When O’Reilly offered me the opportunity to review their new text Windows 7: Up and Running I was elated. Not because I wanted a copy (I already had an electronic copy) but because it gave me an excuse to read a little more deeply and critically and actually put my comments in writing. For those who may be new to tech publishing O’Reilly dominates the market. They publish several book series which consistently fill a range of needs and meet a very high standard in quality. So when I received Windows 7 by Wei-Meng Lee I expected the usual.
Fortunately, I wasn’t disappointed. Lee delivers a nice text which fits the series description well. The book is targeted to beginners who are “comfortable with installing and upgrading operating systems” and the series is designed to be “A quick, hands-on introduction”. Readers here shouldn’t expect significant depth or technical coverage but rather good, broad coverage.
Windows 7: Up and Running is brief at 177 pages (plus index) with ample screen shots. Lee does a pretty good job narrating the tour of new features given the space and depth constraints. One minor complaint is simply that the book does, at times, feel like catalog of features. This is particularly true through chapter 5 addressing the Essential Applications. However, given that each feature could have chapters and books written on it Lee and O’Reilly did well to remain brief for this series.
Which brings us to purpose. What use is such a brief overview? Windows 7: Up and Running is well suited to those individuals who have a strong grasp of XP, Vista, or other operating systems and simply need a quick tour to discover new features and differences. Administrators and more technically savvy folk could benefit from Lee’s overview keeping in mind that it is just an overview and was not intended to go into technical details. Lee’s book would be well suited to a short continuing education or similar course. When used as a course book be aware that the Up and Running series has no exercises or ancillary materials and would be well suited only to an overview rather than a hands-on approach. For a hands-on class an instructor might consider the Step by Step series from Microsoft Press.
High and low points in Lee’s work we few in either direction. Lee is well organized and fluid keeping the mood rather light in a text that could be painfully dry. At times Lee seems to be a little too much of a Microsoft cheerleader (but then he is a Microsoft MVP) such as his very positive spins on Microsoft’s bundled applications (p. 79). Yet elsewhere he provides helpful cautions such as IE8’s privacy concerns (pp. 121 and 127). Lee was diligent to note shortcomings in Microsoft’s offerings and provided good options for the reader to fill gaps as in the lack of an anti-virus tool (p. 76) or an ISO mounting app (p. 101). In the future it would be nice to see more than one option listed when referring to third-party applications.
In all, Lee’s Windows 7 is a good bargain in the overview category and at a price point of $24.99 (currently $16.49 on Amazon-ISBN: 978-0-596-80404-6). For more depth readers should consider William R. Stanek’s Windows 7: The Definitive Guide, another exceptional series from O’Reilly.
George J. Sawyer III is Technology Coach and CEO of SawyerTraining, Inc. [Disclaimer: O'Reilly Press provided me a copy of the book.]
The books mentioned above can be purchased here:
Windows 7: Up and Running: A Quick, Hands-On Introduction (Animal Guide)
Windows 7: The Definitive Guide: The Essential Resource for Professionals and Power Users
Windows 7 Step by Step (Step By Step (Microsoft))
