Mac OS X Leopard: Beyond the Manual (Btm (Beyond the Manual))

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 598 pages
• Published by: Apress December 19, 2007
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 1590598377
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1590598375
• Book Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.9 x 1.6 inches
• Weighs: 2.1 pounds

Product Description


Good computer books make assumptions about the reader: what they do and don’t know when they pick up the book, and what they want to know when they put it down. For each reader this could be very different; therefore, a book that suits one human being may not be the best for another. Mac OS X Leopard: Beyond the Manual makes some assumptions too, ones that tend to differ from other Mac OS X books.

First of all, we assume that you have used a computer in that past: that you know how to use a mouse and you know the proper place to stick a DVD to get it to play in your computer. We won’t be showing you these things. (We will however demonstrate to our Mac converts how to “right click” on a trackpad with only one button!).

Second, we assume you know what you want to do with your computer. We will not waste your time showing you specifically, step–by–step how to order a pizza from Pizza Galaxy in Milwaukee Wisconsin on the with Safari (though, when you’re done with this book we think you’ll be able to do this just fine… if such a place exists anyway).

Finally, we assume that you are a reasonably intelligent human being with who realizes the value of such phrases as “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime” and can imagine how that might apply to a computer book.

If this sounds like you, then we think you'll find this book rewarding.

Inside you will find everything you need to get up to speed with Mac OS X Leopard including:

• Using the standard included Leopard applications including Mail, Safari, Preview, and more
• Taking advantage of the Darwin subsystem in Leopard
• Learning all the ins and outs of the Finder and Leopards improved interface
• Administering your computer for yourself and for others
• Working with other computers and operating systems from you Mac
• Configuring the network to take full advantage of the powerful networking capabilities in Leopard
• Working with add on devices via USB, Firewire, and Bluetooth
• Effectively implementing data backup, recovery and security
• Getting started with OS X development in Leopard

About The Author


Scott Meyers has worked in and around the computer industry, beginning as an Apple Sales Specialist and Consultant over 12 years ago, he has since moved on to various other jobs including Web Design and Development, Editing books on Web Development, Open Source and Apple Technology, and Marketing. He is a Select ADC (Apple Developers Connection) Member and a huge fan of Mac OS X which brings together his love of the Apple's traditionally best of class GUI and applications with the unrivaled power of Unix and Open Source technologies and applications.

Scott lives outside of Indianapolis, Indiana with his Wife, two kids, and a cat and a dog. When not working or writing he enjoys photography, playing guitar, and building amplifiers.



Mike Lee, the World's Toughest Programmer, has been bending computers to his will since the mid-90's. As a majordomo of Delicious Monster Software, he spends most of his time working on Delicious Library or answering support e-mail. His next project is a nonprofit software company dedicated to raising money and awareness for Madagascar and the world's few remaining lemurs.

Mike and his wife are originally from Honolulu, but currently live in Seattle where they are raising two cats. Mike's hobbies include weightlifting, single malts, and fire.

Reader Reviews
There are a growing number of guidance books being published about Apple's latest computer operating system OS 10.5, a.k.a. "Leopard." "Mac OS ten Leopard: Beyond the Manual" by Scott Meyers and Mike Lee aims for a more sophisticated reader group than most of the others which tend to target casual users and perhaps new "Windows switchers." This book is for advanced computer users, especially those familiar with UNIX and Linux who want or need to learn about the hundreds of new and improved features of the MacOS, and even for casual Windows users who are comfortable with command line interaction and prefer full keyboard use of the computer. Scott Meyers is an editor and Mac OS consultant and Mr. Lee is a technical specialist. The writing is clear and straightforward. Unlike some other Leopard guides, there is no attempt to be literary or stylish - this is a software manual after all for advanced users. They cover all the Leopard basics and assume the reader is not, or only barely, familiar with the Mac OS ten system. The first four parts(of eight) of the book, counting 17 chapters, describe the basics--the Aqua interface, the Menubar, Views, the Sidebar and Dock, system and user preferences, the file system, maintenance, security, networking, and included Apple applications like Safari (the browser), Mail, iChat, and iCal. An item by item description of the Safari menus takes up a full seven pages. The Mail menu descriptions take up 11 pages. The menu descriptions are contained in a chart which provides alternative common keyboard shortcuts for each of the menu commands. Like UNIX and other operating systems, one can ignore the mouse completely once one knows the key combinations. They also provide an introduction to the iLife suite of applications, like iTunes, iPhoto, and the other consumer-level productivity applications included with the Leopard installation. The coverage is comprehensive but not deep. The reader will be exposed to most of the operating system but nothing is treated extensively or with depth. Some of the chapters are very short. Presumably, higher end users will figure the deeper stuff out for themselves after being directed to what is available in OS 10. There is no shortage of illustrations, screenshots, charts, tables illuminating in an effective way the text comments and descriptions. Throughout, the authors provide numerous "Notes" and "Tips" which elaborate on the basic text. These are more explanatory of specific items and features and some are in the nature of practical recommendations and suggestions - for configuring preferences, for example, or utilizing third-party applications instead of Apple's for certain functions. There is an extensive five-page section on the components of the system-wide and user Libraries in OS ten with descriptions of all the items contained in them. Throughout the first half of the book - the part focused on the user interface and middleware layers of the OS - the authors provide information on both the menu -mouse navigation and keyboard operation alternatives, the latter for power users and others more comfortable with keyboard use. Differences in desktop and laptop keyboards are detailed as well. There is an an interesting section on calibrating the display and modifying the default Macintosh 1.8 gamma to a Windows-like 2.2 gamma for those users who are not graphics professionals, at least. The last half of the book is about UNIX, or more specifically for the MacOS, "Darwin" which is Apple's flavor of UNIX. Starting first with the "shell" the authors walk the reader through starting up the command line functions, describe the elemental UNIX commands, note navigation issues, root access, and the like. Later chapters cover scripting Darwin, using the included scripting languages of Perl, Python, PHP, and Ruby, and how to install additional advanced software like Fink and Macports. Chapters twenty and 21 cover networking, remote monitoring, and firewalls. Chapter 22 deals with the included Web server software, Apache, as well as SQLite and PHP. There is a chapter devoted to Apple' s own scripting applications, Automator and AppleScript. The final chapter covers the developer tools, also included with OS X. There are references to the various "kits" which developers can use to create their own applications and there are many kits included in OS X - for audio, video, graphics, PDF handling, animation, and more. The appendices include guidance on installations and a list of what's new in Leopard (versus earlier versions of OS 10.) An extensive index of 43 pages rounds out the book. This book is solidly produced and written and should bring advanced users up to speed with Leopard and to point the way for them to explore the depths of it themselves.