Book Review: OS X Mountain Lion: The Missing Manual

By Tad Anderson	Article Rating:
August 29, 2012 07:00 AM EDT	Reads:	4,990

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I purchased the OS X Lion: The Missing Manual to help me ramp up for my new MacBook Pro. Although I had been a Mac user in the past, it was in the distant past. It did a great job answering all the questions I had as I familiarized myself with the Mac operating system. The author does a great job of explaining things and he covers a ton of information.

As soon as the OS X Mountain Lion: The Missing Manual version was available I wanted it. It is by far the best resource available for getting answers quickly to any questions I have about the new OS X Mountain Lion operating system.

The book is divided into six parts. I have listed each part below and the chapters included in each one.

One. The OS X Desktop
0. The Mountain Lion Landscape
1. Folders & Windows
2. Organizing Your Stuff
3. Spotlight
4. Dock, Desktop & Toolbars

Two. Programs in OS X
5. Documents, Programs & Spaces
6. Data: Typing, Dictating, Sharing & Backing Up
7. Automator, AppleScript & Services
8. Windows on Macintosh

Three. The Components of OS X
9. System Preferences
10. Reminders, Notes & Notification Center
11. The Other Free Programs
12. CDs, DVDs, iTunes & AirPlay

Four. The Technologies of OS X
13. Accounts, Security & Gatekeeper
14. Networking, File Sharing & AirDrop
15. Graphics, Fonts & Printing
16. Sound, Movies & Speech

Five. OS X Online
17. Internet Setup & iCloud
18. Mail & Contacts
19. Safari
20. Messages
21. SSH, FTP, VPN & Web Sharing

Six. Appendixes
A. Installing OS X Mountain Lion
B. Troubleshooting
C. The Windows-to-Mac Dictionary
D. The Master OS X Secret Keystroke List

I am amazed at the level of detail the author goes into with each of the topics covered. There are only a few things I would like to see added to the book. They are the missing AppleScript and Unix chapters that can be found on line.

By far the biggest disappointment with the OS X Mountain Lion: The Missing Manual version is the removal of the Unix information. When I got this book I took the OS X Lion: The Missing Manual out of my backpack and put this in. I got to work, pulled out the book, cracked it open to where the Unix chapter was and only found… there is a whole chapter on it waiting online. It was weird to see a new edition of a book shrink by 42 pages instead of grow.

I don't buy book so they can point me to missing chapters online. I buy them so I don't have to be online. I have to say it was a pretty big letdown. I can either keep this and my The Mac OS X Command Line: Unix Under the Hood with me, or go back to OS X Lion: The Missing Manual. Not sure which I will do yet. I would probably not have been as disappointed if the Unix chapter wasn't the chapter I was just starting when I got OS X Mountain Lion: The Missing Manual.

Beyond the missing Unix chapter, I do not have any gripes. I think this is an excellent way to learn to use OS X Mountain Lion and an excellent reference for looking up issues that come up.

I highly recommend it to the user that wants to know how to use all the applications and features included with OS X Mountain Lion in detail. The most amazing thing about this book is the level of detail the author goes into with each subject.

The author has an online site that accompanies the book. It has links to all the tools mentioned, and PDFs of all the chapters that should be in the book.

All in all this is by far the best resource for learning about OS X Mountain Lion.

OS X Mountain Lion: The Missing Manual

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Book Review: OS X Mountain Lion: The Missing Manual

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