长期以来，我一直是How-To Geek网站的粉丝。他们有大量有趣的文章，由Internet上一些最活跃和消息灵通的作家创作（当然，在(Internet)7 Tutorials的工作人员旁边）。因此，我对 Windows 8 How-To Geek Guide(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)抱有很高的期望是很自然的。这本书是否达到了这些期望？让我们(Let)来了解一下。
注意：(NOTE:) Windows 8 How-To Geek Guide(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)仅提供Kindle 格式(Kindle format)。他们正在研究其他格式的出版物，但目前这是唯一的选择。如果您没有Kindle（我没有），可以在浏览器、PC 或 Mac(PC or Mac)以及多种智能手机和平板电脑上阅读免费的Kindle 应用程序。(Kindle apps)您可以在此处找到相关信息：下载免费的 Kindle 阅读应用程序(Download Free Kindle Reading Apps)。另请注意，How-To Geek网站说这本书是免费的DRM，但显然不是，因为您被锁定在Amazon的平台上。
欢迎阅读Windows 8极客指南(How-To Geek Guide)
很难准确地说出这本书有多少页，因为读者可以根据自己的喜好重新调整大小，但可以肯定地说它很长。亚马逊(Amazon)称它有 961 页长。而且，就像我几天前评论的Windows 8 Step By Step一样，它是一本充满实质内容的书，而不是一本充满绒毛的书。(Step)它与How-To Geek(How-To Geek) 网站(web site)上的文章一样写得很好，而且作者清楚地了解 Windows 8 的内部和外部。
不幸的是，他们似乎没有投资校对员，因为拼写中的小错误分散在各处——拼写检查员(spell checker)不会注意到，但人工校对员会注意到。
介绍和解释
本书从对Windows 8(Windows 8)的常识性解释以及这种彻底重新设计背后的哲学开始。尽管作者承认Windows 8似乎是为未来平板电脑风格(tablet style)设备更为普遍而创建的，但这并不意味着它们会贬低仍在使用标准输入设备的人。事实上，本书的整体重点似乎更倾向于键盘和鼠标而不是触摸屏，我认为这适合当今使用计算机的方式。这本书似乎还假设读者将从装有Windows 8的计算机开始(Windows 8)已经安装了，所以安装它的说明再一次放在书的后面。介绍性章节通过对Windows 8的总体概述快速移动，并向读者保证，本章中简要介绍的主题将在本书后面更详细地描述（它们确实如此）。这应该有助于新来者充满信心地快速进入这个新界面。与大多数计算机书籍一样，Windows 8(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)操作指南极客指南旨在以任何顺序阅读（Kindle 格式(Kindle format)使搜索任何特定主题变得容易）但Windows 8新手(Windows 8)几乎肯定会发现从头开始阅读会更好。在介绍之后，还有关于个性化Windows 8的详尽且编写良好的章节。作为对任何新版本Windows(Windows)的首要任务是更改它以适应我喜欢的工作方式和我喜欢看到的东西的人，我真的很欣赏这种方法。Windows 8的“开始(Start)”屏幕和桌面(Desktop)都提供了许多个性化选项，Windows 8 操作指南极客将(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)引导读者了解所有这些选项。看完这些章节，任何人都应该不难拥有梦想的画面。
然而，我很惊讶地看到控制您的计算机的设置(Controlling Your Computer's Settings)降级到第 9 章(Chapter 9)。在书的开头不是更合适吗？本章包含我个人希望立即掌握的大量信息。
来自他们的应用程序，适合您的应用程序
Windows 应用商店(Windows Store)的讨论从用户可以添加的内容开始。我会从讨论内置应用程序开始，因为我认为大多数新用户在继续从商店添加更多应用程序之前都希望熟悉包中的内容。作者认为，一些内置应用程序有点过于基础，许多读者最终会用商店(Store)中更好的应用程序替换它们——根据我的经验，这很可能是事情的发展方向。但我仍然认为应该首先讨论内置应用程序。
每个内置应用程序（相机、音乐、照片、视频、必应、日历、财务、邮件、地图、消息、人物、SkyDrive、阅读器、游戏、新闻、体育、旅行((Camera, Music, Photos, Video, Bing, Calendar, Finance, Mail, Maps, Messaging, People, SkyDrive, Reader, Games, News, Sports, Travel,)和天气(Weather)）都有详细描述，带有大量插图，因此读者可以看到每个应用程序的外观以及如何使用它。这是本书的许多亮点之一。这些应用程序旨在易于使用，但仍然有说明的说明应该会使它们更加容易。
浏览新方式，与否
有经验的用户在看到(Experienced)Internet Explorer 10时会大吃一惊。Windows 8 包括桌面(Desktop)版和从“开始(Start)”屏幕运行的全屏版。没错，同一操作系统中同一浏览器的两个版本——一个针对keyboard/mouse computer用户，一个针对平板电脑/触摸屏用户。这种双重人格一开始肯定会让人感到困惑，因为这两个版本的浏览器的工作(browser work)方式几乎完全不同。桌面(Desktop)版本被设置为默认浏览器(default browser)，这应该可以简化过渡。有一个很好的部分描述了如何更改默认浏览器(default browser)，适用于所有事物或仅适用于某些事物，我认为许多有经验的用户会喜欢的。与本书的其余部分一样，有很多插图（我想任何读过我评论的人都知道我是多么喜欢好的插图）。🙂 我也是个性化的忠实拥护者，Windows 8 How-To Geek Guide(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)详细解释了如何自定义Internet Explorer 10的两个版本，因此几乎每个人都应该拥有一个在按照说明操作后外观和工作完美的浏览器。固定站点、保护个人信息安全(information safe)、InPrivate 浏览(InPrivate Browsing)以及避免网络钓鱼和恶意软件(phishing and malware)的说明应该是必读的。
搜索、查找和组织
Windows 8 How-To Geek Guide(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)有一个关于使用搜索(Search)的精彩章节，解释了如何查找应用程序、设置和文件，以及如何使用更高级的搜索技术来确保您获得所需的结果。人们可能不认识“布尔运算符”这个术语，但是一旦他们完成了本节，他们就会完全理解它。还有一个很好的部分处理索引(Index)，这也将帮助人们弄清楚如何通过将索引调整为他们真正想要搜索的数据来提高搜索效率。还详细解释了使用文件资源管理器(File Explorer)（Windows 8 版本的Windows 资源管理器(Windows Explorer)）组织和重新组织文件和数据的多种方式) 这应该为易用性提供坚实的基础。功能区界面(ribbon interface)的插图特别好。
