Windows XP Timesaving Techniques For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

You have to be suspicious of any book the promises to save you time. "Relative to what?" is the reasonable challenge. Too many books that promise time savings assume that you're oafing along, unaware of, say, the possibility of right-clicking, and assume they're doing you a favor by enlightening you to techniques that are well-known to almost everyone. Windows XP Timesaving Techniques for Dummies is not like that. It's carefully researched and well presented. Some of its tricks are of questionable utility--though it is cool to adjust the Windows Registry so your Minesweeper score puts you in a league with well-known Dustin Hoffman characters--but most of them really will enable you to use your Windows XP Professional computer more efficiently and productively.

Aware that many people who use Windows XP Professional are in organizational computing environments that allow only administrators to adjust certain properties, Woody Leonhard notes when this characteristic of Windows XP may hamper your ability to carry out his tricks. Otherwise, techniques usually consist of a series of steps to follow, along with a screen shot showing the effect where possible. Everything is clear and easy to follow, and fun in the Dummies tradition. There are about 70 tips in this book. Compare it with O'Reilly's Windows XP Hacks. --David Wall

Topics covered: How to make Windows XP Professional run better, and in closer accordance with your work style. Tips cover interface customization, power management, obscure shortcut tricks, multimedia, and automating the operation of system-optimization utilities. There's good coverage of the TweakUI interface customizer, too.