Microsoft Books

All needed I to become MCP and start getting benefits. Exam now questions 15 with adaptive format. Know the material here well and you pass first time out.

If you've ever seen a large sponge that someone has sucked all the water from and seen how small it can get and still be a sponge, then you understand the premise of what is here. All the other NT Workstation books have had the fluff sucked from them to make this book - what is left has no wasted space/thoughts/text.

I spent a lot of looking over the coverage of key topics in half-a-dozen Workstation books. This one covered them in as much or more detail than any other. The small size comes from the fact that the non-critical nonsense has been removed, which saves me from having to jump over a dozen pages here and there.

I found the book to be easy to read, easy to understand, and all that it was advertised to be, and then some.

After years of struggle, NT Workstation won the client war in my workplace and it was decided that 1000 users had to be changed over from every other thinkable operating system to NTW.

I knew some about the OS, but not much. I also knew that someone would have to become an MCP in order to convince corporate that IT knew what is was doing and to leave us alone. In order to accomplish those goals, I needed a quick solution, and the Fast Track seemed like it.

To make a long story short, I learned more about the OS from this book that I ever imagined, and passed the new adaptive exam (much less questions) with flying colors.

Not only is this an excellent book for certification study, but it is one of the best technical books I've ever read on NT Workstation. I typically buy three or four books on a topic when studying for an exam to avoid wasting time if I get a junk one. In this case, I read only the one and intend to buy only one now for any study topic the fast track is available for.

I always start with reading a MCSE for dummies when I am preparing for an exam. This one is the best so far and after taking the exam I can say that this book is all you need.
I used other materials as well because there were some objectives that I did not have experience with.
I scored 790 and that was more than I expected.

I found this book full of information without drowning it's readers in useless jargon. Some of the content was covered only briefly, but with some hands on learning and this book, passing the test was a breaze!

As a Microsoft Instructor, I recommend this book to all of my students. It cuts through the fluff and crud that Microsoft usually tacks on to the courses and gets to the meat and potatoes of what Active Directory is all about. Several students have used this besides my class and have blown the test away. Check out the author's exam tips to save yourself some headaches.

This book does a fantastic job preparing you for the exam 70-217. I am currently an NT 4.0 MCSE aspiring to be a Windows 2000 MCSE and wouldn't of been able to pass this exam with out this book. The author did an wonderful job helping me understand the complex features of Active Directory like group policies and remote install services. Which by the way are hit hard on the exam. I recommend this book to everyone looking to get certified in Windows 2000.

I passed 70-217 today using this book. I scored an 800 and something. This book did a great job of covering the material that MS tests about.

This book provided a great, easy to understand review of the features of Office 2007. Touched upon pivot tables, performance point, dashboards and scorecards. Plenty of examples were provided. This will definitely help me with implementing executive dashboards at my company.

While I have considered myself reasonably good with Office, this book dramatically increased my understanding of the power hidden in Excel and the new possibilities of presentation. I would highly recommend the book to any government contractor, even if you haven't upgraded to Office 2007 as the descriptive text and easy to follow examples have direct application to earlier versions as well. I've cut my production time dramatically and, more importantly, can 'slice and dice' the data quicker and with better insight than ever before.

Executives don't have time to read technical manuals or head off to training for a week - we need something that quickly validates our current understanding and then jumps right in to explain what's useful and how to use it. Brief definitions and hints were good. A real step-by-step manual for using Excel 2007.

My eyes have been opened to the amazing potential of Microsoft Office 2007 for Business Intelligence. This book is a resource I will use again and again.

The author does a great job of presenting BI in an easy to understand way. I thought the parts on Outlook could've been less lengthy. This guy obviously has incredible depth of understanding on reporting. Over-all, an excellent book.

Exams 70-063 and 70-064 are being retired at the end of the year and you want to take them before then. You need a great set of resources in order to make sure you pass the exams and now Microsoft Press has delivered it to deluxe style.

