(Did)在过去的假期里(holiday season)，你买了一台新的Windows 8电脑吗？它是否(Did)附带说明，回答了您关于这个彻底重新设计的操作系统(operating system)的问题，并解释了一切让您满意？或者在您感到安心之前，您需要更多信息吗？现在有大量的Windows 8操作书籍，其中一些显然比其他的要好。最近几个月，我已经审查了范围的两端。Windows 8 for Dummies是一本能够解释一切并让几乎每个人都能顺利启动和运行的书吗？让我们看一下并找出答案。
提出关键问题
Windows 8 for Dummies立即引起了我的注意，它提出了一些最重要的问题，从“什么是 Windows 8，你为什么使用它？”开始。("What is Windows 8, and Why are You Using It?")与最近的许多书籍一样，这本书的前提是读者有一台已安装Windows 8的计算机（没有升级说明，尽管有将信息从旧计算机转移到新计算机的说明）。牢记这一点，本书提出的第二个最重要的问题是“我应该费心切换到 Windows 8 吗？” ("Should I Bother Switching to Windows 8?")令人惊讶的是，作者对第二个问题的回答是否定的，坚持你已经拥有的——承认Windows 8的陡峭学习曲线(learning curve)以及不可避免的事实，即它的设计最适合与触摸屏配合使用。哇！指南书中的这种直截了当的谈话是前所未有的。然而，不出所料，这本书随后愉快地解释了Windows 8的工作原理。否则，这将是一本非常短的书。🙂
一步步
Windows 8 for Dummies从一个简单的前提开始：在这个时间段内(time frame)大多数刚接触 Windows 8 的人不会(Windows 8)使用触摸屏计算机。“开始”屏幕(Start screen)针对触摸使用进行了优化，但对鼠标和键盘用户并不友好。因此，我们的想法是帮助那些在非触摸屏计算机上使用(computer work)Windows 8的人更好、更快、更高效地工作，即使他们可能必须通过“开始”屏幕(Start screen)才能做到这一点。对我来说，这完全有道理。从锁定屏幕和登录(Lock screen and signing)开始，这本书快速地解释了用户帐户和Microsoft帐户，这两者对于顺利运行Windows 8至关重要。有一个侧边栏占据了页面的大部分内容，解释了首次使用Windows 8且习惯于以前版本的Windows用户需要立即了解的内容，并包含一些非常重要的提示和技巧。这本书的主要缺点是插图只有灰度。这在有关以前版本Windows的书籍中是可以的，但这次不是。Windows 8色彩非常丰富，但不幸的是，颜色值几乎完全一样，因此以灰度打印它们只会把所有东西都洗掉，你无法真正分辨出你在看什么。我知道彩色印刷(color printing)很贵，而且会增加这本书的价格，但我仍然希望威利(Wiley)至少能够为彩色印刷的中心部分提供服务。
涵盖开始屏幕(Start screen)的章节充满了有用的细节，并且清楚地解释了新用户需要了解的所有内容。读完之后，应该很容易找到你想要的，自定义屏幕以适合你自己的喜好，并了解内置应用程序的全部内容（大多数应用程序在本书后面的章节中有更完整的解释） . 它还解释了如何关闭Windows 8，这似乎是微软(Microsoft)（出于某种未知原因）尽其所能隐藏的一项功能。
在桌面上
在处理开始屏幕的介绍部分之后， (Start screen)Windows 8 for Dummies的其余大部分内容都处理桌面界面(Desktop interface)。尽管Desktop与以前的Windows版本类似，但仍有不少东西以不同的方式工作，本书详细介绍了如何开始以新的方式工作。有很多非常好的实用建议。例如，他们建议在桌面(Desktop)上为计算机(Computer)、用户(User)文件(Files)、网络(Network)、回收站(Recycle Bin)和控制面板添加图标(Control Panel)，因此您无需返回“开始”屏幕(Start screen)即可访问。还有一个关于自定义任务栏的精彩部分，其中包含常识性说明，可使其更易于使用。以前使用过Windows(Windows)的任何人都会熟悉大部分桌面信息(Desktop information)，但应该需要阅读有关将数据刻录到 CD 和DVD的部分。(DVDs)它对我所见过的各种类型的媒体及其工作方式进行了最清晰的解释之一。SD卡和闪存驱动器的解释也是如此。还有一个很好的部分解释了SkyDrive，这是很多人之前没有经验的。
