Rating: 

The introduction begins with a clear list of the advantages of switching to Mac: ‘What the Mac OS Gives You’ and “What it Takes Away.” (The latter section actually lists advantages like the lack of viruses!) In the first chapter entitled, “How the Mac is Different,” the authors describe each feature of the Mac OS and, wherever possible, relate that difference to the windows action, command, or location.

The second chapter provides a thorough description of windows and icons, the third acquaints the user with the Dock, Desktop, and Toolbars, while the fourth chapter completes the introductory material with extensive coverage of Programs and Documents, including different OS views, running older programs, and installing new programs.

The rest of the book is devoted to clear and extensive descriptions of four areas: 1) A chapter on each of the software products that ships with OS X 10.4 (Tiger), 2) Hardware on the Mac, including disks, memory, monitors (including dual monitors), printers, modem, etc., 3) Other topics like networking with PCs & other Macs, utilities that ship with Tiger, the firewall, etc., and 4) Installation & Troubleshooting, which is a short chapter due to the reliability of the Mac and the simple procedures for installing software in OS X.

Following these chapters is a very helpful appendix entitled “The Where Did It Go? Dictionary,” which describes how each feature of Windows can be accomplished with Tiger. The second appendix describes the procedures for running Windows on a Mac in either dual-boot or parallel mode.

The writing style is informal, clear, and consistently focused on describing the Mac’s features from the viewpoint of a Windows user. The book uses a logical format, bold sub-headings, and occasional, gray textboxes containing useful tips. There are frequent, screen shots to illustrate OS X features under discussion, but they are not overdone. Finally, the Index is very complete, thus allowing the reader to use the book as a reference tool. As a result, I found it remarkably enjoyable and easy to skim the book, reading in depth the things that were new, skimming the familiar parts, and saving some topics for a later time—when I’m ready to tackle them.