My New Iphone: 52 Simple Projects to Get You Started [Paperback]

Wallace Wang (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 22, 2009

You finally did it-you bought the gizmo that everyone's talking about. Maybe you've already figured out how to play music or make phone calls, but then what?

How does the voicemail work? And that keyboard? What about all of those cool apps-which ones do you need, and how do you get them? You need a book like My New iPhone to make everything easy.

This simple, project-oriented book will have you using the best features of your iPhone or iPod Touch in no time. Rather than drag you through some boring manual, My New iPhone focuses on individual, fun projects, like configuring multiple email accounts, transferring your music, and syncing your computer with your iPhone.

Wallace Wang, author of the best-selling My New Mac, will show you, step-by-step, how to:

• View weather predictions, traffic patterns, flight information, and stocks
• Take notes, text message your friends, and browse the web
• Customize your iPhone by rearranging icons and changing its wallpaper and sound effects
• Find and install the best new applications and games
• Browse iTunes, listen to music, and watch YouTube videos
• Use Skype to call your family for free
• Create your own ringtones and get free podcasts and audiobooks

Sure, your iPhone makes calls, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Find out what lies below the surface with My New iPhone.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Wallace Wang is the author of several best-selling computer books including the Steal This Computer Book series, Steal This File Sharing Book, My New iPhone, The Book of Nero, and Visual Basic 2005 Express: Now Playing (all No Starch Press). He is also a successful standup comic who has appeared on A&E's "Evening at the Improv" and appears regularly at the Riviera Comedy Club in Las Vegas.

Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: No Starch Press; 1 edition (July 22, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593271956
• ISBN-13: 978-1593271954
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,142,184 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I may be the only computer book author who hates computers. I love what computers can do but I hate the fact that they're so complicated, hard to use, unreliable, and downright troublesome. Besides writing computer books, I also enjoy performing stand-up comedy just to do something creative that involves human beings as opposed to machines.

I've been involved in computers, stand-up comedy, teaching, writing, and game designing for most of my life. In the computer industry, I've written over 50 computer books. Initially I focused primarily on Microsoft products such as Visual Basic and Microsoft Office. Later I switched focus to the Macintosh, iPhone, and iPad as I've watched the trend of computing shift from the PC/Microsoft dominated world to the mobile/Apple-influenced world. I've also shifted my programming focus from Delphi/Pascal and Visual Basic to Objective-C and LiveCode (a HyperCard clone) to create Macintosh and iPhone/iPad programs.

In the stand-up comedy world, I've been performing stand-up comedy for over 20 years, having appeared on A&E's "Evening at the Improv" and SiTV's "Latino Laugh Festival" along with appearing at the Riviera Comedy Club in Las Vegas. Currently I'm focusing my comedic writing skills towards occasional comedy performances but mostly towards screenwriting. You can read my screenwriting blog at The 15 Minute Movie Method (www.15minutemoviemethod.com). I've collected the best ideas from my screenwriting blog and condensed them into an e-book also called "The 15-Minute Movie Method," which is available as an e-book.

In 1992, I got my first cat and after reading a basic cat care book, I found that none of the advice offered had any basis in reality for dealing with the quirks and whims of a real cat. Based on that experience, I wrote a parody of a cat care book called "How to Live with a Cat (When You Really Don't Want To)." This book is now available as an e-book.

In the teaching world, I've taught at community colleges around San Diego as well as teaching at the University of Zimbabwe in Africa. Currently I teach an online Microsoft Word course through a company called Ed2Go.

In the writing world, I've written for several magazines including Computer Power User (CPU), Boardwatch Magazine, and Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities. I also write a weekly Macintosh column in an online computer magazine called ComputorEdge (www.computoredge.com). In addition, I've ghost written several books for real estate experts, stock day trading specialists, and network marketing millionaires. In 2008, I also helped San Diego State University's film department win their first student Emmy when they filmed my sitcom pilot, "Three of a Kind."

In the game designing world, I've created and published a game in 1983 called "Orbit War," which was published by Steve Jackson Games (the game is now out of print). The game simulated low orbital combat between satellites. I'm currently designing educational games for teaching various college level topics such as organic chemistry, calculus, and geometry.

I'm interested in always learning something new and combining my various skills and experience to stay ahead of changing technology and I enjoy writing about complex topics and making them easy to understand.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Well Written Users Manual with Projects, July 13, 2009

By 

John Jacobson (Riverside CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: My New Iphone: 52 Simple Projects to Get You Started (Paperback)

The iPhone has generated more buzz than any other smart phone. It has a devoted, cult-like following. This book is essentially a replacement for the owner's manual. It gives a number (52) of simple projects to people who wish to expand their repertoire of tricks in iPhone usage. Beyond those projects, it is essentially an owner's manual. The assignments include:

Identify music with your iPhone
Find your favorite NPR stations
Use your iPhone to search Google with voice commands
Convert your money into local currency with your iPhone
Lose weight with your iPhone
Use your iPhone to check your spelling
Run multiple timers on your iPhone
Use your iPhone to sketch your ideas
Use your iphone to get more from your calendar
Use your iPhone to find a restaurant.

If you're a compulsive person and wish to know as much as possible about your new iPhone, but don't like reading user's manuals, this would be a good book for you. If you'd just like to use your new phone and learn "as you go," you may find it somewhat disappointing. It is well written, has a 14 page index, and covers 438 pages. The user manual on the other hand, is more tersely written, has a 9 page index, and covers 213 pages. The basic information covered is very similar between the two. I think the presentation is clearer in this book than in the manual for most. The book does cover the newest version of the iPhone operating system, 3.0

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The perfect gift for those trying to catch up with the technologically driven pack, August 8, 2009

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My New Iphone: 52 Simple Projects to Get You Started (Paperback)

Any owner of the iPhone readily recognizes it holds great potential - and great mystery. From understanding how voice mail works to using applications and navigating menus and sub-menus, MY NEW IPHONE packs in details on usage for everything to using Skype to call for free to browsing iTunes, YouTube videos, creating custom ringtones and more. A top pick for iPhone owners and any library catering to them.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars iPhone Guide, January 21, 2010

By 

M. Dugan - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: My New Iphone: 52 Simple Projects to Get You Started (Paperback)

This is a "must have" for iPhone users. Should have been included with the iPhone. Easy to read and follow.