Windows XP Hacks
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Author: Preston Gralla
List Price: $24.95
Our Price: Click to see the latest and low price
ISBN: 0596005113
Publisher: O'Reilly & Associates (22 August, 2003)
Edition: Paperback
Sales Rank: 4,572
Average Customer Rating: 3.86 out of 5
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Customer ReviewsRating: 2 out of 5
Lots of errors
It seems like no one edited or tech edited this book. From the start, where he talks about putting 'huskies' (they are wolves) as his boot screen to the bootvis problem already discussed, to numerous other technical errors, this book is not up to snuff to the rest of the hacks books. I didn't even try half the registry hacks because if he can't get some very basic information right, am I certain I want to trust someone with more detailed, specific information? Very poorly edited, very poorly researched book, and not worth the price.
Rating: 2 out of 5
Advanced User Beware
Some hacks in this book are really basic:Hack 20: Making Windows XP look like Windows 2000 again.
Hack 23: PowerDesk Shareware
Hack 86: Info on two Graphical Shareware
Hack 98: Keyboard remapping shareware
Hack 99: Using ClearType on Win XP is this a book about "Customizing Windows XP and Shareware Info" or are they really hacks? There is even some mis-information:
Hack 3: Claims that BootVis will speed up boot up time, while the official Microsoft website corrected the issue: boot speed up is built in and automatic and doesn't require BootVis. Hack 92: Claims that removing DLL from RAM will let other program have access to the RAM and make the computer faster... not true: they will be removed automatically from RAM when other applications need the RAM. The "Least Recently Used" DLL will be unloaded automatically. On the other hand, if you listen to an mp3 file and close Windows Media Player, and then see another mp3 and run Windows Media Player again, it will be much faster because the DLLs are already in RAM. This book should be more appropriately titled: Customizing, Shareware, and Hacks for Windows XP.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Great Book for WinXP Users
Every version of Windows has its strengths and weaknesses. Windows XP is no exception. It's more stable than previous versions and hence is likely to be around for some time. So you'll probably want to find out how to make this version do your bidding.Windows XP Hacks, by Preston Gralla, shows you how to do this with 100 tips and hacks. Tips are grouped into the chapters and clearly named so that you find the appropriate one. The chapter on networking has been quite helpful on optimizing my home wireless network. And the section on how to setup the XP Professional mini web server (IIS) will be useful for testing. Getting rid of Microsoft desktop icons that "can't" be removed is also dealt with. Improved use of the disk defragger applet is also covered. This book is a really useful collection of tips for the expert and power user. If you are a new user, find another book. Some of the tips involve Registry tweaks and this is not recommended for new users.
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