您是否曾经希望有人可以用小步骤解释Windows 7，以便您可以确定在继续下一个概念之前掌握了一个概念？您想拥有一本既可作为教程又可作为Windows 7参考的书？Microsoft Press为您准备了这本书。它被称为“Windows 7 Step by Step”，在本文中我将对其进行回顾。
标题说明了一切
如果书名(book title)如其所言并说明其含义，这对读者总是有帮助的（向大象霍顿(Horton)和苏斯博士(Dr. Seuss)道歉）。如果您想要一本指南，可以引导您完成对Windows 7(Windows 7)的良好、基本了解所需的所有内容，那么这本书就是为您准备的。它附带一张包含文件的 CD，可帮助您练习使用各种命令和文档，而无需永久安装任何内容或危及新的Windows 7安装。对于我们这些通过练习学得最好的人来说，CD 绝对是一个奖励。
一二三
在向读者介绍了系统要求、Windows 7 的安装方式以及书中使用的各种约定之后，Windows 7 Step by Step进入一章，其中包含为绝对初学者(absolute beginner)设计的信息，他们可能不会有很多（或任何）使用鼠标或计算机键盘(mouse or computer keyboard)的经验，并且可能还不熟悉Windows的工作方式。由于Windows 7的图形界面与其前辈不同，从Windows XP进入(Windows XP)Windows 7的人可能会欣赏Windows 7的描述(Windows 7)图标和命令按钮，看起来与 XP 用户可能已经习惯的不同。然后这本书就关闭并运行了。以下三个部分（ Windows 7(Windows 7)入门、体验万维网(World Wide Web)和管理您的计算机(Computer)）中的每一章都以一页的图形“章节概览”开始，说明本章将涵盖的内容，列出页码以获取更多信息的指针。
如果您盯着屏幕却不知道接下来要单击什么，这将非常有用。每个部分首先从基础开始，然后进入更高级的操作。它为新手简单而清晰地解释了这些过程。更高级的用户可以轻松跳过初学者级别的信息并继续(beginner level information and move)了解Windows 7的工作方式 - 如果他们从Windows XP进入(Windows XP)Windows 7，这可能与他们习惯的方式明显不同。然后每一章都以对所涵盖内容的逐点概述结束。
入门
本节的第一章（从逻辑上讲）从“开始”菜单开始(Start menu)，并对它的工作原理进行了清晰而透彻的解释。Windows Vista用户已经熟悉其中的大部分内容，但新用户和Windows XP用户将欣赏对细节的关注。从那里开始，本章涵盖了键盘快捷键、任务栏和控制面板(Control Panel)，同样对细节非常关注。下一节将讨论Windows 更新(Windows Update)，并清楚地说明了该过程的工作原理以及保持更新最新的重要性。然后，从逻辑上讲，这本书解释了关闭计算机的各种方法。下一章将介绍用户帐户，解释它们是什么以及为什么需要它们，并解释帐户的类型以及如何创建它们。然后详细介绍了用户帐户控制(User Account Control)，它首先在Windows Vista中引入，并在(Windows Vista)Windows 7中变得更加用户友好。这自然会引发对帐户安全(account security)和一般计算机安全(computer security)的讨论。甚至还有一张Windows 7的游戏评级字母表(Windows 7)会识别，因此可以相应地设置家长控制（如果小学生的父母在他的帐户上正确设置了家长控制，那么想要玩他姐姐的外星人爆破游戏的小学生好运）。然后，关于网络。Windows 7 Step by Step解释了网络连接(network connection)（带有关于网络设置和安全性的良好、详细的参考部分(reference section)）、家庭组以及如何创建和使用它们，以及如何在网络上共享库、文件和文件夹。与其他部分一样，每一步都有大量清晰的插图说明您将在屏幕上看到的内容。然后，适当地，有一个很好的、可靠的故障排除部分(troubleshooting section)，涵盖最常见的网络问题以及出现这些问题时应采取的措施。这本身就使这本书成为一个有价值的参考资料。第四章和第五章解释了文件、文件夹和库，以及如何在您的计算机上找到自己的方式。如果这是我的书，我会把这些章节放在网络连接(network connection)章节之前，因为我认为很多人会花更多时间处理自己计算机的内容，而不是家庭网络(home network)上其他计算机的内容，而这些信息会有更高的优先级。不过，如果效果更好的话，先跳到这些章节还是很容易的。再次(Again)，这些章节从初学者的基本信息开始，然后转向更复杂的任务，并有大量的插图来说明方法。
上网
