最近我写了一篇关于Windows 8 for Dummies在线课程的评论，我非常喜欢。这不是For Dummies团队提供的唯一 Windows 8 课程，这对于不想仅通过在线视频学习的人来说是个好消息。本周，我查看了Windows 8 for Dummies eLearning Kit，其中包含一本书、一张 CD 以及作为特别奖励的六个月免费访问Windows 8 for Dummies在线电子学习课程（这与正如我最近审查的那样）。我很想知道这门课程的方法与以前的完全在线课程有何不同（除了一个附带一本书而一个(book and one)没有的事实）。这是我发现的。
书籍：鲜活的色彩
您会注意到的第一件事是，这是一本新的For Dummies书籍，印刷在较重的纸张上，并且是全彩的。正如我在之前对For Dummies书籍的评论中所指出的那样，使用Windows 8的界面，拥有一本全彩书籍是一个真正的优势。
该课程是为Windows 8的新手设计的，但作者确实假设读者不是“你桌上的那个东西叫做鼠标”的("that thing on your desk is called a mouse") 初学者水平(beginner level)，并且确实有一些基本的计算机知识(computer knowledge)。您不必拥有一台运行Windows 8的计算机即可使用本书或 CD，但如果您使用Windows 8进行练习，这些课程可能会更有意义。每章都以一系列有趣的问题开始，以吸引读者，并附有可以找到答案的页码。作者对这些问题进行了一些思考；他们不仅仅是普通的“我如何”("How do I")查询。
在解释 Windows 8 可能不熟悉的术语的页面中散布着标有Lingo的框，每章最后都有一个名为Know This Tech Talk的部分，作为本章中所有术语的词汇表。我认为词汇表对初学者特别有用，因为所有内容都以易于理解的语言解释。课程本身并不特别长，每节课都为每个新概念都配备了插图。我认为这对初学者也特别有吸引力。
课程以相当合乎逻辑的顺序排列（很像我最近读过的其他Windows 8书籍的结构），从(Windows 8)“入门”("getting started")到应用程序的概念（与应用程序不同），然后是如何自定义界面并管理文件(interface and manage files)和文件夹。接下来的步骤是Internet Explorer 10、联网以及管理用户帐户和设置。我会把网络一章(networking chapter)放在Internet Explorer之前，因为如果你的网络不能正常工作，再多点击那个蓝色的小 E 也不会让你去任何地方。
这本书以对安全性和故障排除(security and troubleshooting)的探索进行了合乎逻辑的总结，但最后一章是关于应用程序的，我认为应该在Internet Explorer 章节(Internet Explorer chapter)之后，因为我认为Microsoft Store将具有很大的吸引力，人们(appeal and people)会想要探索至少免费的应用程序。为什么要把这个诱人的目标留到最后呢？书中的目录(Table of Contents)也可作为CD 和在线(CD and online)课程的列表。
CD：他们说话，你看
要在 CD 上开始课程，只需将其放入您的光驱，并在出现自动播放窗口时选择运行shellexe.exe 。
系统将询问您是否要登录在线课程或使用 CD。
当您选择 CD 时，会出现介绍。如果您已经完成了一些课程，系统会询问您是否要从上次中断的地方继续。这是一个非常有用的功能。
CD 应该包含一组互动课程，这让我相信每节课的每一部分都是互动的，但事实并非如此。课程的某些部分是交互式的（您可以自己尝试一下，看看它们是如何工作的）。这工作得很好。如果您只是想看看它是如何完成的，您可以选择运行整个演示，而无需自己单击或点击任何内容。我赶紧补充说，我并不是在批评这门课程，因为我误解了其中的内容。🙂
课程明亮、吸引人且易于理解。每个部分都相当短，并且一直在移动。您可以通过单击页面底部的箭头从一个简短的部分导航到下一个部分。
正如我所提到的，CD 课程(CD course)的结构与书中的结构完全相同，并以相同的方式逐步引导您完成所有内容。(everything step)CD 似乎是作者讲述的。CD 据说是 4 小时的培训课程(training course)，但我没有测量完成它所花费的时间。我会相信他们的话。🙂
在线：相同的材料
如果您访问For Dummies eLearning Center，您会在屏幕左侧找到一个 eLearning 课程列表。选择Windows 8课程，您会看到他们提供免费试用版(trial version)，因此您可以在决定注册之前查看它。虽然我认为这是令人钦佩的，但您必须提供个人信息才能查看它的事实绝对不是。当然，您确实拥有本书附带的访问代码(access code)，它为您提供 6 个月的免费在线课程(online course)，并为您提供直接访问它的URL，绕过主屏幕。（请务必不要丢失包含您的特殊代码的小纸条。我将它夹在书籍封面(book cover)。）如果您尚未在该网站注册，则需要这样做，这也需要个人信息。在这种情况下，这是有道理的，因为您正在注册该课程。我认为签出免费试用版的人不需要提供任何个人信息。注册在线课程(online course)的一个好处是，您可以在任何地方学习课程，而无需随身携带书籍或 CD。您无法同时跟踪这两个领域的进度，但这并不是真正的缺点。在线课程(online course)包含有关Windows Media Player的额外课程(bonus lesson)，大多数人会觉得值得花时间学习。
结论：简短而甜蜜
Windows 8 for Dummies eLearning Kit应该可以满足几乎所有刚接触Windows 8并希望彻底了解基础知识的人。该课程的所有三种方法都很有吸引力且内容丰富，很明显作者和For Dummies编辑人员确实努力将所有内容放在一起。交互式练习非常有用，应该解释每个概念如何工作，让几乎任何人都满意。
判决
学习Windows 8的三重方法非常好，应该可以满足任何人的学习风格。无论您选择编写精良、插图精美的书籍、CD 还是在线课程，您都将获得有关Windows 8基础知识的全面教育，并且应该能够在很短的时间内自信地使用您自己的Windows 8计算机时间。
Kit Review - Windows 8 for Dummies eLearning Kit, by Faithe Wempen
Recently I wrote a review of the Windows 8 for Dummies online course, which I liked a lot. That's not the only Windows 8 course available from the For Dummies crew, which is good news for people who don't want to learn through online videos alone. This week I took a look at Windows 8 for Dummies eLearning Kit, which contains a book, a CD, and, as a special bonus, six months free access to the Windows 8 for Dummies online e-learning course (which is not the same as the one I recently reviewed). I was interested to see how this course's approach differed from the previous wholly online course (besides the fact that one comes with a book and one doesn't). Here's what I found.
