Windows XP Secrets

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 696 pages
• Published by: Wiley
• Edition: 1st Edition November 15, 2001
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0764548522
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0764548529
• Book Dimensions: 8.8 x 7.4 x 1.6 inches
• Weighs: 2.3 pounds

Product Review
Windows XP Secrets does a fine job of documenting the latest Microsoft operating system, largely because its author assumes that you already know a fair bit about Windows from experience. He seems to figure that you're interested in the features that are new in Windows XP, and also in getting it to look and behave the way you want. As a result, this book combines documentation of the new features with some pretty cool hints--a lot of which you likely would not have found on your own, or bothered to hunt for on the Internet--about the appearance and function of Windows XP. You may gripe a bit about the amount of straight documentation Curt Simmons has included--he explains such pedestrian matters as adding a modem and creating a Windows Media Player playlist--but the unusual hints appear in sufficient number to earn the book its selling price.

Particularly cool is Simmons's affinity for third-party software--especially Tweaki and TweakUI--and the depth of coverage he's given the Registry. He's also earned kudos for paying attention to the command line, which remains the best way to do a lot of work, even in super-graphical Windows XP. This book would be better if it included a table that referred the reader directly to the scattered "SECRET" boxes--which contain a lot of the best factoids. But even without such an index this volume is a good guide to Windows XP for power users. --David Wall

Topics covered: How to install and use Windows XP, with emphasis on interface customization using less obvious configuration settings. Application compatibility, the applets in the Microsoft Management Console (MMC), Registry settings, Internet security, and small-office networking are some of the more interesting areas the author covers.

Product Review
"Verdict? Good for power users -- Microsoft Windows XP (The Official Magazine), September 2002

"Verdict? Good for power users" (Microsoft Windows XP (The Official Magazine), September 2002)

Reader Reviews
The Secret is out: This is not a very good book.. I was very disappointed with Windows XP Secrets. I had previously bought Windows 95, 98, and Me Secrets along with several of their Office Secrets and was very satisfied. The first thing I noticed was the length on the book. In "Me Secrets" the author writes: "...Windows Me is a minor upgrade-not a major departure from Windows 98...." Yet the Me book takes up almost 1,500 pages. Windows XP is the greatest change in the system since Windows 95 yet But the book has only about 700 pages, half the size of Me. Some things have to be left out. And they were. This includes the CD ROM that came with other Secret's books. The Windows secrets Book usually contained: Extensive instructions on nearly every aspect of the program. This is sorely missing here. The instructions seemed rushed and incomplete. If your computer does not align itself exactly to the instructions, which often do not start at the beginning, you will find few alternatives or suggestions. More than just the instructions are missing; large sections of what Windows XP can do are missing too. This book is definitely not for the beginner. Personalization Tips and Secrets: Perhaps the biggest surprise is that there aren't that many secrets in general and in this area in particular. What I had like best about the previous Secrets books is that they gave me large amount of suggestions of how I could make Windows "my own". They offered `secrets" that allowed me to personalize and enable me to feel comfortable with my computer. In addition they offered additional tips to speed up many tasks. There were chapters entitled: "Making Windows Your Own" and "My system." One example: A secret I looked forward to each Secret's book to instruct me on how to change the opening and closing logos of my computer. Using their secrets, I had made, with tier instructions, my own personalized logo on boot up. No longer. This book just doesn't cover the areas it used to. This book is definitely not for the intermediate user. There are more "tips" than secrets. Matter fact there are really very few useable secrets and the tips are run of the mill. Since there is little space given to advanced subjects as the registry, and few secrets that you can really use, this book was obviously not written for the advanced use either. No fun, no sense of reality in the writing. The previous books were written with a sense of reality, a sense of humor and a sense of fun. All this is missing here. The sense of reality was often a tongue and cheek way of expressing the "secret" deficiencies of Windows and the ways of getting around them. There were even chapters called "Fun." In a field that is very serious, these books took the time to point out that these programs do not all have to be "heavy lifting", there was some fun here too. No longer. Finally, the previous editions of Secrets came with a CD. For example, entire book, with a searchable database, was able to be loaded on your computer. This was great. You were able to get help instantly. No such book here.