Rating: 
Summary: David Pogue can do no wrong!
Review: Although I have since switched to Mac OS X (aka OS 10), I actually used this book first. It was an invaluable tool in easing my transition from Windows user to Macintosh user. I would recommend all Mac users switch to OS X as soon as possible since it's a much more stable and reliable version, but if you have an older Macintosh then OS 9 is a fine Operating System. If you need help learning how to operate your Macintosh with OS 9 (OS = operating system - the graphic user interface that you see when you turn the Mac on) then you can do no better than this book. If you're completely new to computers you'll find this book immensely helpful as it holds your hand in the first few chapters and explains how to use the GUI (graphic user interface), the mouse, the keyboard and so on. If you're new to Macs it will also serve as a primer to get you up to speed very quickly on how to use the Macintosh and learn the Mac way of doing things. If you're someone who knows how to use Macs this book will also help in the later chapters by showing you how to become a "Power User". It will help increase your productivity, teach you all the great short-cuts and keyboard combinations and so on. All the books in the "Missing Manual" series are very easy to read, with detailed step by step instructions along with a fantastic index for simple cross-reference and nice pictures to further simplify the process of learning. Be sure to check out "Mac OS X: The Missing Manual" if you're looking for the best and easiest to read book on Apple's fantastic new Operating System. Unfortunately I'm limited to two thumbs because otherwise I'd be tempted to give this twenty thumbs way up!
Rating:
Summary: David Pogue can do no wrong!
Review: Although I have since switched to Mac OS X (aka OS 10), I actually used this book first. It was an invaluable tool in easing my transition from Windows user to Macintosh user. I would recommend all Mac users switch to OS X as soon as possible since it's a much more stable and reliable version, but if you have an older Macintosh then OS 9 is a fine Operating System. If you need help learning how to operate your Macintosh with OS 9 (OS = operating system - the graphic user interface that you see when you turn the Mac on) then you can do no better than this book. If you're completely new to computers you'll find this book immensely helpful as it holds your hand in the first few chapters and explains how to use the GUI (graphic user interface), the mouse, the keyboard and so on. If you're new to Macs it will also serve as a primer to get you up to speed very quickly on how to use the Macintosh and learn the Mac way of doing things. If you're someone who knows how to use Macs this book will also help in the later chapters by showing you how to become a "Power User". It will help increase your productivity, teach you all the great short-cuts and keyboard combinations and so on. All the books in the "Missing Manual" series are very easy to read, with detailed step by step instructions along with a fantastic index for simple cross-reference and nice pictures to further simplify the process of learning. Be sure to check out "Mac OS X: The Missing Manual" if you're looking for the best and easiest to read book on Apple's fantastic new Operating System. Unfortunately I'm limited to two thumbs because otherwise I'd be tempted to give this twenty thumbs way up!
Rating:
Summary: Particularly Worthwhile for Mac Newbies
Review: As a newcomer to the Mac scene (after 18 yrs in the PC world) I was stunned, and a bit miffed, to find virtually no documentation with my new G4. Apple supplied virtually no printed documentation (but has a really pretty box). The online HTML documentation in the Mac is thin and amateurishly presented. Wasn't the Mac supposed to be the human-friendly platform? Ugh. After overcoming my shock I was fortunate to find that David Pogue (and O'Reilly) had filled the void with this book. I learned more from skimming it in 15 mins. than I learned from simply twiddling with my new Mac in 2 wks. Anyone new to the Mac platform should just consider this handy, and relatively inexpensive, little book part of the price of their new Mac. Like Nike says, "Just do it".
Rating:
Summary: Old Mac dog learns many new tricks ...
Review: David Pogue masterfully explains a host of old secrets I never knew, as well as very nice new tricks introduced with Mac OS 9. If you can work a mouse and know what a cursor is, you can master everything in this book -- which quickly takes you from the basics to power-user status. Clear, concise, good-humored, and well written. CAUTION: If you have NEVER used a personal computer before, and are unclear about what a "cursor" is (or a click, or double-click, or dragging, or a pull-down menu, or what "selecting a file" means), you should read a "Visual Quickstart" guide to the Mac first. Pogue's book is not so basic that you can start from zero with it.
Rating:
Summary: Old Mac dog learns many new tricks ...
Review: David Pogue masterfully explains a host of old secrets I never knew, as well as very nice new tricks introduced with Mac OS 9. If you can work a mouse and know what a cursor is, you can master everything in this book -- which quickly takes you from the basics to power-user status. Clear, concise, good-humored, and well written. CAUTION: If you have NEVER used a personal computer before, and are unclear about what a "cursor" is (or a click, or double-click, or dragging, or a pull-down menu, or what "selecting a file" means), you should read a "Visual Quickstart" guide to the Mac first. Pogue's book is not so basic that you can start from zero with it.
Rating: 
Summary: Just Like the Title Says
Review: Goes just as far as a manual for OS9 should: assumes you've read the user guide that came with your computer, that you've used a computer before, but that you may or may not have Mac experience, and provides a clear, easy to follow survey of OS9's capabilities. Only a few subjects weren't handled to my satisfaction (FTP, for instance), and they're mostly things a real power web user would need. If you've got a new Mac with OS9, this book is a must-buy.