The two volume set of over 1100 pages, gives you 26 chapters of information covering the two exams. There are review questions, practice examples, hands-on exercises and so much more included in each chapter. The chapters are broken down into timed segments and you can skip around to customize the learning process.

The first of two cds included is a self paced learning cd from Microsoft the will enhance what the books and give you additional information. The setup and installation was simple easy to follow and I was learning in a matter of minutes.

The other cd is NETg, National Education Training Group, and this cd is multimedia based learning, which can be used independently is you desired. While the price tag may seem hefty, the value outweighs the cost in so may ways. Microsoft is the first name in applications and certification and Microsoft Press makes the learning easier.

For many, this would be the single most helpful tool to prepare for the 70-064 certification exam. Although highly informative, I find all the Microsoft Press study materials boring. The saving grace are the entertaining CD-ROMs that round out the package. However, my opinion is based on my style of preparation so I gave this study tool a high rating because the material will satisfy the needs of the masses.

I used this kit along with the Sam's Windows 95 in 14 days to pass exam 70-064 and achieve my MCP!! Microsoft Press did a great job on this kit!! Write me if you like for more in-depth details!

The CD was especially helpful in my studies to pass the MCSE Win 95 exam, which was very challenging. You still need to know a lot about NT server that isn't covered in this book thoroughly, so I recommend taking that test first if you're going for your MCSE. I think this is one of the better MS Press offerings.

This is a spendy purchase but worth it. The CD-ROMs are great too. Everything you need for 70-063 is in there. Two volumes crammed with everything you ever wanted to know about 95. A bit fluffy but the info is there to be learned. You'll be that much better am MCP when you are done anyway.

Out of all of the technical books I own, this book is by far one of the best. It covers most of the areas .NET developers will encounter during development. It clearly tells you the information in a easy to understand focused manner.

The other reviewers didn't left too much to say. So I'll remember a credit card TV ad:
SLAR volume 1: $42.89
Shipping & Handling: $12.98
Having BCL authors commenting on types, design decisions, dos and don'ts: priceless.
You can find references about the BCL on innumerous places. For an insiders perspective, SLAR.

Excerpt from C# Online.NET Review (wiki.CSharp-Online.NET):
"This book is the authoritative reference to the .NET Framework libraries: Base Class Library (BCL) and Extended Numerics Library. Each type has its own chapter with the following features;

- Header - namespace name, type name, library name.
- Type summary - C# declaration syntax for all members.
- Type description - detailed usage description.
- Annotations - annotations by key Microsoft design team members including Anders Hejlsberg.
- Example - C# source code and program output."

Looking for a handy reference for the .NET Framework classes?

If you are looking for a handy reference style book for the .NET Framework BCL (Base Class Library) then look no further. This book is packed to the brim with information, code samples and other goodies. Of coarse you can find this sort of information on MSDN, but wouldn't it be nice to have a well laid out hard-copy on your desk?

This book comes with a couple of really handy tools. First, you get a pretty handy .NET Framework map, which is a pretty large poster that maps out the BCL nicely. Also, you get a really nice CD which includes a .pdf file with almost 4000 pages (it's like a super-detailed version of the book). That's not it - the CD also has a HUGE library of code samples. The CD alone is worth the price in my opinion.

I am very happy with this purchase, I only wish I would have bought it sooner. I am very much looking forward to the next volume!

Having been an avid reader of Brad Abrams blog (http://blogs.msdn.com/brada) for a year and a half, I was eagerly anticipating this book from the moment it was announced; it didn't disappoint. The SLAR provides an extensive description and example of each type, as well as comments from the likes of Anders Hejlsberg, Kit George, Jeffrey Richter and Brad Abrams himself. These comments provide hints and clues into the inner workings of the Base Class Library (BCL) types and why Microsoft chose to implement types in certain ways. This book was an interesting read and like Sean below, I am also left wanting more. However, with Volume 2 on the horizon, I enthusiastically wait...

When I first purchased this book, I was searching for material to shed light on the Win32 security model. After extracting what little information was available on the topic from this text, it made it's way to the book shelf.