建立连接，确保它们的安全
关于有线和无线连接的章节几乎是任何人都希望的那样完整。Windows 8使曾经令人沮丧的连接到无线网络(wireless network)的过程几乎万无一失，但仍有细微差别有待探索，Windows 8 操作指南极客指南将带领(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 takes)读者了解它们。这本书谈到了立即连接到隐藏的网络，这让我感到惊讶。它并没有减损本书的内容，但也许非隐藏网络应该具有更高的优先级。读者将了解现有的网络连接以及安装和配置新的网络适配器(network adapter)。章节名为“保护您的系统免受灾难”("Protecting Your System From Disaster")非常详细地涵盖了安全性。从网络章节(networking chapter)链接到该章节将是一个很好的补充。在这里可以找到有关Windows Defender、Windows SmartScreen和Windows 防火墙(Windows Firewall)的讨论，我必须说有关Windows 防火墙(Windows Firewall)的部分是我所见过的最全面的部分之一。还有一个关于备份、系统还原(System Restore)和新的文件历史记录(File History)的很好的讨论，这是Windows 8的杰出功能之一。过去，想要对重要文件进行持续备份的人必须购买第三方软件才能做到这一点。不再。任何需要确保工作安全的人都会欣喜若狂地看到文件历史记录(File History)在行动。Windows 8 How-To Geek Guide(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)将帮助读者立即启动并运行它。
但是等等，还有更多
本书的最后一章涵盖了一些更高级的主题，例如性能调整(performance tuning)、网络调整(network tweaking)、启动和恢复工具(startup and recovery tools)，以及高级系统和驱动器管理工具。有经验的用户和新手都应该觉得本章易于阅读和理解。最后一章“更有效地使用 Windows 8 的 30 条技巧”("30 Tips for Using Windows 8 More Effectively,")几乎就值这本书的价格。它以本书前面部分的信息为基础，向读者展示了如何真正让 Windows 8 大放异彩。
总结一下
那么我对 Windows 8 极客指南指南(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)有何看法？优点：(Pros:)
- 清楚地了解他们的东西的人写的清晰的解释引人入胜。
- 一路上的每一步都有大量的插图。
- 这本书占用了尽可能多的篇幅来彻底解释所有内容。
- 价格比许多其他科技书籍要合理得多，这应该会吸引更广泛的读者。
缺点：(Cons:)
- 仅以Kindle 格式(Kindle format)提供，有些人可能会觉得限制性太强。对于某些人来说，不得不使用Kindle 应用程序(Kindle app)阅读这本书可能会破坏交易。
- 不幸的是，文本充满了校对和格式错误(proofreading and formatting errors)，这表明令人遗憾的是缺乏编辑监督(editorial oversight)（见下面的例子）。
判决
即使有我上面提到的缺陷，Windows 8 How-To Geek Guide 对(The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8)几乎每个人来说都应该是一个有价值的指南。清楚地解释了Windows 8(Windows 8)的基本要素，并且作者了解对于初学者和更有经验的用户来说什么是重要的。9.95美元的价格(USD price)使其物美价廉，免费的Kindle 应用程序(Kindle app)让几乎所有人都可以使用它。买这本书你不会错的。
Book Review - The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8
I have been a fan of the How-To Geek website for a long time. They've got a great mix of interesting articles, created by some of the liveliest and best-informed writers on the Internet (next to the crew from 7 Tutorials, of course). So it was only natural that I had high expectations for The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8. Did the book live up to those expectations? Let's find out.
NOTE: The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 is only available in the Kindle format. They are investigating publication in other formats, but for now this is the only choice. If you don't have a Kindle (I don't) there are free Kindle apps available for reading in a browser, on a PC or Mac, as well as for several varieties of smartphones and tablets. You can find out about those here: Download Free Kindle Reading Apps. Also note that the How-To Geek web site says that the book is DRM free, but apparently it isn't, in the sense that you are locked in Amazon's platform.
Welcome to The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8
It's hard to tell exactly how many pages are in the book, because readers can re-size it to suit their own preferences, but it's safe to say it's a long one. Amazon says it is 961 pages long. And, like Windows 8 Step By Step which I reviewed a few days ago, it's a book full of substance rather than a book full of fluff. It's as well written as the articles on the How-To Geek web site, and the authors clearly know Windows 8 inside and out.
