Fixing Windows XP Annoyances by David A. Karp

Product Description

Windows XP is the most popular operating system on the planet--and the most annoying. From incomprehensible error messages to inexplicable crashes, from wonky wireless setups to just finding a file, Windows can make your computing life a nightmare. But thanks to Fixing Windows XP Annoyances, you can banish the bugs, speed up operations, and just make Windows work right.

Inspired by author David Karp's Windows XP Annoyances for Geeks, this all-new tome pulls together tips, tricks, insider workarounds, and fixes for PC novices and pros, in a handy, accessible Q&A format that lets you find the solutions in a flash. Fixing Windows XP Annoyances will not only increase your productivity but lower your blood pressure. Karp's new book covers:

* Setup and Hardware-Update Windows, reinstall Windows safely, speed up start up, resolve driver-hardware conflicts, and more.
* Windows Interface-Navigate quickly, fix screen resolution problems, customize the desktop, and switch applications more quickly.
* Windows Explorer-Force XP's file & folder management application to remember your view settings, save your default application choices, and get XP's Search tool to behave.
* Multimedia-Having a problem playing a video or burning a CD? Want to do more with your digital photo collection? We have the answers.
* Web and Email-Get a handle on spyware, spam and pop-ups; protect your privacy online; learn how to improve your online experience.
* Wireless and Home Networking-Connect all your PCs; share Internet connections; share files and drives securely; make your wireless network purr; share network printers; and more.

If you're having a problem, just look through the Table of Contents for the annoyance that most closely matches your problem, or feel free to start thumbing through the pages. You'll likely find a fix to a problem you didn't even know could be solved.

Product Details

* Amazon Sales Rank: #238211 in Books
* Published on: 2006-03-15
* Format: Illustrated
* Number of items: 1
* Binding: Paperback
* 219 pages

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Microsoft Windows XP may be the latest in a popular family of operating systems, but that doesn't mean it's perfect. However, the designers of Windows XP have built enough flexibility into their product and provided users with a sufficiently large toolkit to overcome most shortcomings. In Windows XP Annoyances David Karp reveals his ideas about how to use Windows XP most effectively, for maximum fun and productivity and as little aggravation as possible. If you're comfortable working with Windows XP (or any of its recent predecessors) but find certain aspects of it, well, annoying, you'll find this book to your liking. Karp guides his readers through potentially risky procedures, such as editing the Registry and adjusting hardware device drivers, with skill and precision.

The author's tone is to the point and professional without being dry, without any of the phony, forced humor that appears in a lot of operating-system books. Though he inexplicably ignores the Windows XP Power Toys--some very handy utilities you can get from Microsoft's Web site--he does a great job of handling important questions. Case in point, the important issue of which files can be deleted to free up disk space, and which you shouldn't touch even though they look like pointless garbage. Similarly useful attention goes to the question of which background processes can be safely halted, and which are important. There's fine coverage of scripting with the Windows Script Host (WSH), as well. --David Wall

Topics covered: How to get the most out of Windows XP, even when it appears that the operating system is working against you. Troubleshooting techniques, hardware advice, Registry hacking, interface customization, and advanced networking subjects all find a place in this book.

About the Author
Windows expert David Karp is the author of O'Reilly's bestselling "Windows Annoyances" series of books, including his latest, "Windows XP Annoyances for Geeks". He also co-authored "Windows XP in a Nutshell". A clear and engaging writer, he is a consistent voice for empowering Windows users to get more out of their operating system, and his annoyances.com web site has garnered a sizeable following. David has also written "eBay Hacks" and "eBay: The Missing Manual".
Customer Reviews

Not the clearest sometimes, but...4
While some of the content wasn't easy to implement, I got quite a bit of use out of it. I tend to go back to it from time to time, even.

Why does XP need so much fixing?4
There are many things about Windows "professional" that isn't. It has puppy dogs and talking paper clips. All files gravitate towards "My Documents" and "My Pictures" and often the only way to get to "My Engineering Files" is to click first the desktop icon, then "My Computer" icon, then the drive letter... I want the operating system to get out of my way and let me work. And yet Windows is notorious for putting all sorts of settings in obscure locations that are the last place you might look for them. Hence there are so many utilities for configuring your system the way you want it. Unfortunately, these utilities just do it without telling you how it is done.
This book directly addresses most of these annoying features and explains how (and why) to fix them. In so doing it provides a great deal of insight into the MS mentality. There are of course other annoyances not covered in the book, but I now have a much better idea where to look for them.

Fixing Windows XP Annoyances1
Purchasing this book was a mistake. I expected something similar to
"Windows 98 Annoyances" by the same author. There was no chapter on the Registry, and little or no information about the Registry.