Product Description

Windows is the number one operating system in the world.  There’s a lot to Windows XP, with office productivity applications, multimedia features, the Internet, and security upgrades. Now and then, you probably wish you could call Tech Support.

That’s when you’ll be grateful to have nine books about Windows XP in one — Windows XP All–in–One Desk Reference For Dummies, Second Edition.  It replaces a whole shelf of reference books and covers

• Windows XP basics
• Customization
• The Internet
• Internet Explorer
• Microsoft Network
• Hardware
• Multimedia
• Windows Media Center
• Wired and wireless networks

Fully updated with the latest information on Microsoft’s improved security features, the newest on multimedia applications and Windows Media Center, and plenty of additional stuff to help you decide about broadband Internet connections, this edition of Windows XP All–in–One Desk Reference For Dummies makes Windows XP manageable.   It helps you

• Get started with Windows XP, search for files, use shortcuts, deal with common problems, and take advantage of built–in help
• Customize your desktop, menus, icons, and startup programs
• Protect your PC by using Windows Firewall, appropriate virus protection, and other security measures
• Compare browsers, connect to the Internet, choose the right e–mail program, and manage newsgroups and chats
• Work with digital images, download and play music, burn CDs, find out about digital camcorders, and create movies with Movie Maker
• Decide whether a Media Center PC is right for you
• Create a home network and troubleshoot any problems that come up

With thumbtabs that make it easy to find what you’re looking for and the famous For Dummies cheat sheet in the front, this book is designed to make life with Windows XP a lot easier, happier, safer, and a whole lot more fun.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #187547 in Books
• Published on: 2004-10-22
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 816 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The cover of Windows XP All-In-One Desk Reference for Dummies boasts that it's "nine books in one". That's a stretch--it's really a book about Microsoft Windows XP for novices, with supplementary information about America Online and MSN--but cover claims aside, this book represents good value for someone new to computing. Woody Leonhard--a respected Windows authority who writes with enough humour to keep things light but not so much as to obscure the facts--begins with how to use a mouse and works all the way through installing printers and setting up a little network in a home or small office. Granted, if you've found this page on the Internet you probably don't need Leonhard's "how-to-click" tutorial, but you may be shopping for someone unfamiliar with Windows. This book is good for such people.

While the nine separate indexes (one at the end of each included "book") will annoy you--the unified one at the back of this book is much easier to find and use--Leonhard's style will compensate. He's very good at explaining how to do what Windows XP was meant to do, up to a certain level. Want to add a music file to a Windows Media Player playlist? There's a procedure for that. Want to cancel AOL because you can't stand it? He explains how. He does not, however, provide detail on more complicated jobs like setting up a cable modem or dealing with the specific security risk posed by Universal Plug and Play. Overall, this is a nicely written, friendly book that covers Windows XP well, but to a limited depth. --David Wall

Topics covered: Microsoft Windows XP for home users, particularly novices. Windows XP fundamentals (like windows and the mouse pointer), customisation, Internet tools (including Outlook Express and Internet Explorer), America Online (AOL), Microsoft Network (MSN), printers, small networks, and Internet connectivity are all addressed.

From the Back Cover

9 books in 1 — your key to Windows XP success!

Your one–stop guide to Windows XP, fully updated for Service Pack 3 enhancements

Whether you want to set up a reliable network in your home office or you just want to beat the computer at Solitaire, here′s your guide! In one of these handy minibooks, you′ll find exactly what you need to know about basic Windows XP operation, getting around online, applying new security procedures, enjoying multimedia, and more.

• Use new Service Pack 3 security tools

• Personalize your desktop

• Set up Web pages and use e–mail

• Work with digital cameras and camcorders

• Choose and set up a Media Center

• Coverage of the essentials and beyond

• Explanations in plain English

• "Get in, get out" information

• Thumbtabs and other navigation aids

• Tear–out cheat sheet

• A dash of humor and fun

About the Author

Woody Leonhard is the author of Windows XP Timesaving Techniques For Dummies. He′s won more Computer Press Awards than any other writer, and his newsletters reach 500,000 subscribers.

Customer Reviews

Excellent for its intended market - beginners.
To be honest, I felt disappointed at first that this book didn't go beyond the simple aspects. I know it's a Dummies book, but it has a lot of content & it is from Woody. Hence my expectations were higher. Unfortunately a lot of it is non O/S related - e.g. MSN, IE6, AOL.
Then I realised how much I didn't know about XP!
Great for beginners, and it turns out even the more experienced of us can pick-up something if we haven't yet used XP.

dummy of dummies
As good a book as we expect from the "dummy" series. Takes one step by step through the various stages to get the most from the computer. I can do anything as long as the book is at hand.