Overview
* With a generous dash of humor and fun, bestselling author Dan Gookin shows people how to select the right machine and tackle typical laptop challenges* Laptop sales recently surpassed those of desktop machines-a trend that seems likely to continue
* A must for laptop newbies as well as road warriors who need to get the most out of their machines
* Covers synchronizing with the desktop, accessing the desktop remotely, coordinating e-mail pickup between two machines, wireless networking, managing power, and securing a laptop
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
The Barnes & Noble ReviewBuying a notebook PC? Get the right one. Already own one? Make the most of it. Dan Gookin’s Laptops for Dummies shows you how -- and you’ll have more than a little fun along the way.
Yup, this is the Dan Gookin whose legendary DOS for Dummies proved that computer books could be fun, all those years ago. But, more important, this book has the information you need to live happily ever after with your notebook. For instance: how to sweet-talk your battery into lasting all the way through that movie. How to use that nifty wireless connection (or set one up, if it didn’t come built in).
It’s packed with tips: retrieving email from the road, computing in cafés, sending and receiving faxes; making presentations; fixing crazed keyboards; and much more. If you’ve also got a desktop, Gookin offers step-by-step advice for keeping both computers in sync: how to establish a physical connection (or maybe even use that infrared port); fill your Windows Briefcase; access your desktop remotely (Gookin doesn’t like WinXP’s Remote Desktop, but offers a better, safer alternative).
Especially important: Gookin’s detailed coverage of security. Yes, firewalls, anti-virus, anti-spyware, and so forth. But folks often overlook the obvious: notebooks are ridiculously easy to steal. So Gookin offers a full chapter on protecting yourself: marking and registering notebooks, password-protecting critical data, using locks and other physical safeguards. He even covers secret software that’ll tell your notebook to phone home and reveal its location first time it’s connected to the Internet after it’s stolen. Just one of the things you didn’t know your notebook could do! Bill Camarda, from the February 2005 Read Only