Sometime later, I needed information on Code Access Security, and off the shelf it came. I later needed information on Assembly evidence, and down it came again. Next, was a need for .Net cryptographic and secure programing documentation -- it came down from the shelf and hasn't gone back again.

This is one of those books you need to live with for a time before you realize how great it is. I turn to it 2 or 3 times a week, and regularly carry it back and forth from the office. I've discovered embedded in it's pages are program perls, tips, and background information. It has become and invaluable refefence -- one I whole heartedly endorse.

Programming .NET Security does a great job of breaking down the various aspects of security in a well thought-out manner. In particular, they spend 7 chapters explaining how the .NET Framework has been built to provide a secure infrastructure and how applications can take advantage of this environment to become secured. This book provides one of the best examples I have seen to date covering Code Access Security (CAS). The inclusion of topics on both ASP.NET and Enterprise Services security make this book wholesome for any developer.

To follow, there are an additional 6 chapters that are devoted to cryptography, including sections on providing your own symmetric and asymmetric encryption algorithms. I would highly recommend this book to any developer working in the .NET Framework, regardless of skill; you will take something away from this book.

One of the best book that I will strogly recommend for any one who wants to understand .NET security subject. I was grappling with CAS for some time and how hard I would try, still I could not explain code group, permission and evidence and how they are interlinked. Not only authors have done a tremendous job at explaining CAS but cryptography is yet another section they have done great justice to. The diagrams in this chapter very clearly explains the key concepts of cryptography. A great book that will not disappoint you.

While there is a lot of talk about .NET security, relatively little can be found in terms of documentation, which is one reason why this book is so refreshing. In addition to discussing some of the reasons behind certain security schemes, the theory is explained as well as the C# implementation. While there are some .NET specific security issues discussed (e.g. configuring worker processes), the section on cryptography should be required reading for everyone in the computer industry.

I get really excited about a book when it contains a lot of good information and I am able to actually use it to solve real-world problems. After reading this book, I was able to help solve a really tricky (and politically challenging) security issue quite quickly. If you have anything to do with your company's security systems or write any .NET code, I think this book deserves a place in your reference section. This is certainly the best book on .NET security I have read thus far.

Some books are not going to be easy or approachable, one must already be familiar with either the C# and or Visual Basic language (the easy part) and the .NET programming enviornment to attempt this book. The authors are quick to jump from a discussion of the issues to meta code and sample code, but that is a feature, not a bug to the book's intended audience of very sharp, (as opposed to very basic), well educated coders. I would like to have seen more of an effort to discuss testing, validation and assessment, but at just under 700 pages this is a focused work and a serious coverage of the hooks that make it possible to secure .NET. (Of course that is assuming the underlying function calls are not riddled with buffer overflows and the like. Blaster on a .NET scale is a pretty scary prospect.)

The bottom line, we are awash in bad code and the vulnerabilities that result are the fundamental reason there are so many exploits. When you consider that in the scale of a federated system it is not a pretty thought. Someday there will be building codes for software, but in the meantime, if you are a responsible citizen of this planet and you are involved in .Net development, buy your coders this book. Invest the time to be able to quiz them and do so. Make sure they understand the issues, especially with Chapters 18 and 19, ASP.NET and COM+.

As someone with a background in the comparatively 'easier' (and more stable) Mac world, I found this book, more than any other Windows 98 guidebooks, to be the most useful in terms of explaining why my Wintel product was failing. The book is exceptionally well-designed. Not only is the materially organized in a useful fashion, the page-layout makes things easy to read. The author's writing style is crisp and engaging, and that which he is trying to teach is genuinely useful. Indeed, _Using the Windows 98 Registry_ is so straightforward in its approach, I felt like I was reading a tech manual for a Macintosh product. I would second another reviewers' comments, though, that future editions could benefit from the inclusion of case studies.

I purchased the book to understand how Windows 98 registry really works. I had sometimes to correct corrupt registry entries arising from my heavy user actions and this may be very scary.

