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Is This Thing On?: A Late Bloomer's Computer Handbook (Paperback)

~ Abby Stokes (Author)
Key Phrases: close box, untitled folder, zoom box, Scroll Bar, Menu Bar, Microsoft Word (more...)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
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Frequently Bought Together

Is This Thing On?: A Late Bloomer's Computer Handbook + Senior's Guide To Easy Computing: Pc Basics, Internet, And E-mail (Senior's Guide) + Computers For Seniors For Dummies<sup>®</sup>
Total List Price: $57.89
Price For All Three: $34.88

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  • This item: Is This Thing On?: A Late Bloomer's Computer Handbook by Abby Stokes

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

"Stokes gives the feeling that a friend is explaining it all to you."
— The New York Daily News

Is This Thing On? is a reassuring, jargon-free, and totally straightforward nuts-and-bolts guide that introduces late bloomers, grandparents, technophobes, and the digitally challenged to all the wonders of using a computer, and will even have them using digital cameras and PDAs with ease.

Written for the reader who did not grow up with personal computers, this book updates and expands on Stokes's previous title, It's Never Too Late to Love a Computer. It covers everything you need to get wired: how to select, buy, and set up a computer; how to sign up for e-mail and internet access, and how to use the world wide web. There's information on peripherals—printers, scanners, wireless routers—and basic software, such as word processing programs. Plus, this new edition delves further into the online world to cover search engines and web navigation, information on online banking, shopping, travel planning, and dating. It covers security issues, "netiquette," instant messaging, and blogs, and there's an entire chapter devoted to digital photos—transferring them from camera to computer and sending them as attachments. Abby Stokes—who has a gift for taking the terrified by the hand and teaching old dogs new tricks—branches out into other essential digital accoutrements: cell phones, iPods, and Blackberries. A companion website, www.abbyandme.com, offers a safe place to practice and keep learning. Appendices include recommended websites, a resource list, and more.

From the Back Cover

Plug in, boot up, and get online!

•    Email and receive pictures of the kids and grandkids
•    Enjoy the convenience and bargains of online shopping
•    Search for recipes, health and travel information
•    Look up old friends and make new friends
•    Read the latest news, sports, weather reports, stock quotes, and          commentary
•    You can even start a blog

It’s your turn now, and you won’t believe how much you can do and how easy it is to do it. Written for the reader who didn’t grow up with a personal computer or use one in the office, this book is everything you need to get wired.

You’ll learn how to shop for a computer that’s just right for you, and how to set it up for maximum comfort and safety. How to sign up for email and Internet access. How to use the mouse, a printer, a scanner, and how to get started with essential skills like word processing and using search engines. Plus: the A to Z’s of digital photos, a guide to online shopping, over 200 recommended websites, and much more. Before you know it, you’ll be clicking away to a whole new world.


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Product Details

  • Paperback: 408 pages
  • Publisher: Workman Publishing Company; illustrated edition edition (August 22, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0761146199
  • ISBN-13: 978-0761146193
  • Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #23,208 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

    #18 in  Books > Computers & Internet > Hardware > PCs
    #26 in  Books > Computers & Internet > Hardware > Handheld & Mobile Devices
    #96 in  Books > Arts & Photography > Photography > Digital Photography

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More About the Authors

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Abby Stokes
Abby Stokes
Abigail Stokes
Abigail Stokes

Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
close box, untitled folder, zoom box, collapse box, digital photos, chatting online, scroll box, desktop background, untitled folder window, website address box, move the mouse arrow, move your mouse arrow, external mouse, draw pile, desktop screen
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Scroll Bar, Menu Bar, Microsoft Word, Title Bar, Home Page, Control Panel, System Preferences, Social Security, Shaking Hands, Task Bar, Detective Work, New Folder, Recycle Bin, Put It All, Maximize Box, Web Links, Minimize Box, Word Processing, Get the Most, Spanning the Globe, Advanced E-mail, The Thigh Bone's Connected, World Wide Web, Size Box, Internet Explorer
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Is This Thing On?: A Late Bloomer's Computer Handbook
80% buy the item featured on this page:
Is This Thing On?: A Late Bloomer's Computer Handbook 4.8 out of 5 stars (10)
$10.85
Computers For Seniors For Dummies<sup>®</sup>
7% buy
Computers For Seniors For Dummies® 4.7 out of 5 stars (17)
$12.50
Absolute Beginner's Guide to Computer Basics (5th Edition)
6% buy
Absolute Beginner's Guide to Computer Basics (5th Edition) 5.0 out of 5 stars (4)
$14.95
Senior's Guide To Easy Computing: Pc Basics, Internet, And E-mail (Senior's Guide)
5% buy
Senior's Guide To Easy Computing: Pc Basics, Internet, And E-mail (Senior's Guide) 4.6 out of 5 stars (8)
$11.53
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10 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Could be used as lesson plans by a teacher of computer basics and the Internet. Simple for some, but for others it's not simple!, October 4, 2008