整理应用程序和程序
我认为人们在Windows 8中可能难以习惯的一件事是“应用程序”与“应用程序”与“程序”的新术语。我们大多数人都习惯于将我们认为的计算机上的程序和应用程序以及手机上的应用程序看成是什么。Windows 8有应用程序和应用程序，尽管我怀疑我们中的许多人在习惯新术语时会继续将它们视为程序。Windows 8 for Dummies解释了如何查找和启动您正在寻找的内容，尤其是在经常拥挤的“开始”屏幕上(Start screen)，以及如何打开和管理文档。即使你认为你知道这些东西，这部分也可能会让人大开眼界(eye opener)。它'(Windows 8)做事完全不同，Windows 8提供了比我们以前更多和不同的选择，并且拥有清晰的说明将在学习期间节省很多挫败感。由于Windows 8还包括在Windows 应用商店(Windows Store)中查找和购买应用程序的功能，这是许多人只在手机和Macintosh电脑上遇到过的，因此购物说明肯定会很有用。不幸的是，这是书中灰度插图真正落伍的另一个地方。
承认在Windows 8中忘记跟踪要容易得多（例如，无论是无法找到您刚刚使用的应用程序，还是无法找到您想要的文件或程序）有一整章致力于寻找丢失(Finding the Lost)的人，这对几乎每个人都非常有用。到目前为止，我还没有在我读过的其他书籍中看到这种信息聚集在一个地方，这是一个绝妙的主意。有些部分处理任何人在使用任何版本的 Windows 时都会遇到的相同类型的问题——学习如何处理媒体文件、设置网络和使用Internet Explorer——重点关注Windows 8的新功能，并解释它们与人们可能习惯的功能有何相似或不同之处。
帮助，是的，任何人
Windows 8 for Dummies真正的亮点在于本书标题为“Help!在这里，读者将了解作者所说的“Window 8 中的新魔法修复”("New Magic Fixes in Window 8")以及大量奇怪错误消息的含义（以及当您看到它们时该怎么做）。我真的很喜欢阅读本节，并从中学到了很多东西。我想几乎其他人也会。本节还详细介绍了将您的数据从旧计算机迁移到新的Windows 8计算机，并解释了如何使用Windows 8的内置帮助系统(built-in help system)或查找在此过程中可能遇到的其他问题获得帮助。微软网站(Microsoft web)上的答案地点。谁能抗拒最后一章题为“你会讨厌 Windows 8 的十件事（以及如何修复它们）”？("Ten Things You'll Hate about Windows 8 (and How to Fix Them)?")这是作者严肃态度的另一个很好的例子，它为我迄今为止看到的常见烦恼提供了一些最有用的解决方法。
那么，我怎么想的？
Windows 8 for Dummies应该是一本For Dummies书。它是由一位不畏缩表达自己观点的作者所写的。它清晰而足够详细地解释了一切，而不是玛丽女王(Queen Mary)那么大的书。作者清楚地知道阅读这本书的人绝对不是傻瓜，他不会对任何人说话或吝啬(anyone or skimp)为任何级别的计算机专业知识(computer expertise)设计的信息，假设他的读者都不需要它。我发现阅读起来令人耳目一新，我真的很喜欢其中的信息，这些信息我在其他书籍的一个空间中都没有见过。傻瓜(For Dummies)书籍通常使用灰度屏幕截图进行说明，这对于Windows 8(Windows 8)来说不是一件好事。插图并不总是容易辨认，这也不是作者的错——只是Window 8中的颜色非常相似，以至于当它们全部显示在灰色的影子。不过，这是本书唯一真正的问题，如果您在阅读本书时查看自己的Windows 8安装，您应该能够弄清楚发生了什么。
判决
Windows 8 for Dummies是赢家。对于几乎每个人来说，它都应该是一个极好的资源，并且应该解释几乎所有必要的东西，以便对这个新操作系统(operating system)充满信心。它并非旨在成为一个功能齐全、任何人都想知道的指南（为此，我仍然推荐Windows 8 Step By Step），但它应该让几乎任何人都能快速、轻松地启动和运行.
