or the last to admit GoLive is one seriously-looking application with enough icons, buttons, palettes, and windows to humble even the most ardent Photoshop user.
I upgraded from CyberStudio’s GoLive 3.0 to Adobe’s GoLive 4.0 soon after Adobe acquired the product last year. The original GoLive 4 manual is more than 800 pages of convoluted, error-prone, feature-missing details that does little to convince the novice or intermediate this program has much to offer them. (To Adobe’s credit, they have since rewritten the manual from scratch. It is 500+ pages and meets the high expectations we’ve come to expect from Adobe’s in-house publishing department.)
Jeff, Glenn, Neil, and Agen work together to produce the definitive user’s guide to working with GoLive 4 in “real world†applications. Don’t let the length intimidate you. Real World Adobe GoLive 4 is filled with screen shots depicting every step and process in thorough and easy to understand terms. The authors sprinkle humor, sarcasm, and actual answers to life’s tough questions throughout. Well, maybe not life’s tough questions, but certainly demanding questions for web designers to wrestle with.
This book is suitable for skimming, reading isolated chapters to answer your most pressing questions on some pressing problem (like how to get style sheets to work with the widest range of browsers), or sitting down for a weekend with a liter of JOLT, an extra drive full of your favorite MP3s, and eyes glued to Real World Adobe GoLive 4 and your monitor, going from cover to cover to see what this thing can do! The book’s 28 chapters are grouped into four main topics: GoLive Basics, Pages, Sites, and Advanced. Following those are two appendices devoted to special Mac issues and the Master List of CSS (cascading style sheet) Compatibility.
If you are seriously considering using or are already using what is arguably considered to be the standard tool for website design and maintenance, you will find Real World Adobe GoLive 4 to be the definitive standard against which you’ll compare all other books covering Adobe GoLive 4. Certainly for the novice to intermediate user I would RECOMMEND that they make this book top purchase priority. Professionals will be delighted to add this book to their library and refer to it often for help with the more complex issues.
MacMice Rating: 4
Final Cut Pro For
Macintosh Visual QuickPro Guide
by Lisa Brenneis
Peachpit Press
http://www.peachpit.com
ISBN 0-201-35480-2, 508 pages
$24.99 U.S., $37.50 Canada
Final Cut Pro is Apple’s answer for the video professional or pro-amateur using today’s latest technology to streamline their video projects. I have several Visual QuickStart Guide titles on my shelf, and whenever I acquire a new program that has an overabundance of power-user features and terminology, I promptly look to see if there’s a VQSG from Peachpit Press to help me get up and running. I try and leave the official manuals for reference only.
Final Cut Pro For Macintosh is a Visual QuickPro Guide. This “Pro†series uses
the popular and effective format of the Visual QuickStart Guides and takes it to the next level, for more advanced users.
This book is especially helpful for those with some experience with other NLE (Non-Linear Editing) programs, such as Adobe’s Premiere. I’ve used Premiere since version 3 and coming to Final Cut Pro was not all that difficult, but software such as this brings its own unique requirements, strengths, and abilities that can make the transition more time consuming than it needs to be. Final Cut Pro For Macintosh will help speed up the transition.
Lisa Brenneis is certainly qualified to author this book. She has the ability to take readers from the basics, such as system requirements, hardware requirements, and optimization techniques for both hardware and software, to setting up the many windows and settings, to digitizing and outputting. The book’s 491 pages are divided into four distinct sections called Final Cut Pro Basics, Getting Ready to Edit, The Cut, and Post-Production in Final Cut Pro.
This application, like Apple’s own QuickTime Pro, has many features which aren’t readily observed when looking through the menus or trying various buttons. Lisa is thorough in her coverage of each feature as it applies to the task or stage at hand. There are numerous helpful tips that will save the user time and reduce the amount of reediting due to poor guesswork as to how a certain setting might affect the outcome.
To the readers evaluating a possible Final Cut Pro purchase, the ample use of screen shots will quickly give them a feel for the feature rich program and what hardware requirements they have yet to acquire. For the professionals who has to get up and running quickly and have the application open in front of them, the book will guide them in a few hours’ reading through the complex maze of hardware and software settings, and educate them with enough tips to make them feel even smarter than they already are! I find myself using it as a reference book constantly, as it concisely and expertly guides me along the shortest and best route to accomplishing any specific task.
Lisa has a great understanding of the Macintosh Way, and has provided a categorized list of shortcut keys and modifier keys in a separate appendix. For the task-oriented video editor or professional who needs to get a project underway quickly and successfully using Final Cut Pro, this RECOMMENDED book is essential.
So if you’re a budding professional moving up from iMovie, with some hours under your belt using Firewire devices and Digital Video cameras, and who is actively looking to expand your capabilities, then Final Cut Pro For Macintosh will go a long way toward convincing you it has both the capabilities you need while also giving you the tools to quickly exploit them.
Lisa Brenneis says, “When in doubt, Control-click, and don’t forget to back up your project file.”
MacMice Rating: 4
Websites mentioned:
http://www.mac-upgrade.com
http://www.idgbooks.com
http://www.simson.net
http://www.oreilly.com
http://www.mac-upgrade.com/ibook
http://www.osborne.com
http://www.tidbits.com/adam
http://www.oreilly.com
http://www.macworld.com
http://www.macnightowl.com
http://www.samspublishing.com
http://www.coriolis.com
http://www.redhat.com
http://www.dummies.com
http://www.realworldgolive.com
http://www.necoffee.com
http://www.peachpit.com
http://www.maxart.com
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