Complete Idiot's Guide to Windows XP - Softcover

Many people have a love-hate relationship with their computer. They hate turning it on in the morning and love turning it off at night. Why all the angst? Because computers are nowhere near as easy to use as they should be. Seemingly simple tasks such as composing a memo or printing a file too often turn into heart-stopping, gray-hair-producing adventures. The Complete Idiot's Guide® to Windows XP, Second Edition, provides readers with information to overcome such problems. It shows that there are ways to tame the computing beast and thus pacify the machine into doing one's bidding. With "just the facts, ma'am," explanations, simple step-by-step instructions, and lots of useful examples, readers see that getting work done in Windows doesn't have to cost their sanity. Coverage includes (1) straightforward, step-by-step instructions for working with the most common Windows features (2) up-do-date coverage of Windows XP, including critical information on Service Pack 2 (3) instructions on how to maintain and troubleshoot Windows XP, including a new "10-Step" maintenance program that takes the guesswork out of fine-tuning XP, and new sidebars showing easy to perform "hacks." (4) all the basic techniques for working with menus, dialog boxes, windows, and documents, so new users can get off to a good start (5) extensive coverage of Windows XP's graphic goodies, including working with images, getting pictures from a scanner and digital camera, using Media Player, and much more (6) lots of material for business users, including chapters on faxing, networking, and using a notebook computer (7) in-depth coverage of Windows XP's Internet features, with special emphasis on Internet Explorer, Outlook Express, and special security features built into XP.

Paul McFedries is the president of Logophilia Limited, and he has written over 40 books that have sold nearly three million copies worldwide. These books include many titles in The Complete Idiot's Guide® series, including the first edition of The Complete Idiot's Guide® to Windows XP and the various editions of The Complete Idiot's Guide® to Creating a Web Page, as well as Special Edition Using JavaScript. Paul is also the proprietor of Word Spy (www.WordSpy.com), a website and blog devoted to recently coined words and phrases, and to old words that are being used in new ways. Word Spy generates over a million page views each month, has won numerous awards, and has been mentioned or featured in such august publications as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, and the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin (don't ask). Paul lives in Toronto with his wife, Karen, and their dog, Gypsy.