Rating:
Summary: Not Like Any Manual I've Ever Read
Review: Hunched over Mac OS 9 : The Missing Manual for 3 days, I laughed out loud when I closed the book. I had remembered what actual computer manuals used to look like in the Dark Ages of the mid-eighties when I had first attempted Microsoft Word. If memory serves, the book was horrendously thick (impossible to read comfortably), turgid as mud, and ultimately unhelpful. Manuals went the way of the dinosaur for a reason. Now comes this wonderful new series. In the OS 9 book, David Pogue lays out the organization of the program while simultaneously teaching navigational tips and tricks. ( He knows our brains actually do better when they multi-task.) His ability to combine methods and analysis actually makes the whole system easier to understand. Chapter 2 may be my favorite in the book in this regard because he not only describes the ways in which applications work in OS 9, but he fills the reader in on how to cope with memory management issues at the same time. At a time when 'novice' use takes us into the world of digital photography, complexities of Internet, and even the realm of film-editing, at some level, the user must understand that memory in a computer is not simply passive storage. Pogue makes this abstraction clear by defining terms carefully and not overloading the reader with technical jargon. As a somewhat long-term Mac user, I knew some details before this reading, but after it, I made adjustments on my computer that improved use and function visibly. Since finishing my first reading of the book, I've returned to it twice for references: once, to describe to a friend how to create a RAM disk, and once to see how I could disable keychain. I'm already planning to sit down again with the chapter on scripts and the one on file sharing. The good thing is, I know that the clear writing and the helpful illustrations will lead me to solutions and new ways of doing things. One quick example: in the book, Pogue reminded me of how to create a "screenshot," a feature I once played around with at a workshop but promptly forgot. This time, Pogue provided just the right fix on the feature to help me use it: I set up screenshots for each of my 24 zip drives, to show what each contains. (Labeling rarely helps because you take things off and put new ones on and who takes time to reach for a pen, but a new screenshot takes seconds and the process is actually fun). I now have a file at the top of my hard drive that lets me look into a zip before I dive for it. Finding files is no longer a giant nuisance; just a few keystrokes. Keystrokes are one of Pogue's fixations...and I'm beginning to see why. Throughout the book, he injects shortcuts and keystrokes that help access material quickly-enable efficiency. He's going to have to be VERY efficient. I have already purchased and read two other titles, but I'll want more when I've digested iMovie and AppleWorks. Keep those fingers moving at warp speed, Mr. Pogue. Let's make the next one on Web-Design...please!
Rating:
Summary: Mac OS 9: The Missing Manual
Review: I am extremely familiar with Windows & NT but not Macs. Last November I decided to buy a G4--and was very dismayed to find that virtually the only documentation I got with it was a flimsy small booklet. When I called Apple, the response was "Well it's online." Yes, the online help is outstanding but it doesn't do you much good in the event that the system won't boot up! (Fortunately I have not had that problem so far.) So I broke down and went out and I bought several OS 9 books that have given me alot of good info and helped me out, then last night at the bookstore I ran into this little gem and snapped it up. I by no means have finished it but what I've read is great--very matter of fact and helpful. I sure wish this book had come out when I first bought my G4 because it sure would have helped me in my efforts to learn to "think different"! I saw in the back of the book that Pogue will also bring out the same type book for Mac's upcoming OS X--and I'll be one of the first in line to get it.
Rating:
Summary: Mac OS 9: The Missing Manual
Review: I am extremely familiar with Windows & NT but not Macs. Last November I decided to buy a G4--and was very dismayed to find that virtually the only documentation I got with it was a flimsy small booklet. When I called Apple, the response was "Well it's online." Yes, the online help is outstanding but it doesn't do you much good in the event that the system won't boot up! (Fortunately I have not had that problem so far.) So I broke down and went out and I bought several OS 9 books that have given me alot of good info and helped me out, then last night at the bookstore I ran into this little gem and snapped it up. I by no means have finished it but what I've read is great--very matter of fact and helpful. I sure wish this book had come out when I first bought my G4 because it sure would have helped me in my efforts to learn to "think different"! I saw in the back of the book that Pogue will also bring out the same type book for Mac's upcoming OS X--and I'll be one of the first in line to get it.
Rating:
Summary: A great buy for Mac users, new or old
Review: I consider myself a Mac power user, having worked with Macs for ten years, and taking the time to look under the hood. Over the years, I never bought a single book describing the Mac System or OS - I always found that (in the old days) the doc was sufficient, or that I could learn enough from magazines and on the net. I bought this book more out of curiosity, and am extremely glad that I did. While I half-expected it to be a really basic presentation of the Mac OS 9, I was pleasantly surprised. Not only is it an excellent book for newcomers, but David Pogue presents all the tricks and shortcuts that you would be hard pressed to find in the help files. I learned so many useful things from this book, that I don't even regret the fact that the OS 9 doesn't come with a manual - David Pogue wrote a far better book than any manual Apple could write.
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