Hunneycutt's book was the right choice. This is a book written by an expert with high pedagogic skills. I found not only the whys of registry but a number of tips that helped resolving my issues. Reading this book felt me more in control of the machine.

Also useful are some of the freeware and shareware described in the book, like regmon. To be frank, however, I didn't find much use for the featured software that come with the book's CD.

The book offered a lot more than my immediate needs requested. For instance, as a programmer I found it may be a powerful reference tool for those needing to write code accessing the registry.

As a hint for the next edition I suggest increasing anedotical contents for troubleshooting application entries and other heavy user issues.

This book has tons of useful information and goes into detail in the areas where you need it to. Lots of good desktop edits, good CD, and very easy to read & follow.

This book is excellent for understanding the "theory" of the Win 98 registry, but I have not found it very useful for guidance in the practical aspects of actually tweaking registry settings. It usually contains enough information about a particular registry section to know if it is not worth editing, but it often does not give enough coverage to important keys. It would definitely benefit a lot from input by a person who commonly solves problems using the registry. That said, I have sometimes found it helpful when trying to find which key contains a given piece of info that I am interested in tweaking.

This book is one of the best written registry books that I have read. It explains all the hard to find details that most other books barely touch on. It's the only registry book that I recommend!

BUt why do VB when c# is just as easy and you can write unmanaged within it. Its just a no brainer with all the limitations of VB still.

Visual Basic experts Lars Powers and Mike Snell effective collaborate in the Visual Basic Programmer's Guide to the .NET Framework Class Library to instruct intermediat to advanced level users on a full range of issues including: delineating and define the pieces of .NET; explaining how/why .NET was conceived and what this means to VB6/Windows DNA developers; how to execute Windows programming using the .NET namespaces; position the .NET namespaces within the context of the reader's project; how to make architecture decisions when using .NET namespaces; as well as details about the construction of Web Services and how they programmatically communicate with each other. Visual Basic Programmer's Guide to the .NET Framework Class Library is enhanced further with call-outs and highlighted sections will illustrate concepts by relating previous VB6/Windows DNA best practices with the new .NET approach. 1152 pages. User Level: Intermediate-Advanced. Highly Recommended.

I found this book to be a handy 2nd book to have on .NET programming... it doesn't have much content to help you make the transition to .NET (I'd have to recommend Gary Cornell's Programming VB .NET: A Guide for Experienced Programmers for that task), but it does do a great job of helping you find the right class libraries and write code with them once you are up and running with your language of choice.

Each chapter is focused on a namespace. The authors then spend a few pages bringing people up to speed on the spotlight technology (I am new to XML and particularly liked the intro to XML piece). Then they dive right into the details of using the .NET classes to achieve your desired end-result. The class library that ships with .NET is huge, and I found it helpful to use this book as a guide to highlight the classes I should worry about to get 80-90% of my programming work done.

Now for the cons: the sample applications could have been a bit more in-depth, and I really think they should have spent the time to make the book "bi-lingual" by providing some C# code as well - but overall, a great addition to your .NET bookshelf.

The challenge for a reference book like this is to be better the documentation that Microsoft provide - MSDN and the .Net framework SDK. My experience is that this book certainly achieves that.

For example, today I needed to show the "save file" dialog and then write the contents of a text box to a text file. I know how to do that in VB6, but I hadn't done it in VB.Net before. I searched MSDN which gave me accurate descriptions of the menthods and properties of at least four classes for writing data to files, but I still had no idea which one(s) I needed to use.

I am sure the sample code I needed is somewhere in MSDN, but I hadn't found it after 20 minutes searching when I gave up and referred to this book. In five minutes I had found what I was after, my code worked and I was able to get on with my next task. That is what this book is for. If you want to learn about the new programming features in VB.Net (like polymorphism, delegates etc) this is not your book. But if you want help getting your .Net program to talk to anything (files, printers, active directory, browsers, TCP/IP Sockets, XML/XSLT or whatever) This book will be a valuable resource.

