iLife '04: The Missing Manual

Rating:
Summary: First figure should be more prominent
Review: I have trouble believing the basic premise of the book. That Apple bundled together 5 very useful programs (iMovie, iPhoto, iTunes, iDVD and GarageBand) into something it calls iLife, and then released it with no hardcopy instructions! Granted, Apple is generally considered to be a very innovative company. Its products like these here are typically the most intuitive in the computer industry. But surely it is arrogant to omit a manual. If nothing else, it voluntarily cedes revenue that passes to the author of this book. An Apple shareholder might reasonably be upset.

You can read the book as a very natural continuation of Pogue's other successful books on the Mac. He shows how Apple put together a very coherent group of programs. Pogue demonstrates a higher level synergism, aptly summarised by the first figure in the book. It shows the 5 programs as vertices on a circle. Directed arcs are drawn between these vertices if data can be transferred in that direction between them.

This figure is so compelling and succinct that it should have gone on the cover. Or at least reproduced on the inside cover, so that you can easily and often refer to it, whilst going through the text. [Think of a chemistry book, with the periodic table on the inside cover.] It neatly encapsulates the entire reason for the book. Think about it. Without discussing the ability to transfer data between the programs, we really have 5 separate programs. The book would then cleave into 5 nonintersecting portions, each of which would be outweighed by other more comprehensive books devoted to each program. The figure and its elucidation give meaning and value to the book.



Rating:
Summary: Reasonably deep, meant for intermediates
Review: The book has reasonably in-depth coverage of the five iLife applications in iLife '04: GarageBand, iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie and iDVD. The content is not step-by-step for beginners but rather for people that understand the basics of Macintosh applications and have some experience with the applications. The text is well written and illustrations are used effectively. All of the applications, save iDVD, are covered thoroughly. But that's ok since IDVD gets short shrift in every manual.

For true beginners I would recommend buying the O'Reilly manual for the application that you are likely to use the most. For example, I think photographers will get a lot out of iPhoto 4: The Missing Manual. What's the difference? There is more exposition, which eases the learning curve, and there are more tips and tricks. But if you are a Macintosh user with a reasonable amount of experience who is looking for a book that covers all of the applications at a reasonable level, then this book should appeal to you.

For genuine beginners I would also recommend looking at Peachpit Press' "The Macintosh iLife '04".

Rating:
Summary: The book that should have been in the box.
Review: Under the general name of iLife, Apple includes five software packages that are oriented to your creative expression and entertainment. While the programs are nifty, the documentation that comes with them is somewhat less than outstanding. David Pogue, has created a series of books called "The Missing Manual." In this manual, he provides what is missing for the iLife software, the missing manuals.

The five software packages included in iLife include: iTunes, iMovie, iPhoto, iDVD, and GarageBand. Mr. Pogue highlights the newest features and improvements of iLife '04, covers the capabilities and limitations of each program within the suite, and delivers countless goodies not found anywhere else: undocumented tips, tricks, and secrets for getting the best performance out of every one of iLife's life-changing new applications.