第二部分涵盖互联网和网站连接。由于它是Microsoft 出版物(Microsoft publication)，它自然假定您将使用Internet Explorer，因此它包含了如何设置它的简要说明。（没有提到其他浏览器。）然后详细介绍了如何使用Internet Explorer的功能，包括选项卡、页面、收藏夹（书签）以及 Internet 导航的来龙去脉。导航(Navigation)通过Microsoft 网站(Microsoft web)部分内容的导览来说明。下一章将介绍更高级的Internet 使用(internet use)，再次关注Internet Explorer中可用的工具。(Internet Explorer). 每个工具都附有适当的屏幕截图。然后本章涵盖RSS提要、新闻阅读器、网络切片、收藏夹（书签）和搜索引擎。同样(Again)，这里的重点是Microsoft的产品（Bing、MSN等）。然后是管理Internet Explorer(Internet Explorer)的一整章，其中详细介绍了Microsoft浏览器中可用的高级命令和功能。有一个有价值的部分介绍 Internet 安全的基本要素和Internet Explorer(Internet Explorer)中内置的安全功能，并很好地解释了如何设置它以限制对令人反感的网站的访问。与本书的其余部分一样，这些对话框都有清晰的插图，并且对所有内容都有分步说明。同样，对于使用(Again)Internet Explorer的人和通常使用其他浏览器的人来说，这使它成为一个非常有价值的资源。
视觉好东西
最后一部分解释了如何使用主题、背景和配色方案来个性化您的计算机，以及如何根据需要显示尽可能多或尽可能少的图形元素。由于Windows 7带有出色的背景集合，并且屏幕上的几乎所有内容都可以根据您的喜好进行修改，因此这确实是非常有价值的一章。并非所有计算机都可以使用所有Aero功能——很大程度上取决于计算机的处理器和可用内存——但Windows 7足够智能，不会尝试显示计算机无法处理的任何内容。所以如果你能看到它，你可以随心所欲地改变它，Windows 7 Step by Step提供使您的桌面环境独一无二(desktop environment unique)所需的所有说明。下一章说明如何修改开始菜单和任务栏(Start menu and taskbar)、更改日期和时间设置(date and time settings)、更改计算机名称和更改电源选项(name and change power options)。并非所有读者都希望更改这些元素的默认值，但如果您这样做，手头有完整的插图说明会很有用。
最后......
Windows 7 Step by Step将最好的留到最后。最后两章详细解释了如何实际使用您的计算机——探索内置程序、安装其他软件和硬件(software and hardware)、修改桌面小工具以及探索Windows Live。它还解释了Windows 7如何帮助您更顺畅地工作。第 11 章介绍了如何安装和删除软件、自动启动程序以及为电子邮件、浏览器、媒体播放器、图形显示、(Chapter 11)照片查看器和文本编辑器(photo viewer and text editor)等设置默认设置。对于选择不使用Windows(Windows)默认设置的人来说，这是特别有价值的信息，即使Windows默认值用于示例。第 12 章(Chapter 12)深入介绍了硬件的基础知识——安装设备、使用打印机、使用多个屏幕（对于我们这些发现Microsoft的显示(Display)设置有些混乱的人来说，这是一个特别有价值的解释），以及设置你的声音设备（如果有的话）。然后它会移动到我首先放置的信息——修改鼠标和键盘的行为方式(mouse and keyboard behave)。如果没有这两个正常工作，其余的就不容易。第 12 章(Chapter 12)的最后部分讨论了硬件评级。这是许多从以前版本的Windows迁移到(Windows)Windows 7的人(Windows 7)可能不知道（我说的是这里的经验！）Windows 7将检查您的硬件，将其与数据库进行比较，并为(Windows 7)提高性能(performance enhancing)的更改提出有用的建议。由于Windows 7的视觉吸引力很大程度上取决于它所运行的硬件，而且由于可以调整许多不同的东西，手头有明确的说明将消除过程中的不确定性，并带来更好的体验Windows 7几乎适合所有人。也就是说，我确实认为讨论主题的顺序可能会更好，并且更符合新人想要探索的顺序。而且，虽然这是一本微软出版社(Microsoft Press book)的书，而且强调微软(Microsoft)产品是给定的，其他来源的等效软件列表将是一个好主意。微软(Microsoft)可能会警惕出现在支持其他人的产品，但我认为他们很容易为此制定免责声明。
判决
Windows 7 Step by Step写得很清楚，图文并茂，内容全面。它是针对初学者的教程，对于更有经验的用户来说是一个有价值的参考，而无需超越初学者的头脑或与更有技能的人交谈。它不会将读者提升到“专家”水平，但这不是它的目的——还有其他书籍可以解决这个问题。这里有适合每个人的东西。很(Well)值得购买。
Book Review - Windows 7 Step By Step
Have you ever wiѕhed sоmeone could explain Wіndows 7 in small steps ѕo that you could be sure you grasрed one concept before moving on to the next? Would you like to have a book that serves as both a tutorial аnd a referеnce tо Windows 7? Microsoft Press has just thе book for you. It is called 'Windows 7 Step by Step' and in this article I am going to review it.
