Crossing Platforms : A Macintosh/Windows Phrasebook (Paperback)

~ Adam Engst (Author), David Pogue (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Say what you like about the farmer and the cowman, but the Windows user and the Macintosh jockey likely will never enjoy much more than a grudging coexistence. That's why it can be so traumatic when a job or other tragic circumstance requires a devotee of one environment to switch to the other. Crossing Platforms: A Macintosh/Windows Phrasebook helps ease the shock by translating the terms and conventions of each platform into the other's equivalent.

It's organized like a translating dictionary, with two distinct sections: one for translating "Macintosh" into "Windows," the other for going the opposite way. Someone who is familiar with Windows and wants to know the equivalent of booting into Safe Mode can look up that term in the Windows-to-Mac section and read all about holding down the Shift key to boot Mac OS without extensions. A Mac user can look up Finder in the Mac-to-Windows section and learn how to use the functionally equivalent Windows Explorer.

Each section opens with a handy "10 Most Important Differences" section, which explains such things as the operating systems' differences in window anatomy and that whole single- versus multiple-button mouse debacle. There's a certain amount of nyah-nyah sniping about which operating system's features are better, but it's all in fun. This is an honestly useful book. --David Wall

Topics covered: Differences between modern Microsoft Windows (Windows 95 and 98) and Apple Mac OS (Mac OS 8 and beyond) operating systems, organized in dictionary format for people looking for the "other" system's equivalents of interface features they know.

Product Description

Like travelers in a foreign land, Mac users working in Windows or Windows users working on a Mac often find themselves in unfamiliar territory with no guidebook. Crossing Platforms: A Macintosh/Windows Phrasebook, with information presented in a translation dictionary-like format, offers users a handy way of translating skills and knowledge from one platform to the other. This complete reference includes:

A general introduction to the key differences between the Mac and WindowsA to Z sections for each platform: one section where Mac users look up familiar Macintosh terms to find the equivalent function in Windows along with an explanation of the differences; and another section where Windows users find familiar Windows terms with pointers to the Macintosh equivalent along with full descriptions of how the function works on the Mac and important differences between the two platforms

Bridging the Mac-PC knowledge gap, this book offers a simple solution for all those users who have been confused and frustrated by the arbitrary and sometimes capricious differences between the Macintosh and Windows operating systems.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 326 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1st edition (November 23, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565925394
• ISBN-13: 978-1565925397
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,326,329 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must buy" for.., December 20, 1999

By A Customer

every new Wintel convert and for those of us who have to work on the "other" side occasionally. This is the second book of this genre that I have purchased for my wife the teacher who now teaches on the Wintel platform. The first, "Windows for Mac Users" is 421 pages of details, details. I would rate it 4 stars. "Crossing Platforms" is 321 pages of dictionary-like listings of phrases "cross" referenced to the other platform e.g. Force Quit (Mac) = End Task (Win); Key Caps = Character Map, etc. If you want a quick reference book to help you with that temporarily borrowed (or newly purchased) "other" platform, this is the one! (If I were providing marketing advice to Sears, CompUSA et al, this would be bundled with every iMac and IBook purchased by a Wintel user.)

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The opposite of a "Dummies" book, May 21, 2000

By	John Morrison "RPGer since 1975" (Philadelphia, PA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Recently I took a job which required me to work in an office that was mostly Windows-driven. Knowing Adam's and David's reputation, I decided that their book was a good choice.

After skimming through "Crossing Platforms," I was able to tell the Information Support guy how to do something under Windows that he wasn't aware of. Four days after I was hired! Within two weeks I was completely comfortable using Windows (except for that silly mouse design and other poor UI choices, but that's another matter). Now I have a reputation as a computer genius. I just hope it's reflected in my paycheck.

"Crossing Platforms" is, as the title of this review hints, as far from a "Dummies" book as you can get. It starts by assuming that you're an intelligent person who simply doesn't have the experience on one of the world's two major computer operating systems.

Much of what you want to do on a computer is possible under either Mac OS or Windows-- after all, they were built to manipulate files, send and modify information, etc.-- but there are different terms and some different ways of treating the information. In other words, you know the music, but not the words. "Crossing Platforms" will allow you to make the paradigm shift and use what you've spent years learning. It helps you avoid the pitfalls and gotchas, and is laid out in a manner which makes it easy to reference. In short, twenty-four of the best dollars I've spent recently.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An essential book for people working with computers, February 9, 2000

By	Kirk McElhearn "Mac author and journalist and... (A village in the French Alps) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

As a translator, and Mac user, I was delighted to see that Adam Engst and David Pogue, who are, in a way, the Strunk and White of Macintosh journalism, released this original book. As a translator first, it is an essential reference book for terms on both platforms. But as a Mac user, confronted with Windows often (I do own a PC as well) this answers all my questions about how best to understand the different philosophies of the two operating systems.

Well written, clear and efficient, this book is really excellent. If you work with both platforms, don't hesitate to get it. The only drawback I found was the lack of an index. In spite of that, I couldn't recommend it more.