The book: In living color
The first thing you'll notice is that this is one of the new For Dummies books, printed on heavier paper and in full color. As I have noted in previous reviews of For Dummies books, with Windows 8's interface, having a full-color book is a real plus.
The course is designed for newcomers to Windows 8, but the author does assume that the reader isn't at the "that thing on your desk is called a mouse" beginner level and does have some basic computer knowledge. You do not have to have a computer running Windows 8 to use either the book or the CD, but with Windows 8 in front of you to practice with, the lessons may make more sense. Each chapter begins with a list of interesting questions to draw the reader in, with the page numbers where the answers can be found. The author put some thought into these questions; they're not just run of the mill "How do I" queries.
There are boxes labeled Lingo scattered through the pages that explain Windows 8 terms that may be unfamiliar, and each chapter ends with a section called Know This Tech Talk that serves as a glossary for all the terms found in the chapter. I think the glossary will be especially useful for beginners, since everything is explained in easy to understand language. The lessons themselves are not particularly long, and each is loaded with illustrations for every new concept. I think this would be especially appealing to beginners as well.
The lessons are arranged in a fairly logical order (much like the structure of other Windows 8 books I've read lately) and progress from "getting started" through the concept of applications (as distinct from apps), then how to customize the interface and manage files and folders. The next steps are Internet Explorer 10, networking, and managing user accounts and settings. I'd put the networking chapter ahead of the one on Internet Explorer, because if your network's not working properly, no amount of clicking on that little blue E is going to get you anywhere.
The book concludes logically with an exploration of security and troubleshooting, but the final chapter is about apps, which I thought should come after the Internet Explorer chapter because I think that the Microsoft Store will have a lot of appeal and people will want to explore the free apps at the very least. Why leave this tempting target to the very end? The Table of Contents in the book also serves as a listing of the lessons on the CD and online.
The CD: They talk, you watch
To start the course on CD, just slip it into your optical drive and choose to run shellexe.exe when the Autoplay window appears.
You'll be asked if you want to sign into the online course or use the CD.
When you choose the CD, the introduction appears. If you've already gone through some of the lessons, you'll be asked if you want to take up where you left off. This is a very useful feature.
The CD is supposed to contain a set of interactive lessons, which led me to believe that every segment of every lesson was interactive, which isn't quite the case. Some parts of the lessons are interactive (you can try things for yourself to see how they work). This worked very well. If you just want to see how it's done, you can choose to run the whole demo without clicking or tapping on anything yourself. I hasten to add that I am not criticizing the course because I misunderstood what was in it. 🙂
The lessons are bright, appealing, and easy to understand. Each segment is reasonably short and moves right along. You navigate from one short section to the next by clicking on the arrows at the bottom of the page.
As I mentioned, the structure of the CD course is exactly the same as is found in the book and takes you through everything step by step in the same way. It appears that the CD is narrated by the author. The CD is said to be a 4-hour training course, but I didn't measure the time it took to go through it. I'll take their word for it. 🙂
Online: Same material
If you go to For Dummies eLearning Center you'll find a list of eLearning courses on the left side of your screen. Choose the Windows 8 course, and you'll see that they have a free trial version so you can check it out before you decide to sign up. While I think this is admirable, the fact that you have to provide personal information before you can take a look of it is definitely not. Of course, you do have the access code that comes with the book, which gives you the 6-month online course for free and gives you the URL to go directly to it, bypassing the main screen. (Be sure not to lose the small slip of paper that contains your special code. I paper clipped it to the book cover.) If you're not already registered with the site, you'll need to do that, which also requires personal information. In that context, it makes sense because you're signing up for the course. I do not think that a person checking out a free trial should have to provide any personal information to do so. One advantage to signing up for the online course is that you can then work on the lessons from anywhere, without having to carry the book or the CD around with you. You can't keep track of your progress in both areas at the same time, but this isn't really a shortcoming. The online course contains a bonus lesson on Windows Media Player that most people will find worth the time to go through.
Conclusions: Short and sweet
Windows 8 for Dummies eLearning Kit should satisfy just about everyone who's new to Windows 8 and wants to thoroughly understand the basics. All three approaches to the course are attractive and informative and it's clear the author and the For Dummies editorial staff have really worked to put everything together. The interactive practice is very useful and should explain how each concept works to just about anyone's satisfaction.
Verdict
The threefold approach to learning Windows 8 is excellent and should satisfy just about anyone's learning style. Whether you choose the well-written, brightly illustrated book, the CD, or the online course, you'll get a thorough education in the basics of Windows 8 and should be able to approach your own Windows 8 computer with confidence in a very short time.