Just note that while this book covers ASP.Net and ADO.Net, if you work with these a lot you might want more depth than is provided here. I will be considering the Wrox "ASP.Net Namespace Reference" when it is released.

Because of a project, I needed to finally make the jump from VB6 to VB.NET. After reviewig several books, I grabbed the book by Powers and Snell. It helped tremendously on the key pieces of my project. What I really like are the numerous code examples - worth the price of the book alone! I even contacted the authors to get their thoughts on something and ask a few questions. Not only did they reply with great answers, but their indepth knowledge of .NET helped finalize an important part of my project architecture. Looking forward to more titles by Powers and Snell. Thanks again guys!

This is a great book. Very clearly laid out, easy to find answers to everyday questions.

It covers the material with a good amount of detail with more explanation than "Windows 2000 Administrator's Pocket Consultant" by William Stanek (another great book) while still being concisely written.

Also good to read straight through if you want an overview of Windows 2000 Server and Active Directory.

Highly recommended.

This book is only for office issues with w2k, this is not suitable for issues which a rise with the advanced home user. My bad.

I was looking for one book on Windows 2000; a reference book, not a text book, and this one fits that description! If you already know what Mixed Mode is, this is the book for you. It's style hits the right note with me, and I especially like the little notes interspersed throughout. It's already saved my bacon twice upgrading from NT and it will live a long and useful life on my desk. It's a must-have if you need THE authoritative Windows 2000 reference.

This is an excellent book for those new to the field and new to Windows 2000. This book covers the essentials and is well organized. I recommend it to all of my students that are trying to learn Windows 2000 and want to be able to support the operating system. This book covers all of the important topics in a way that makes it easy for students to understand and absorb.

Great work Mr. Tate!

At first glance, I was a little concerned about how a book this small can pack enough information to call itself a "reference" (essential at that) - until I opened it and saw how compact everything is!! It took me virtually 10-15 minutes to fully digest all the data on some pages.. but it seem to be all here! I've been working with Win2k since Beta 3 two years ago and have not run into any problem that this book failed to help me resolve. A great buy for the battle-hardened Win2k administrator or someone preparing for the updated MCSE track.

This book is excellent as usual from the top windows reverser Matt Pietrek. By the way, Matt now has his own blog page although he's not writing as much as Raymond Chen. Search Matt Pietrek blog on google will take you to his blog site and if you have a question from the book (which you shouldn't as the book is so very well written :) Call me a Matt Pietrek Fanboi if you want!)

What I like most about Matt's articles and books? 1) Very well thought out explanation; 2) Solid examples that not only demonstrate the ideas but also show you interesting programming tricks.

I hadn't realized that Mr Pietrek is something of a legend. I
simply set out to find a decent book that would (un)cover
some of the "secret" things about Win32 programming that were
tripping me up. Not only did I find answers, I found other
things to steer around. It's a good book, it's readable, and
even a bit funny. I'd buy it again, most certainly.

Simply great! Covers all the secrets of Windows in a superb manner. Reading it was like reading some very intereting novel that I wanted to finish right when I started with the first page. If possible, I would give it infinite stars

This book really uncovered the dark areas of Windows 95. If your work requires you to go deep inside the system, this book will really take your hand right to the point. The best subject is the description of the Win32 protection and how windows do it, Win95 synchronization, Memory management, Win16 mutex,PE ... mostly all system level subjects are covered by this book.

There are very few books that I have gotten this much wealth of information out of. Matt spent a lot of time researching it, reverse engineering windows 95 to see how it works. I would gladly pay 10 times the sales price. I found the in depth coverage of the PE (win95 EXEs) file format much better than anything microsoft has to offer. Also, many people will find the section on how to "inject" DLLs into another process space very useful for all sorts things. The coverage of how exceptions are handled is very good. All of the information in the book is still valid today even though it came out in 95. Anyone writing a debugger, compiler, profiler, or system tool will find this book useful. Let's hope Matt writes another book!