Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Leopard Edition: Leopard Edition

by David Pogue

Is Windows giving you pause? Ready to make the leap to the Mac instead? There has never been a better time to switch from Windows to Mac, and this incomparable guide will help you make a smooth transition. New York Times columnist and Missing Manuals creator David Pogue gets you past three challenges: transferring your stuff, assembling Mac programs so you can do what you did with Windows, and learning your way around Mac OS X. Why is this such a good time to switch? Upgrading from one version of Windows to another used to be simple. But now there's Windows Vista, a veritable resource hog that forces you to relearn everything. Learning a Mac is not a piece of cake, but once you do, the rewards are oh-so-much better. No viruses, worms or spyware. No questionable firewalls, inefficient permissions, or other strange features. Just a beautiful machine with a thoroughly reliable system. And if you're still using Windows XP, we've got you covered, too. If you're ready to take on Mac OS X Leopard, the latest edition of this bestselling guide tells you everything you need to know: Transferring your stuff -- Moving photos, MP3s, and Microsoft Office documents is the easy part. This book gets you through the tricky things: extracting your email, address book, calendar, Web bookmarks, buddy list, desktop pictures, and MP3 files.Re-creating your software suite -- Big-name programs (Word, Photoshop, Firefox, Dreamweaver, and so on) are available in both Mac and Windows versions, but hundreds of other programs are available only for Windows. This guide identifies the Mac equivalents and explains how to move your data to them.Learning Leopard -- Once you've moved into the Mac, a final task awaits: Learning your way around. Fortunately, you're in good hands with the author of Mac OS X: The Missing Manual, the #1 bestselling guide to the Macintosh. Moving from Windows to a Mac successfully and painlessly is the one thing Apple does not deliver. Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Leopard Edition is your ticket to a new computing experience.

Genres: Reference

608 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

David Pogue, Yale '85, is the weekly personal-technology columnist for the New York Times and an Emmy award-winning tech correspondent for CBS News. His funny tech videos appear weekly on CNBC. And with 3 million books in print, he is also one of the world's bestselling how- to authors. He wrote or co-wrote seven books in the "For Dummies" series (including Macs, Magic, Opera, and Classical Music). In 1999, he launched his own series of amusing, practical, and user-friendly computer books called Missing Manuals, which now includes 100 titles.

David and his wife, Jennifer Pogue, MD, live in Connecticut with their three young children.

Reviews

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was given this book as a gift months before I ever purchased a Mac, but based on what I read on blogs and other websites, I thought that information beforehand would make the switch to a Mac easier for one who used a PC for all of her life. I was right. Hints, diagrams, tips and the way Pogue explains the differences between the 2 systems, really assisted in making the transition smooth. I read a few other Leopard/Mac manuals, but the switcher's version is much easier for a newbie. Would recommend this for anyone comfortable in a PC environment wanting to change to the Mac.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I ordered my new Mac, I ordered this book. Somehow I thought I would need help understanding the Mac. Good God it is so intuitive, and everything is so much easier to do than on a PC. I allowed a half day to set up the machine, network, etc. - 15 minutes later, I hadn't had to read anything and EVERYThing WORKED.

David Pogue is a real Mac God and if I ever need a book on something Mac, I'd go for his stuff in a flash.

[Scotto · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a new Mac user who ditched his old Dell because I feel Microsoft has lost their "mojo" and is only good at predatory marketing, not coding.
so far I love my iMac and this book is very helpful is before bi-lingual (I still have to use XP at work and told them I'd quit before using Vista. Thank goodness I have the power at my owrkplace to spec new computers and we'll use XP for as long as we can can.

[John Hudson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Handy to have around. I already know Macs and Windowses pretty well, but since I bounce between both of them rather a lot, this is helpful. Would be VERY helpful to someone who doesn't really know a Mac. A peeve I have with this genre: Too much cutesy, jokey writing, and gee-whiz-aw-shucks-how-cool-is-that? stuff. Can is and save some ink and trees.

[Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must have for Windows users who've recently purchased a Mac.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I didn't read this cover to cover, the parts I've read have been very helpful. It is now being relegated to reference book status.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

A computer book that doesn't put me to sleep? Nice.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has really great info for a new Mac owner like me. I reach for it whenever I'm not sure how to "translate" something from PC to Mac.

[Tony Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Mac OS X reference book

[McNichol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Also bought the digital edition for $5.00

[Lowell Herr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another useful reference manual for Mac users.