I loved this book! It's not exactly one that I picked up because I needed to learn about computer basics, going digital, and playing/working on the Internet. But I thought it was well written, well outlined, and definitely on target for people over age 50 who are hands-off when it comes to personal computers. The book claims to have 25 chapters in 378 pages. However, I view it more like nine chapters with 25 sub-chapters interspersed therein as follows:

1. There is nothing to fear but technology itself (1-3)
2. Where will it sleep and how often do I neeed to water it? (4-5)
3. Go for a test drive (6-8)
4. Let the shopping begin (9)
5. Baby's first day home (10-12)
6. The newlywed game (13-15
7. Welcome to the neighborhood (16-20)
8. Exploration and discovery (21-23)
9. Make new friends and keep old (24-25)

About 10 years ago I took it upon myself to teach my mother how to use a PC. She was a high school librarian at the time, and it was a natural thing for her to learn in order to help her with her work. The lessons taught in this wonderful book are the same ones I went through with my mom ten years ago. And then two years later I was the lead instructor in teaching my grandmother (my mom's mom) how to use a PC to surf the Net, and most importantly get/send emails to/from my mom and my cousins. My mom was the teaching assistant who helped my grandmother pick up on computers. And the two of us used the same lessons taught in this book to teach my grandmother.

In this book you will learn (if you want to) how to: (1) shop for a PC, (2) set up your PC when you get it home, (3) sign up for Internet access, (4) use your PC and the Internet, (5) use a printer with your PC, (6) use email, (7) surf the Internet like a Pro, and much more.

The author has been teaching what she has included in this book for the past 10 years. And it is the same approach she used to teach her mother how to become computer literate. As far as I know, the system described in this book has been successful when applied to at least three seniors. And I know of no failures. If you are a senior and you have a desire to learn about computers and the Internet, then I highly recommend you get a copy of this book. 5 stars!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Over A Thousand Students and Counting ..., March 2, 2009
Full disclosure: Abby is my sister and I have been using her books in my computer classes since 2001 - I teach at a regional senior center and adult education through the local high school. Over a thousand students have been taught using her books as a teaching guide and the feedback has been fantastic - no kicking and screaming when they are done and many continue on to e-mail, internet, word processing, spreadsheets, digital photography, and more! The students' only request after using the "It's Never Too Late To Love A Computer" book was, "when is she going to expand it?" Well, Abby has made a really good book even better! "Is This Thing On?" has more detail, more topics, newer screen shots, and, as always, is written in "Abby's language" - no geek speak. It has been a winner for even the toughest of my students and many students request one as a gift for their friends. Kudos, Abby - thanks for making the cyber leap easier for seniors and other newbies on the CT shoreline!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Fun Guide for Uncertain Folks, April 28, 2009
By Kaydee Braniff (Tigard, OR) - See all my reviews
My first thought was, :Why do I need to read this book? I've used computers for years." Well, we all can learn a new shortcut, something we thought we knew & didn't, or a different way of doing. Two big things stand out--I really like the way the author sets chapters & methods up & do find I end up teaching someone else occasionally who's a little fearful of using a computer. Since using this book, it's been easier to help someone else.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Is This Thing On? by Abby Stokes
I love this book! I teach a class for adults who wish to learn about computers and new technology! Most of them have ordered this book and love it! Read more
Published 15 days ago by L. Marquardt

5.0 out of 5 stars Abby Demystifies Techno-World!
Remember when you first began using a computer? Those balky moments of exploration, the repeated steps and frustration that culminated in your calling a friend to explain where... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Homer Garrity

5.0 out of 5 stars Halfway Across the Country
After moving halfway across the country, I was worried about staying in touch with my family - especially my mom. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Sharon Slaton

4.0 out of 5 stars never too late to learn
A friend of mine got this book for Christmas and I scoffed - what could I possibly learn about computers? Read more
Published 12 months ago by Ronald Groenendijk

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Book For A Computer Novice
This book explains the essentials of the computer and the internet. It's written in a clear, easy-to-read, personal, fun style, so not only is it practical it's an enjoyable read... Read more
Published 12 months ago by judith wright

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books of this type
This book hits the nail on the head for people who are new to computers, or would just like to have a reference book that explains it all in plain English without any geek-speak... Read more
Published 13 months ago by AGD

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book for Computer Novices
I saw this book at the Tattered Cover bookstore in Denver and couldn't put it down. I love the cover and everything in it. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Mitch Paioff

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