Sometimes when you least expect it, a good book comes along with information so well organized it just flows when you read it. Other times it stops you constantly, has you shifting back and forth and generally makes the reading more punishment than pleasure.
Matt Cone's "Master Your Mac" from No Starch Press is one of those informative, fun reads for those looking to gain control over their Macintosh computer and begin to better understand the power under the hood, without being slammed with all the technical mumbo-jumbo that others feel a need to add into their "missing manuals".
Back when the Mac was originally designed and created it was done so with the average person in mind. It was not designed to be complex or complicated but rather more of a tool that anyone could use to accomplish things that would take others longer periods of time.
In one of my many talks with him over the years since our friendship began in 1987, Steve Jobs would tell me "Mike, the Mac is simply an extension of you. We wanted it to just be a tool that allowed you to do whatever it was you were doing, faster, easier, and more elegant than other computers, and we've finally achieved that."
Steve would like this book. It's simple, elegant and achieves the goal of quickly informing the reader what things they can do with their Mac easily and without much if any additional help.
"simple ways to tweak, customize, and secure osx" is the subheadline on the cover. It fits. Simple is what the Mac was designed/created to be. Elegant and usable by the masses. And everyone wants to tweak something from time to time to make it better, and security is always a concern so good to get that taken care of as well.
I found this book a quick pick up and one that didn't stump me in ways that others have as I tried to figure out what they were really trying to say. Aptly illustrated but not overly so, the message is one that here's a tool, here's how to use it, and here's the picture for pure reference. BRAVO!
Part 1 Back to Basics takes you to some simple yet elegant information which will help you tune your experience on the Mac.
Part 2 Boosting Productivity is optimizing functionality of applications, understanding the display and multiple desktops, and also talking to your Mac.
Part 3 Automating tasks using AppleScript (yes, anyone can do this stuff and there's plenty of ready made scripts out there to help you as well.
Part 4 Managing your Life talks about email, spam and other things which slow us down
Part 5 Internet and Networks did you know that you can access your Mac remotely? It's true and it works quite well.
Part 6 Serious Security get down to the nitty-gritty on security and how to implement something to keep your Mac secure easily.
Part 7 Monitoring and Troubleshooting of course watching over things and if a problem happens being able to solve that...this covers it.
I'd stretch this out into many more pages of review, but for me this review is like the book: Simple, Elegant and informative.
Now all that you need to know is where to get the book and that's pretty much anywhere that books are sold, however you can also go and purchase it at http://nostarch.com/masteryourmac and get a free downloadable PDF version as well.
Thanks for reading and we'll see you again soon.
Michael Murdock, CEO