Book Review - Windows 8 for Dummies, by Andy Rathbone
Did you get a new Windows 8 computer this past holiday season? Did it come with instructions that answered your questions about this radіcally redesigned operating system, аnd explained evеrything to yоur satisfaction? Or will you need a little more information before you feel at ease? There are plentу of Windows 8 how-to books out there thesе dаyѕ, аnd some are clearly bеtter than otherѕ. I've reviewed both ends of the spectrυm in recent months. Is Windows 8 for Dummies the kind of book that will explain everything and get nearly everyone up and running smoothly? Let's take a look at it and find out.
Asking the Critical Questions
Windows 8 for Dummies caught my attention immediately by asking some of the most important questions of all, starting with "What is Windows 8, and Why are You Using It?" Like many recent books, this one is based on the premise that the reader has a computer with Windows 8 already installed (there are no instructions for upgrading, although there are instructions for transferring your information from an old computer to a new one). Keeping this in mind, the second most important question the book asks is "Should I Bother Switching to Windows 8?" Surprisingly, the author's answer to that second question is no, stick with what you already have—acknowledging Windows 8's steep learning curve and the inescapable fact that it's designed to work best with touchscreens. Whoa! This kind of straight talk in a how-to book is downright unprecedented. However, to no one's surprise, the book then goes merrily on its way explaining how Windows 8 works. It would have been a very short book otherwise. 🙂
Step by Step
Windows 8 for Dummies starts with one simple premise: most people who are new to Windows 8 in this time frame will not be using a touchscreen computer. The Start screen is optimized for use by touch, and not as friendly to mouse-and-keyboard users as it could be. So, the idea is to help people who are using Windows 8 on a non-touchscreen computer work better, faster, and more productively even though they may have to get past the Start screen to do it. To me, this makes perfect sense. Starting with the Lock screen and signing in, the book moves briskly along to explain user accounts and Microsoft accounts, both of which are essential for smooth Windows 8 operation. There's a sidebar that fills up most of a page explaining what a first-time Windows 8 user who's accustomed to previous versions of Windows will need to know immediately, and containing some very vital tips and tricks. The major downside to this book is that the illustrations are grayscale only. This was OK in books about previous versions of Windows, but not this time around. Windows 8 is very colorful, but unfortunately the color values are pretty much the same across the board, so printing them in grayscale just washes everything out and you can't really tell what you're looking at. I know color printing is expensive and would have added to the price of the book, but I still wish Wiley had at least sprung for a center section printed in color.
The chapter that covers the Start screen is full of useful details and everything a new user would need to know is explained clearly. After reading this, it should be easy to find whatever you want, customize the screen to suit your own preferences, and understand what the built-in apps are all about (most of the apps have more complete explanations in chapters later in the book). It also explains how to shutdown Windows 8, which seems to be the one function Microsoft (for some unknown reason) did its level best to hide.
On to the Desktop
After the introductory section that deals with the Start screen, much of the rest of Windows 8 for Dummies deals with the Desktop interface. Although the Desktop is similar to previous versions of Windows, there are quite a few things that don't work the same way, and the book goes into satisfying detail about how to start working the new way. There are a lot of really good, practical suggestions. For example, they suggest adding icons on the Desktop for Computer, User's Files, Network, Recycle Bin, and Control Panel, so you won't have to go back to the Start screen to get access. There's also a great section on customizing the taskbar, with common-sense instructions for making it much easier to work with. Much of the Desktop information will be familiar to anyone who's used Windows before, but the section on burning data to CDs and DVDs should be required reading. It's got one of the clearest explanations of the various types of media and how they work that I've seen. The same goes for the explanations of SD cards and flash drives. And there's an excellent section that explains SkyDrive, which is something many people won't have prior experience with.