Unfortunately, it appears that they didn't invest in a proofreader, because there are small errors in spelling scattered throughout—the kinds of things that a spell checker wouldn't notice, but a human proofreader would.
An introduction and an explanation
The book starts off with a common-sense explanation of Windows 8, and the philosophy behind this radical redesign. Although the authors acknowledge that Windows 8 appears to be created for a future where tablet style devices are much more common, that does not mean they shortchange the people who are still using standard input devices. In fact, the overall focus of the book seems to be a bit more toward keyboard-and-mouse than touchscreen, which I think is appropriate for the way computers are used today. The book also seems to assume that the reader will be starting with a computer with Windows 8 already installed, so the instructions for installing it are once again relegated to the back of the book. The introductory chapter moves briskly through a general overview of Windows 8, and assures the reader that the topics that are briefly covered in this chapter will be described in much more detail later on in the book (and they are). This should help the newcomer move quickly into this new interface with confidence. Like most computer books, The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 is designed to be read in any order (and the Kindle format makes searching for any specific topic easy) but newcomers to Windows 8 will almost certainly find it better to read straight through from the beginning. After the introduction, there are thorough and well-written chapters on personalizing Windows 8. As someone whose first priority with any new version of Windows is to change it to suit the ways I like to work and the things I like to see, I really appreciated this approach. Windows 8's Start screen and Desktop both offer a lot of options for personalization, and The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 walks the reader through them all. It shouldn't be difficult for anyone to have the screen of their dreams after reading these chapters.
I was surprised, however, to see Controlling Your Computer's Settings relegated to Chapter 9. Would that not be more appropriate at the beginning of the book? The chapter contains a wealth of information that I personally would rather have on hand immediately.
Apps from them, apps for you
The discussion of the Windows Store starts with those that can be added on by the user. I would have begun by discussing the built-in apps, because I think most new users will want to be familiar with what comes in the package before they move on to adding more apps from the store. The authors believe that some of the built-in apps are a little too basic, and that many readers will eventually replace them with better apps from the Store—which in my experience is very likely the way things will go. But I still think the discussion of the built-in apps should have come first.
