Customer Reviews

Windows User's Guide to DOS: Using the Command Line in Windows 95/98

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I am currently a student @ texas state technical college earning a degree in CNS. we use this book in class but is not quite the book it is chalked up to be. it is ironic the only 5 star reviews seem to be from the author herself. this book is helpful in some ways but not many.

This book takes overexplaining to new limits. For software such as dos, a reader needs instruction to be clear and concise. The content of this book was not clear nor concise. Rather it was obvious that the author was trying to squeez out as many pages as possible to fetch a better price. Furhtermore it was evident that the editor did not take much time on this one due to may mistakes resident in this text. I can't blame that person, in the ocean of needless words its hard to understand what she is trying to say, let alone figure out if she is right or wrong.

Really, 2 1/2 stars, but I gave the book the benefit of the doubt. Unless you're a REAL academic type, you'll probably read only one DOS book, and this is not the one to choose.

Complaints:

1) No discussion of the very important fdisk command. As a networking student, I NEED to know how to format a disk, and for all the crushing size of this book, this is not treated.

2) This book covers so much material that the beginner has no clue what to pick and choose from. My class has long ended and we got to chapter eight. Tough course. I've hacked through on my own to chapter eleven and plan to finish all 14 chapters, but if I were advising another beginner, I would say choose another book.

3) Chapter 11-Advanced Batch Files is virtually incomprehensible to me. VERY COMPLEX.

Conclusion: If you're a normal human, as opposed to an academic type, you want a short, sweet and straightforward book that gives you the proficiency you want. This book is a bear.

There is an old saying, You get what you pay for. I feel as a IT student, that I have received my money's worth, many time over. I've played around with computers for a few years and now that I've decided to make a career change an learn how to repair computers I felt I needed to take some classes in area where I needed help. This book will help you no matter what level your computer skills are at. It starts out at the entry level for beginners and advances on to the practical level and then goes onto the advanced levels. Probable my favorite feature of the book is that the authors have created test files and directory for you to work with, so you don't have to worry about messing up your own computer. I'm almost done with the book/class now and I've already used many of the commands and batch files. I had formatted a hard drive before, however I had never low level formated a hard drive, this book took me thru that as well. If your someone who just wants to understand a little about DOS this is a great book. If however your an IT student who plans to go to a universities, this is a MUST HAVE book. Universities expect you to already have this knowledge and usually don't offer such classes. This book doesn't just give you a list of commands with diffentions, it gives you a complete explanation aswell as sample files directories for you to practice on. Remember as they say practice make perfect. Great book for anyone at any level who want to learn more about there computer.

This books focus is to teach the reader how to properly use the windows command line NOT DOS. It explains why the command line is important, even for todays users. It is more effecient than say...windows explorer. This book explains in detail many of the wonderful commands available to you including FDISK and others. It also explains very well how to incorporate many commands into batch files that can easily automate seemingly comlpicated tasks. This book is great as a reference and a learning tool. To those who complain that they already know DOS, this book does not intend to teach you DOS rather it teaches the windows command line and how it can be used today. Command lines are frequently used by many windows users and by networking proffessionals as well to create logon scripts (which is another topic that the authors bring up). Overall I highly recommend this book to all students who use windows or plan to enter a networking proffession.

I had to use this book for a beginning dos class. This book is extremely poorly written and over explains everything. The author spends entire chapters explaining each command including the very simple and basic commands and fails to thoroughly explain the more complex commands. The activities included are very vague and disorganized. I had already had an extremely good understanding of dos and I frequently had trouble understanding what the activities at the end of each chapter were asking me to do. If you want to learn do I do not recomend this book.

It's a shame to see so many negative reviews of this book. I am an instructor and was very happy to find this book. I have never found another like it that covers the territory to train people in DOS, how the hardware is set up & works with the Operating Systems, and especially how we use DOS to make changes to the Windows environment (other than through the Control Panel).
I teach a PC Specialist Course that has a goal of training individuals to work in this field by training others and trouble-shooting system problems. We touch everything from how the system is put together, installing hardware & software, using MSOffice to advanced levels, VB Programming, DB management, Networking installation & setup basics - all of this in 9 months. We don't have time to read through a "Dummies" book to pick up just DOS, and then Windows, and then system hardware, and then....This book encompasses all of these things. We've got 3 weeks to understand the workings of DOS, Windows, and the hardware at the introduction of the class. Many concepts have to be covered. This book is the only one I have found that does it - and in "laymen's" terms.
Being an instructor, I wondered if I am biased. So I asked my students - who range from mucho PC experience to those who don't even own a computer. Everyone found the book more than helpful, a great teaching tool, and good reference to go back to.
I would like to see two pages on the Fdisk command - no more is needed for a PC trainer/support person. Fdisk is a last resort in most cases and not a common occurrence. And the need to know is not much more than to type the command, partition it, and go - add the MBR switch for dire circumstances. Some of these concepts are discussed in the book.
This is NOT a DOS book. Read the title again. It is what it says it is.
Carolyn & Bette - thank you.

this was just the book i needed - am so glad the instructor chose this one and not some other. being not so great at the computer, i really needed a book that held-my-hand and walked me through step-by-step without skipping ahead or jumping around. the author did such a thorough job presenting the material! this book is definitely a keeper - now that i've completed the course i find that the book is a very handy reference and i turn to it time and time again. i wish all computer books were this good.

This book is aweful. I had to study from it in school and hated it. The only reason I passed was because I already had a firm understanding of DOS. As I read through every chapter, all I could do was shake my head at how garbled it was. I knew what she was trying to get at, but half my class didn't.

Anyone new to DOS will not learn anything if they are stuck with this book. Try "Running MS-DOS" if it is still available when you read this.

Dear Ms. Gillay and Peat, I am presently enrolled in a class called DOS Mgt. at Lansing Com. College in Lansing, MI. I can't say I was particularly looking forward to it as I do not have a computer related background (a BFA in furniture design, in fact). In this class we use your Window's User's Guide to DOS book. NEVER have I had the great pleasure of reading such a comprehensive, thorough, well thought-out text in my 51 years. Absolutely incredible! In this class, we start at chapter 10 (batch files) and I only have a slight handle on basic DOS, but your book been so totally idiot-proof and clearly thought out that I was actually excited doing the exercises and even felt confident enough to stray a little and add a trick or two. I can't believe it. I'm looking forward to backtracking and reading the first 9 chapters as time allows. Anyway, I just wanted to extend my congratulations and thanks on producing such an excellent text. The semester has just started and I only hope our instructor is near as good. All the best in future endeavors. This one is a TEN! Paul