Customer Reviews

Mac OS 9: The Missing Manual

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I consider myself a Mac power user, having worked with Macs for ten years, and taking the time to look under the hood. Over the years, I never bought a single book describing the Mac System or OS - I always found that (in the old days) the doc was sufficient, or that I could learn enough from magazines and on the net.

I bought this book more out of curiosity, and am extremely glad that I did. While I half-expected it to be a really basic presentation of the Mac OS 9, I was pleasantly surprised. Not only is it an excellent book for newcomers, but David Pogue presents all the tricks and shortcuts that you would be hard pressed to find in the help files. I learned so many useful things from this book, that I don't even regret the fact that the OS 9 doesn't come with a manual - David Pogue wrote a far better book than any manual Apple could write.

I am extremely familiar with Windows & NT but not Macs. Last November I decided to buy a G4--and was very dismayed to find that virtually the only documentation I got with it was a flimsy small booklet. When I called Apple, the response was "Well it's online." Yes, the online help is outstanding but it doesn't do you much good in the event that the system won't boot up! (Fortunately I have not had that problem so far.) So I broke down and went out and I bought several OS 9 books that have given me alot of good info and helped me out, then last night at the bookstore I ran into this little gem and snapped it up. I by no means have finished it but what I've read is great--very matter of fact and helpful. I sure wish this book had come out when I first bought my G4 because it sure would have helped me in my efforts to learn to "think different"! I saw in the back of the book that Pogue will also bring out the same type book for Mac's upcoming OS X--and I'll be one of the first in line to get it.

Hunched over Mac OS 9 : The Missing Manual for 3 days, I laughed out loud when I closed the book. I had remembered what actual computer manuals used to look like in the Dark Ages of the mid-eighties when I had first attempted Microsoft Word. If memory serves, the book was horrendously thick (impossible to read comfortably), turgid as mud, and ultimately unhelpful. Manuals went the way of the dinosaur for a reason.

Now comes this wonderful new series. In the OS 9 book, David Pogue lays out the organization of the program while simultaneously teaching navigational tips and tricks. ( He knows our brains actually do better when they multi-task.) His ability to combine methods and analysis actually makes the whole system easier to understand. Chapter 2 may be my favorite in the book in this regard because he not only describes the ways in which applications work in OS 9, but he fills the reader in on how to cope with memory management issues at the same time. At a time when `novice' use takes us into the world of digital photography, complexities of Internet, and even the realm of film-editing, at some level, the user must understand that memory in a computer is not simply passive storage. Pogue makes this abstraction clear by defining terms carefully and not overloading the reader with technical jargon.

As a somewhat long-term Mac user, I knew some details before this reading, but after it, I made adjustments on my computer that improved use and function visibly. Since finishing my first reading of the book, I've returned to it twice for references: once, to describe to a friend how to create a RAM disk, and once to see how I could disable keychain. I'm already planning to sit down again with the chapter on scripts and the one on file sharing. The good thing is, I know that the clear writing and the helpful illustrations will lead me to solutions and new ways of doing things. One quick example: in the book, Pogue reminded me of how to create a "screenshot," a feature I once played around with at a workshop but promptly forgot. This time, Pogue provided just the right fix on the feature to help me use it: I set up screenshots for each of my 24 zip drives, to show what each contains. (Labeling rarely helps because you take things off and put new ones on and who takes time to reach for a pen, but a new screenshot takes seconds and the process is actually fun). I now have a file at the top of my hard drive that lets me look into a zip before I dive for it. Finding files is no longer a giant nuisance; just a few keystrokes.

Keystrokes are one of Pogue's fixations...and I'm beginning to see why. Throughout the book, he injects shortcuts and keystrokes that help access material quickly-enable efficiency. He's going to have to be VERY efficient. I have already purchased and read two other titles, but I'll want more when I've digested iMovie and AppleWorks. Keep those fingers moving at warp speed, Mr. Pogue. Let's make the next one on Web-Design...please!

Mac OS 9 - The Missing Manual by David Pogue.

This book is an excellent approach from well known Mac author (and Guru) David Pogue in both content and the way it is presented to readers.

Pogue fairly and squarely hit the bull's eye of computer users disatisfaction about the lack of user manuals and the inadequacy of almost all user help files. As he points out Apple provides three unco-ordinated and disjointed help files in OS 9 which he states clearly fail to satisfy user needs.

Hooray! - don't we all feel this?

He quickly establishes a real empathy with us users and I believe his new book goes a long way to fill the void created by these less than adequate help files.

In reading through the book I felt that it consistently created a feeling of confidence about its content.

I believe that most of us underutilise the features of the Mac OS system; but here is a text that will allow us all to become smarter and more effective Mac Users if we wish and it is sensibly and effectively linked back to the Internet for dynamic appendix type information.

Apple should be very thankful!

Pogue and his publisher O'Reilly have also broken new ground in the publishing field with a simple and effective system of enlisting any reader to provide effective feedback information about any typo's or technique problems. They have a thousand or more proof readers!

In addition I believe confidence and proffesionalism is added through information as to how the book was crafted and by the Colophon.

As a long time Mac User and a reader of his other Mac publications, such as Macsecrets, I have now found in one place a reference repository of all the things I may need to know about Mac OS 9. Pogue avoids the problems of producing a purely weighty reference tome through his copious use of screen dumps and tips. Just as I felt the need for an illustration - to assist my understanding - there it was! Pogue also adopts the Mac style of not letting himself or his readers take themselves too seriously - but in such a way that it adds to readability and does not detract from the overall quality of its text or its message.

I submit that he clearly understands the needs of the Mac user and to an unusal extent satisfies them.

Like Goldilocks and the Three Bears perhaps Pogue has gotten it "Just right"!

Without a doubt this book should be on the desk of every serious Mac user.

RK Melbourne Australia 20 May 00

I've always been intrigued by how little time Mac users spend dealing with "fixing" thier machines, cursing them, and rebooting them several times a day. So, after being a PC user beginning with Dos 1.0, I switched to a Mac. I hated my first iMac because it lacked documentation, manuals, or decent help. And, being a long standing Windows user, I did not find it as intuitive as it was hyped to be. Guess what, I got frustrated and sold it on the big e*bay auction site. Months passed, Y2K came and went.

A few days back I saw this book in my local Borders...and it all came together! THIS was what was truly missing! I had hated most Mac OS books on the market because I found them insultingly oversimplified. I can only speak as a Windows convert: This is not a "dummies" book but a very decent, detailed book that describes all the "power tricks" that I knew for the enemy platform! I liked this book so much that I bought it, read it cover to cover, and decided to buy my second iMac. If you've never used a computer before, then this is not for you. But if you are looking for a book that is perhaps the most detailed, information-dense, well indexed, and handy reference to MacOS 9, this is it. Apple should probably bundle this book with the Mac! Highly, heartily, and strongly recommended, especially for those who have fallen from the Windows empire for the temptation of an iMac.

As a newcomer to the Mac scene (after 18 yrs in the PC world) I was stunned, and a bit miffed, to find virtually no documentation with my new G4. Apple supplied virtually no printed documentation (but has a really pretty box). The online HTML documentation in the Mac is thin and amateurishly presented. Wasn't the Mac supposed to be the human-friendly platform? Ugh.

After overcoming my shock I was fortunate to find that David Pogue (and O'Reilly) had filled the void with this book. I learned more from skimming it in 15 mins. than I learned from simply twiddling with my new Mac in 2 wks.

Anyone new to the Mac platform should just consider this handy, and relatively inexpensive, little book part of the price of their new Mac. Like Nike says, "Just do it".

This book is stunning, in the sense that it will surprise and delight you in its depth and clarity. David Pogue has achieved something that is often claimed but seldom achieved--he has written a book that reaches all Mac users from novices to veterans.

As a long time Mac user (and ten year professional Mac software developer), I rarely look at user-oriented Mac books any more, but after reading a sample chapter from this book, I was intrigued enough to buy a copy. While I expected to find a few pieces of useful information buried among pages of basics, I soon found myself engrossed in chapter 1, learning cool new things about those very basics that I had never known. Chapter after chapter, I found nuggets that made me stop reading and run to my computer to try. I soon began thinking about all my friends and relatives whom I would have to make sure read this book.

This book is a gem, the most informative and entertaining computer book I've read in recent memory. Highly, highly recommended.

I've used Macs since the Mac 30/SE model, and believe, I'mfairly used to how to operate Your Mac. But Pogue's detailleddescription of all the new features of MacOS 9 gave me a lot of new and useful information. Where else can You get a precise instruction on how to customize Sherlock? Apple should ship this book with every computer they sell. END

This is a great book to get if you use a Mac. I was new to Mac when I bought the book and found it invaluable in understanding the various parts of the OS. But I have found myself going back to it again and again for detailed, advanced information. In addition, the book is wonderfully printed and designed; a real treat visually (as much as computer books can be a visual treat in any event.) Do yourself a favor and get it!

Once you read Pogue, you're hooked. Not only does this man know all there's to know about the Mac and its OSes, he is an OS himself--operating the snappiest, wittiest, funniest English I know. I run OS 8 on my office Mac and lowly 7 at home, but MM OS 9 is the book of 2000 for me. Don't miss it--even if you're a Wintel user.