Sorting out Apps and Programs
I think one of the things people might have a little trouble getting used to in Windows 8 is the new terminology of "apps" versus "applications" versus "programs." Most of us are used to seeing what we think of as programs and applications on our computers, and apps on our phones. Windows 8 has apps and applications, even though I suspect many of us will continue to think of them as programs while we get used to the new terminology. Windows 8 for Dummies explains how to find and launch what you're looking for, especially on the often-crowded Start screen, and how to open and manage documents. Even if you think you know that stuff, this section might well be an eye opener. It's not that Windows 8 does things radically differently, it's that Windows 8 provides more and different choices than we've had before, and having good clear instructions will save a lot of frustration during the learning period. Since Windows 8 also includes the ability to find and buy apps in the Windows Store, something many people have only encountered on phones and Macintosh computers, the instructions for shopping will definitely be useful. This is another place where the grayscale illustrations in the book really fall down on the job, unfortunately.
Acknowledging that it's a lot easier to lose track of things in Windows 8 (whether it's not being able to find an app you were just using, or not being able to find the files or programs you want, for example) there is an entire chapter devoted to Finding the Lost that will be extremely useful to just about everyone. I hadn't seen this kind of information gathered together in one place in the other books I've read so far, and it's an excellent idea. There are sections that deal with the same kinds of issues anyone faces with any version of Windows—learning how to deal with media files, set up a network, and use Internet explorer—that spotlight Windows 8's new features and explain how they're similar to or different from what people might be accustomed to.
Help, Yes, Just Anybody
Where Windows 8 for Dummies really shines is in the section of the book titled Help! Here the reader will find out about what the author refers to as "New Magic Fixes in Window 8" and the meaning of a whole raft of strange error messages (and what to do when you see them). I really enjoyed reading this section and I learned a lot from it. I think just about everyone else will, too. This section also covers moving your data from an old computer to your new Windows 8 computer in satisfying detail, and explains how to get help for other problems you might encounter along the way, using Windows 8's built-in help system or finding the answers on the Microsoft web site. And who could resist a final chapter titled "Ten Things You'll Hate about Windows 8 (and How to Fix Them)?" It's another good example of the author's no-nonsense attitude, and it provides some of the most useful workarounds for common annoyances I've seen so far.
So, what did I think?
Windows 8 for Dummies is what a For Dummies book should be. It's engagingly written by an author who doesn't shrink from expressing his opinions. It explains everything clearly and in enough detail, without being a book the size of the Queen Mary. The author clearly understood that the people reading the book are definitely not dummies, and he doesn't talk down to anyone or skimp over information designed for any level of computer expertise on the assumption that none of his readers will need it. I found it refreshing to read and I really liked the information that's in it that I haven't seen collected all in one space in other books. For Dummies books are usually illustrated with grayscale screenshots and this is not a good thing when it comes to Windows 8. The illustrations are not always easy to decipher, which is not the fault either of the author—it's just that the colors in Window 8 are so much alike that it's hard to pick out what you're looking at when they're all shown in shades of grey. This is the only real problem with the book, though, and if you're looking at your own Windows 8 installation as you follow along with the book you should be able to figure out what's going on.
Verdict
Windows 8 for Dummies is a winner. It should be an excellent resource for just about everyone and should explain nearly everything necessary to feel confident with this new operating system. It is not designed to be a full-featured, everything-anyone-ever-wanted-to-know guide (for that, I would still recommend Windows 8 Step By Step) but it should get just about anyone up and running quickly and painlessly.