The Title Says it All
It's always helpful to the reader if a book title means what it says and says what it means (with apologies to Horton the elephant, and Dr. Seuss). If you want a guide that will walk you through just about everything necessary for a good, basic understanding of Windows 7, this book is for you. It comes with a CD full of files that will help you practice using a wide range of commands and documents, without installing anything permanently or endangering a new Windows 7 installation. For those of us who learn best by practicing, the CD is a definite bonus.
One, Two, Three
After an introduction that walks the reader through system requirements, the ways Windows 7 can be installed, and the various conventions used in the book, Windows 7 Step by Step moves on to a chapter full of information designed for the absolute beginner, who might not have much (or any) experience using a mouse or computer keyboard, and who might not yet be familiar with the way Windows works. Since the graphical interface of Windows 7 is different from its predecessors, people who are coming to Windows 7 from Windows XP may appreciate the description of the Windows 7 icons and command buttons, which look different from what XP users might have been accustomed to. And then the book is off and running. Each of the chapters within the three following sections (Getting Started with Windows 7, Experiencing the World Wide Web, and Managing Your Computer) begins with a one-page, graphical "chapter at a glance" that illustrates what the chapter will cover, with pointers that list page numbers for further information.
This can be very helpful if you're staring at a screen and have no idea what to click next. Each section starts out with the basics first, and then moves on to more advanced operations. It explains the processes simply and clearly for novices. More advanced users can easily skip the beginner level information and move along to the explanations of how Windows 7 does things--which might be noticeably different from what they're used to, if they're coming to Windows 7 from Windows XP. Each chapter then ends with a point-by-point overview of what was covered.
Getting Started
The first chapter in this section starts (logically enough) with the Start menu and gives a clear and thorough explanation of how it works. Windows Vista users will already be familiar with most of it, but new users and Windows XP users will appreciate the attention to detail. From there, the chapter covers keyboard shortcuts, the taskbar, and the Control Panel, with the same careful attention to detail. The next section talks about Windows Update, and makes it quite clear how the process works and why it's important to keep updates current. And then, just as logically, the book explains the various ways you can shut your computer down. The next chapter covers user accounts, with an explanation of what they are and why they are necessary, and explains the types of accounts and how to create them. It then goes into detail about User Account Control, first introduced in Windows Vista, and made a lot more user friendly in Windows 7. This leads naturally into a discussion of account security, and computer security in general. There's even a chart of the game-rating letters that Windows 7 will recognize, so parental controls can be set accordingly (good luck to the grade-schooler who wants to play his older sister's alien-blaster game, if the grade-schooler's parents have set up the parental controls properly on his account). And then, on to networking. Windows 7 Step by Step explains network connections (with a good, detailed reference section on network settings and security), homegroups and how to create and work with them, and how to share libraries, files and folders on the network. As with the other sections, there are plenty of clear illustrations of what you'll see on your screen at each step. And then, appropriately, there is a good, solid troubleshooting section, covering the most common network problems and what to do when those problems arise. That in itself makes this book a valuable reference to keep on hand. The fourth and fifth chapters explain files, folders, and libraries, and how to find your way around your computer. If this were my book, I would have put these chapters ahead of the network connection chapters, because I think many people are going to spend more time working with their own computer's contents than the contents of other computers on their home network, and this information would have a higher priority. Still, it's easy enough to skip to these chapters first if that works better. Again, these chapters start out with basic information for beginners, and move on to more complex tasks, with plenty of illustrations to show the way.
