Windows Millennium Edition Step by Step

Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, the newest version of the Microsoft Windows operating system for home PCs, offers the richest Internet and entertainment experience by simplifying the use of key PC features that consumers work and play with every day. Using Millennium, you can easily find, manipulate, and share music and pictures, play computer games, get your whole family on the Internet quickly, use intelligent PC appliances that are faster and more accessible, and quickly network and use multiple PCs at home. MICROSOFT WINDOWS MILLENNIUM EDITION STEP BY STEP is the easiest and fastest way to teach yourself what you need to learn about Millennium Edition at your own pace. Easy-to-follow, step-by-step lessons include clear objectives and real-world business examples to make learning even complex tasks interesting. You get easy visual navigation, help in finding the best starting point so you get the most out of the book, and lay-flat binding so it's easy to read when open. A companion CD provides practice files and movie-style demos to simplify learning.

The fact is that Windows Me isn't much different from its predecessor, Windows 98. If you're already familiar with the older operating system, you don't need this or any other Windows Me book. If you're using Windows Me as your first or second stepping stone into personal computing, however, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition Step by Step will be a worthy resource as you work your way to mastery of the system.

The authors--a team from a technical training company--chose to organize this book as an extended hands-on exercise. You start with a virgin machine (it's assumed that you or your PC vendor chose the Typical setup option from the Windows Me installation CD-ROM) and work your way through various configuration changes and other experiments. The approach yields a book that's great for gaining fundamental knowledge of Windows Me, and better than you'd expect as a reference volume.

This book, as you might guess from its title, is heavy on procedures. There's a sequence of steps to follow for every popular Windows Me feature, and it's easy to locate the procedure that you want in the index. Step by Step is not well illustrated, however, and novice Windows users might get nervous without visual assurances that they're seeing the right windows and messages on their screens. The book ships with a CD-ROM that contains files for use with Windows Me; they're meant to help you get familiar with using the multimedia tools and other little applications. --David Wall

Topics covered: Windows Me for novices, including its Internet, home-networking, multimedia, and utility features. Coverage of Outlook Express 5.5, as it's set up for multiple users (as in a family environment), is particularly good.