Windows 2000 SecretsÂ

Publishers of computer books love to boast about the secrets their books contain. The only thing they like better is to tout the number of tips and time-saving shortcuts their authors share. All too often, the secrets and tips are obvious and semi-obvious things that almost anyone could figure out through experimentation and a scan of the manufacturer's manual. In contrast to a lot of its shelf-mates, the title of Windows 2000 Secrets is not misleading. This book really does contain a lot of information about generally undocumented and honestly helpful aspects of Windows 2000 Professional. In addition to a good deal of straight documentation of surface features, you'll find explanations of many of Windows' back doors, secret passageways, and false bookcases.

A typical section explains how to convert a FAT or FAT32 file system to NTFS--that's the sort of thing you'd find in any Windows 2000 book. However, the authors of this book call the reader's attention to a little-known switch (which you can invoke when running the conversion program) that resolves many filename problems. Other secrets include using the Generic/Text printer driver to convert Web pages to plain text, editing dial-up connection settings manually, and even using a secret feature to win at Minesweeper every time. Unsupported tools, such as TweakUI, get coverage too, and the book's full text appears on the companion CD-ROM to speed searches. --David Wall

Topics covered: Windows 2000 Professional for power users. Covers all areas of the operating system, including the user interface, file management tools, users, Internet connectivity via modems, and basic local area networking.