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Preface

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Acknowledgments

Increasingly, I find myself trying to do things in fundamentally different ways than

they’ve been done before. For this book, I had the crazy idea that I could get every-

thing I’ve learned about Windows Vista over the past five years into a single volume

that was not only clear and concise but also straightforward and easy to use, giving

you, the reader, maximum value and maximum learning potential. With that in

mind, I spent a great deal of time planning the approach I would take, and tapped

into my previous experience writing two other Windows Vista books before I wrote

this one.

During the many long months of writing this book, I continued to refine that

approach, focusing the content and zeroing in on everything I thought would be of

value as you set out to learn and master Windows Vista. I hope that as a result of all

my hard work the book you hold in your hands is something unique. This isn’t a

300-page introduction or a 1,500-page all-in-one reference. This is a relentlessly

focused and comprehensive 950-page guide to what you truly need to know to mas-

ter Windows Vista as a user.

Over the course of this project, I’ve worked with many different people at O’Reilly,

but none was as helpful or instrumental to the writing process as Jeff Pepper. Not

only did Jeff believe in me, but he also believed in my vision for this project every

step of the way. Whenever an obstacle arose during the writing process, Jeff was

there to help and to ensure that I had everything I needed to complete the work. I’d

like to thank Audrey Doyle for her careful editing of the book. Audrey also provided

helpful comments that made the review process easier. Others at O’Reilly that I’ve

worked with during this project include John Osborn, Sara Peyton, Mark Brokering,

and Laurie Petrycki. At the early stages of this project, I also worked with Preston

Gralla. If our luck holds and the stars are aligned correctly, Preston and I will be

speaking at events together about Windows Vista.

Preface

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Paul Marquardt contributed to the chapters in Part IV and wrote Chapter 25. At

the time I wrote this book, Paul was working at Dell as a PC support technician;

previously he worked with the Oklahoma Department of Human Services as a

senior systems administrator. If Dell has realized what an asset Paul is, he’s likely

been promoted. If not, he probably has a permanent position in IT management

where his skills will be put to good use.

O’Reilly has an extensive editing and review process. Chris Crayton was the chief

technical reviewer of the book. He reviewed the book from start to finish, and it was

a great pleasure to work with him. Chris plans to share the book with his students.

We also received very helpful reviews from Jim Schlotter and John Vacca. Thank you!

Thanks also to the literary agency, Studio B. David Rogelberg and Neil Salkind are

great to work with. An extra-big thank you goes to Neil for helping out during this

project. It’s hard to believe we’ve been working together for 10 years. It has been a

pleasure having you as my nonfiction agent.

Hopefully, I haven’t forgotten anyone, but if I have, it was an oversight. Honest. ;-)