Have one to sell? Sell yours here
PC Technician Black Book: The PC Technician's Secret Weapon
 
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

PC Technician Black Book: The PC Technician's Secret Weapon [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Ron Gilster (Author)
3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Paperback, Illustrated --  
There is a newer edition of this item:
PC Technician Black Book: The PC Technician's Secret Weapon PC Technician Black Book: The PC Technician's Secret Weapon 3.7 out of 5 stars (6)
Sign up to be notified when this item becomes available.

Book Description

Black Book (Coriolis Group Books Paperback) May 23, 2001
This book is a ready reference of troubleshooting, diagnostics, and repair processes and procedures for a range of commonly used personal computers and peripheral devices. Written in the popular Black Book format with a hardware focus, this book is a comprehensive problem-solving reference that uses a step-by-step approach and cross-referenced solutions. Unlike other PC troubleshooting books, you don't have to read through pages of text to find a solution. This book cuts out the unnecessary background reference material and filler to bring you clear, concise, and necessary reference information followed by problem solving solutions in an easy-to-use format. Each unit within the book contains: a common customer complaint, symptoms common to the problem, tools needed (hand, hardware, or software), step-by-step processes used to verify the problem, and the step-by-step processes used to correct the problem.


Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ron Gilster (Walla Walla, WA) has been involved with computers, programming, hardware repair, networking, and internetworking as a trainer, teacher, developer, merchant, and end user. He is employed by HighSpeed.com, a leading LMDS, DSL, and broadband communications company and ISP, where he is responsible for the networking infrastructure of the corporation. He is also the author of several books and holds a variety of certifications including I-Net+, Network+, A+, CCNA, and CCSE.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 744 pages
  • Publisher: Coriolis Group Books (May 23, 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1576108082
  • ISBN-13: 978-1576108086
  • Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 2.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #915,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ron Gilster was born in Vallejo, California in 1947. Which is the last time he actually lived in any one place for very long at all. Ron began his computing and technology career in 1965 in the Air Force, in which he took refuge from the draft, but ended up a Vietnam vet anyway. Over the years, he has been a punch-card machine operator, a computer programmer, a systems analyst, a database manager, a manufacturing production manager, a consultant for what was then a Big 8 accounting firm, an executive in the audio/visual and telecommunications industry, a college instructor and administrator, and, oh yes, a writer.

Ron has had a number of best-selling books, including his first "A+ Certification for Dummies," "CCNA For Dummies," "Cisco Networking For Dummies," and a dozen more. He lives in Spokane, WA and continues to write at least four books per year; the latest being "MCAS: Exam Guide."

 

Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.7 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Not worth the money, April 5, 2002
By 
benn333 (Dublin, Ireland) - See all my reviews
This review is from: PC Technician Black Book: The PC Technician's Secret Weapon (Paperback)
The cover says "Ideal for A+ certified technicians," which I am not, but I could imagine they'd be even more frustrated with this book that I am.

I bought this book after acquiring a large collection of older PC parts. I thought it would be handy to have a troubleshooting reference nearby while working with the parts. I've had this book a number of months now, built 2 fully operational computers from scratch, and have not found this book helpful ONCE. I'd recommend saving your money and buying another book or searching Google Groups for your answers.

Just to be fair, there is a lot of interesting information about how certain technologies evolved and is fairly comprehensive. (Such as full page pictures of what midtower cases and toolless screws look like.) But when it comes to troubleshooting issues while working on a computer, it's just about worthless. (Plot spoiler: just about all the "Immediate Solutions" sections tell you to check the cables, or something that obvious.)

I'll admit I'm a software technician by trade and enjoy fiddling with stuff. This book may very well be good for the novice or intermediate user. But if you've built computers before or know your way around troubleshooting an issue, look elsewhere for a hardware reference.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars THE book for technical assistance, September 2, 2001
By 
Sheila R. Johnson (Collinsville, Al. United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: PC Technician Black Book: The PC Technician's Secret Weapon (Paperback)
This book is as up to date as possible considering the fast changing technology and publishing times.It is a huge book and covers everything. It has answered a hundred questions I didn't even know to ask. The detail with which it answers these questions is wonderful. I only hope the author will see fit to give us a yearly update supplement.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book with Great Tips, April 12, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: PC Technician Black Book: The PC Technician's Secret Weapon (Paperback)
There are many things in this book of interest to either the beginner or the experienced technician. I found the background information to be informative without going way into the history and technical details of legacy gear. It had just enough of the past to make the present meaningful. The troubleshooting tips included many things I would not have thought to even ask and cleared up some things I was confused about. I recommend this to anyone wanting to know more about their computer and how to keep it running.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews




Only search this product's reviews



Inside This Book (learn more)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence:
The motherboard can easily be called the most important part of the computer. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
system resource conflicts, glidepoint mouse, system resource assignments, setup configuration data, verify that the printer, processor connector, power supply form factors, optomechanical mouse, system resource settings, main cooling fan, dual inline packaging, external drive bays, system chipset, video display standards, internal drive bays, beep codes, lighting phase, stepper motor actuator, system configuration data, upper memory area, disk tray, backplane design, enhanced capabilities port, parallel port standards, motherboard manufacturer
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Immediate Solutions, Pentium Pro, South Bridge, Display Properties, Intel Pentium, North Bridge, Safe Mode, Computer Properties, Num Lock, System Properties, Caps Lock, Industry Standard Architecture, Red Book, Disk Cleanup, Windows Explorer, Energy Star, Norton Utilities, Real Audio, Sound Blaster, Add Printer, Cancel Figure, Print Screen, Windows Media Player, Add New Hardware, Have Disk
New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:

Citations (learn more)




Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(1)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 

Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   



So You'd Like to...


Create a guide


Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject