- Paperback: 456 pages
- Publisher: John Wiley & Sons; 7th Edition edition (2 Sep 1999)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0764505947
- ISBN-13: 978-0764505942
- Product Dimensions: 23.2 x 18.8 x 2.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,301,397 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Explaining the fundamentals of personal computing to those who would rather read words than look at pictures, PCs for Dummies tells you everything you need to know in order to use an IBM-compatible PC running Windows 98. Dan Gookin's prose is technically astute and fun to read.
This isn't the book for you if you're looking through a computer catalogue and wondering what all the jargon means (Buying a Computer for Dummies covers that). Rather, this book will help you when you've got the machine into your home and you need to know what to do next. Starting with the process of unpacking the box and plugging in all the cables, this book shows you what to do with your new machine.
After assembly is out of the way, Gookin shows you how to get around in Windows 98 (and Windows 95, which is almost identical). He explains concepts like files, directories, and applications, and frequently explains the exact procedures involved in common tasks like adjusting screen resolution. Once you've heard all about the basics, Gookin goes on to explain modem configuration, printer problems, productivity software, and a fair amount about Internet use. --David Wall, Amazon.com --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
Review
"Easy and entertaining...explains computer terms and walks you through the more complicated aspects of computer life." —New York Daily News
“…I would implore any elderly person thinking about getting a computer to go and get one…” (Teesside Evening Gazette, 19 May 2003)
“…excellent and fun to read…” (Mourne Observer & County Down News, 23 July 2003) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
Sometime in the near future, personal robots will become the rage. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Sometime in the near future, personal robots will become the rage. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
If you're a complete beginner or, like me, you have a just a small amount of knowledge and experience of computers then I don't see that you could find a better guide book than this one. I would strongly recommend it especially to people who have got a computer for the first time and find the whole business of what you can and can't do on it bewildering. The author has a degree in communications and it shows. Every aspect of using a computer is dealt with in turn and explained in a very effective way that gets the meaning across without being technical.
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I bought this book just over two years ago when I bought my first ever computer. At that point I knew absolutely nothing about PC's. I'm embarrassed to say I didn't even know how to switch it on. This book is brilliant if you're a complete novice, as it starts off from ground zero, by assuming the reader knows nothing at all. It is written in a very easy to understand logical way. The author's wry sense of humour is never far away, causing me to burst out laughing every so often. You are taken by the hand and guided through all the basics you'll need to get you up and running, and totally familiar with your PC. I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone, particularly people a bit frightened of computers who have just bought their first one.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The first thing you notice bout this book - is that it is funny. But after a while it starts to get a bit annoying as the book seems more like it's `trying' to be funny than actually being funny.
Anyway - I am pretty good with PCs (messed around with them for years) and decided to flick through this book that my mum-in-law has recently acquired.
It does a good job of separating the technobabble from the technology and gives good steady walkthroughs of what it deems to be the essentials. I'm sure though that everyone has their own idea of what is `the essentials' and so the book may never satisfy everyone.
The good thing about the non-reliance on techno-speak is that the book doesn't date too badly. I've seen an old edition of this book (2001 edition) and it is still pretty relevant today. It gives an example of a fast PC with 256MB of RAM which is laughable these days - but the book is still handy.
It isn't just the software side of things either that this book tackles - it deals with adjusting your monitor settings, what the various ports on your PC are for, what various components do. I'm not a massive Windows user myself, but the author explains at the beginning of the book that this covers only PCs running Windows based operating systems.
In a nutshell - This is a brilliant book for a PC novice. It doesn't make the reader feel daunted, and it should help inspire confidence. It is funny (even if it does grate after a while!), and even if you can only get your hands on a copy of an old edition - much of the information will still be relevant (unless you are using the ultimate PC slower-upper: Vista! In which case you'll probably need a more recent version as the others may only cover up to XP).
Anyway - I am pretty good with PCs (messed around with them for years) and decided to flick through this book that my mum-in-law has recently acquired.
It does a good job of separating the technobabble from the technology and gives good steady walkthroughs of what it deems to be the essentials. I'm sure though that everyone has their own idea of what is `the essentials' and so the book may never satisfy everyone.
The good thing about the non-reliance on techno-speak is that the book doesn't date too badly. I've seen an old edition of this book (2001 edition) and it is still pretty relevant today. It gives an example of a fast PC with 256MB of RAM which is laughable these days - but the book is still handy.
It isn't just the software side of things either that this book tackles - it deals with adjusting your monitor settings, what the various ports on your PC are for, what various components do. I'm not a massive Windows user myself, but the author explains at the beginning of the book that this covers only PCs running Windows based operating systems.
In a nutshell - This is a brilliant book for a PC novice. It doesn't make the reader feel daunted, and it should help inspire confidence. It is funny (even if it does grate after a while!), and even if you can only get your hands on a copy of an old edition - much of the information will still be relevant (unless you are using the ultimate PC slower-upper: Vista! In which case you'll probably need a more recent version as the others may only cover up to XP).
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
oppinion
i first bought a copy of this book a few years ago when i bought my firs pc i went from sinclair to a cusyom built desktop this book was a grat help to me i only bought this newer... Read more
Published on 11 July 2009 by G. A. Saunders
Ideal for Novices.
After purchasing this book, and its companion "Laptops For Dummies", I went ahead and purchased my first Computer -- a Laptop. Read more
Published on 2 May 2009 by T. Robinson
No nightmare for Novices
Being a relative novice to PCs and the internet I found this book very helpful in answering the questions I might otherwise find quite daunting. Read more
Published on 9 April 2009 by Mr. R. J. Kirk
Don't even think about buying this book
My wife bought this book some years ago when we got our first PC as we're both pretty computer-illiterate (or were then). Read more
Published on 8 July 2008 by Mr. C. O. Jones
Maybe for dummies, but probably not for beginners
I bought this book for my mother who, with no prior experience of any kind, recently bought a computer. Read more
Published on 7 Jan 2003 by Steve Burrow
Author tries to be too funny
I thought the book was too complicated for beginners and too easy for novices. The author tries to be way too funny and sometimes it's hard to determine if he's kidding or not. Read more
Published on 26 Aug 1999
Great book to help you understand the basics.
As a novice, I really enjoyed this book. It lets you understand the basics and build your skills from this point. Read more
Published on 27 Jun 1999
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