Each of the built-in apps (Camera, Music, Photos, Video, Bing, Calendar, Finance, Mail, Maps, Messaging, People, SkyDrive, Reader, Games, News, Sports, Travel, and Weather) is described in detail, with plenty of illustrations so the reader can see what each app looks like and how to work it. This was one of many high points in the book. The apps are designed to be easy to use, but still, having illustrated instructions to look at should make them even easier.
Browsing the new way, or not
Experienced users will get quite a surprise when they see Internet Explorer 10. Windows 8 includes both a Desktop version and a full-screen version to be run from the Start screen. That's right, two versions of the same browser in the same operating system—one aimed at keyboard/mouse computer users and one aimed at tablet/touchscreen users. This kind of dual personality is bound to be confusing at first, the more so because the two versions of the browser work almost completely differently. The Desktop version is set as the default browser, which should ease the transition. There's a good section describing how to change the default browser, either for all things or only for certain things, which I think many experienced users will appreciate. As with the rest of the book, there are plenty of illustrations (I think anyone who's read any of my reviews already knows how much I love good illustrations). 🙂 I am also a big fan of personalization, and The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 explains in detail how to customize both versions of Internet Explorer 10, so nearly everyone should have a browser that looks and works perfectly after following the instructions. The explanations of pinning sites, keeping one's personal information safe, InPrivate Browsing and avoiding phishing and malware should be required reading.
Searching, finding, and organizing
The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 has an excellent chapter on using Search, explaining how to find apps, settings, and files, and how to use more advanced search techniques to make sure you get exactly the results you want. People may not recognize the term "Boolean Operators" going in, but they'll understand it completely once they're finished with this section. There's also an excellent section that deals with the Index, which will also help people figure out how to make their searches more efficient by adjusting the Index to the data they really want to search. There's also a thorough explanation of the many ways one can organize and re-organize files and data with File Explorer (the Windows 8 version of Windows Explorer) which should provide a solid foundation for ease of use. The illustrations of the ribbon interface were particularly good.
Making the connections, keeping them safe
The chapter on wired and wireless connections was as complete as nearly anyone could wish. Windows 8 has made the once-frustrating process of connecting to a wireless network almost foolproof, but there are still nuances to be explored and The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 takes the reader through them. The book talks about connecting to hidden networks right off the bat, which I found surprising. It didn't detract from the book, but perhaps non-hidden networks should have had higher priority. The reader is walked through existing network connections and also through installing and configuring a new network adapter. The chapter called "Protecting Your System From Disaster" covers security in great detail. A link to that chapter from the networking chapter would have been a good addition. This is where the discussion of Windows Defender, Windows SmartScreen, and Windows Firewall is found, and I must say that the section on Windows Firewall is one of the most comprehensive I've yet seen. There's also a good discussion of backups, System Restore, and the new File History, which is one of Windows 8's outstanding features. It used to be that people who wanted to make ongoing backups of crucial files had to buy third-party software to do it. Not any longer. Anyone who needs to make sure their work is safe will be overjoyed to see File History in action. The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 will help the reader have that up and running in no time.
But wait, there's more
The book concludes with a chapter that covers several more advanced topics, such as performance tuning, network tweaking, startup and recovery tools, and advanced system and drive management tools. Both experienced users and newcomers should find this chapter easy to read and easy to understand. The final chapter, "30 Tips for Using Windows 8 More Effectively," is almost worth the price of the book by itself. It builds on the information in the earlier parts of the book and shows the reader how to really make Windows 8 shine.
Summing it up
So what did I think about The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8? Pros:
- Clear explanations engagingly written by people who clearly know their stuff.
- Plenty of illustrations for every step along the way.
- The book takes as much space as necessary to explain everything thoroughly.
- The price is a lot more reasonable than those of many other tech books, which should make it appealing to a much wider audience.
Cons:
- Available only in Kindle format, which some people may find too restrictive. Having to use the Kindle app to read the book may be a dealbreaker for some people.
- The text is unfortunately riddled with proofreading and formatting errors which show a regrettable lack of editorial oversight (see example below).
Verdict
Even with the flaws I've mentioned above, The How-To Geek Guide to Windows 8 should be a valuable guide for just about everyone. The essentials of Windows 8 are clearly explained and the authors understand what's important for beginners and more experienced users. The $9.95 USD price makes it a bargain, and the free Kindle app makes it available to just about everyone. You can't go wrong buying this book.