On To The Web
The second section covers internet and website connections. Since it's a Microsoft publication, it naturally assumes you're going to be using Internet Explorer, so it includes a brief explanation of how to set that up. (No other browsers are mentioned.) And then it goes into complete detail about how to use Internet Explorer's features, including tabs, pages, favorites (bookmarks), and the ins and outs of internet navigation. Navigation is illustrated by a guided tour through parts of the Microsoft web site. The next chapter moves along to more advanced internet use, again focused on the tools available in Internet Explorer. Each tool is illustrated with appropriate screen shots. The chapter then covers RSS feeds, newsreaders, web slices, favorites (bookmarks) and search engines. Again, the emphasis is on Microsoft's products here (Bing, MSN, and so forth). And then there is a full chapter on Managing Internet Explorer, which goes into a lot more detail about the advanced commands and features available in Microsoft's browser. There's a valuable section on the essentials of internet security and the security features built into Internet Explorer, and a good explanation of how to set it up to restrict access to objectionable sites. As with the rest of the book, the dialog boxes are clearly illustrated and there are step-by-step instructions for everything. Again, this makes it a very valuable resource both for people who use Internet Explorer and for people who ordinarily use other browsers.
Visual Goodies
The final section explains how to personalize your computer with themes, backgrounds, and color schemes, and how to display as much or as little of the graphical elements as you want. Since Windows 7 comes with an outstanding collection of backgrounds, and since just about everything on your screen can be modified to suit your preferences, this is a very valuable chapter indeed. Not all computers can use all of the Aero features--a lot depends on your computer's processor and available memory--but Windows 7 is intelligent enough not to try to display anything that your computer can't handle. So if you can see it, you can change it to your heart's content, and Windows 7 Step by Step provides all the instructions you'll need to make your desktop environment unique. The next chapter explains how to modify the Start menu and taskbar, change the date and time settings, change the computer's name and change power options. Not all readers will want to change the defaults on these elements, but it's useful to have complete illustrated instructions at hand if you do.
And Finally....
Windows 7 Step by Step saves the best for last. The final two chapters give a detailed explanation of how to actually use your computer--explore the programs that come built in, install other software and hardware, modify the desktop gadgets, and explore Windows Live. It also explains how Windows 7 can help you help it work more smoothly. Chapter 11 explains how to install and remove software, start programs automatically and set up your defaults for things like email, browser, media player, graphics display, photo viewer and text editor. This is especially valuable information for people who chose not to use the Windows defaults, even though the Windows defaults are used for examples. Chapter 12 gets down to the basics of hardware--installing devices, working with your printer, using multiple screens (an especially valuable explanation for those of us who find Microsoft's Display settings somewhat confusing as is), and setting up your sound devices (if any). Then it moves along to the information I would have placed first--modifying the way your mouse and keyboard behave. Without those two working properly, the rest doesn't follow easily. The final part of Chapter 12 talks about hardware ratings. This is something that many people who have moved to Windows 7 from previous versions of Windows might not know about (I am speaking from experience here!) Windows 7 will check your hardware, compare it to a database, and make helpful suggestions for performance enhancing changes. Since so much of Windows 7's visual appeal depends on the hardware it runs on, and since so many different things can be tweaked, having clear instructions at hand will take the uncertainty out of the process and will result in a far better experience with Windows 7 for just about everyone. That said, I do think the order in which the subjects are discussed could be better, and more in line with the order in which a newcomer would want to explore. And, while this is a Microsoft Press book and the emphasis on Microsoft products is a given, a list of equivalent software from other sources would be a good idea. Microsoft might be wary of appearing to endorse other people's products, but I think it'd be easy enough for them to craft a disclaimer for that.
Verdict
Windows 7 Step by Step is clearly written, thoroughly illustrated, and comprehensive. It's a tutorial for beginners and a valuable reference for more experienced users without going over the heads of beginners or talking down to people who have more skill. It does not take the reader up to "expert" level, but that wasn't its purpose--there are other books that take care of that. There's something in here for just about everyone. Well worth buying.
