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Too true. Presumably, this helps keep costs down, and a rationalization can be made that many people never read manuals anyway, but that's not a whole lot of help when you need to know more than that attractive but perfunctory quick start pamphlet can tell you.
To wit, another opportunity for a title in Pogue Press/O' Reilly's "Missing Manuals" series, in this case of, "iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual," now in its fourth edition, updated and expanded to include the new iPod models Apple introduced in the past year, the fifth-generation (5G) video iPod, and the iPod nano. Coverage is of course also continued for all previous iPod models as well, all the was back to the 5 GB first generation iPod I'm still using, and including the generic Windows Apple iPod and the iPod variants formerly sold by HP.
As computer books go through successive editions of reviews, they usually tend to grow larger and thicker. However, with this fourth edition of iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual, J.D. Biersdorfer has bucked the customary trend and produced a book that is leaner and thinner than the previous iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual - Third Edition, and not just by a little bit. This latest iteration has shed nearly 90 pages compared with its immediate predecessor, and the number of chapters has dropped from 17 to 12, although some of the deleted content can now be found in three new "appendices" that actually are not in the book at all, but only available online or at http://www.missingmanuals.com/ .
Presumably, part of the reason for this trip to the fat farm is in aid of holding costs down, and the book still sells for a relatively modest $24.95, or perhaps it was decided that some of the former content was of less than vital relevance. For your interest, the chapters that have gone missing our "iPod as Calendar," "iCal, iPod as Address Book," a chapter on Apple iSync, the "iStuff" chapter on peripheral hardware items and accessories for the iPod (it's now one of the online appendices), and "the iPod on the Web" chapter.
I'm not sure how I feel about the ninety-page downsize, but I hope shifting content to Web-only appendices is an innovation that doesn't catch on too strongly. I still like print books a lot better than online resources for reference work. Although Web-access is better than no access at all. Speaking of which, purchase of this book entitles you to 45 days of free access to be digital edition of the book at O'Reilly's Safari Books Online Enhanced resource:
http://safari.oreilly.com/?XmlId=059652675X
It should also be emphasized that the book's core content is still very much there, and has been upgraded an expanded appropriately. First and foremost, this book is, as the title suggests, a manual that tells you in considerable detail how the iPod works, the things that it can do, and where to find its secret features. But iPod and hide tunes: The Missing Manual is a lot more than that. It's 315 pages packed with iPod reference and information, as author J.D. Biersfdorfer puts it: "a joy ride through the iPod subculture" the focused on the "3 Ts" - tips, tricks, and troubleshooting.
If you own and use an iPod this is a book that you really should have in your reference library. It contains tips and tricks you would probably never think of on your own, explaining all sorts of musical and non musical things to do with an iPod, from looking up phone numbers to checking the weather report, to using your iPod as an external drive for file backups and transfers; the iPod an eBook reader; iPod as PalmPilot substitute, serving as a personal organizer, ancillary to your laptop or desktop Mac or PC; the iPod as GameBoy - well perhaps not quite, but you can still play simple games on the iPod; and iPod as a slide projector if you are lucky enough to loan an iPod Photo, or with the 5G version a video player as well, not to mention vital operating instructions and battery replacement and troubleshooting info.
On the iTunes side, iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual describes up to iTunes version 6 and OS X 10.4 Tiger, both of which missed the cut for the third edition.
Part One - iPod: The Hardware, occupies the first three chapters. Chapter 1, "Meet the iPod," outlines the little machine's basic features, with tips like charging the battery, cables and the dock, managing battery life, earphones and other peripherals, using the iPod menus, organizing playlists, photo display in iPod Photo, and all the little extra features that make the iPod much more than just a music player.
Chapter 2, "The iPod Sync Connection," goes into considerable detail on the ins and outs of FireWire and USB 2, which are the high-speed interface protocols supported by the iPod. The chapter continues with informative tutorials on syncing the iPod with iTunes, iPod to computer copying and various third -party utilities which can help with that.
The tiny iPod shuffle gets its own hardware chapter, which would be Chapter 3, called "The iPod Shuffle," wherein we meet the shuffle, learn how to set it up, install software, make USB connections, transfer songs, use the shuffle as a USB drive, and there is some info on cases, docks, and other peripherals.
Part Two is iPod - The Software
Digital Audio Formats is the topic of Chapter 4, which includes an introduction to digital audio, the MP3 and a AAC file compression formats, a full-page sidebar on legal issues, other formats like WAV, WMA, AIFF, and Apple Lossless.
Chapter 5 covers "iTunes for Macintosh and Windows," beginning with an introduction and quick tour of Apple's jukebox program. The chapter is essentially a tutorial on using iTunes software - a "missing manual" in the literal sense.
Chapter 6 journeys beyond music and into the world of "iPod Multimedia" Much of this chapter is entirely new content focused on watching video on the 5G iPods, a section on is all about using the iPod for picture viewing and slideshows, a discussion of AudioBooks in the second part of the chapter, and finishing up with a section on Podcasting.
Back to music in Chapter 7, "The iTunes Music Store," which takes us on a tour of Apple's online music emporium; with tips on how to purchase and download songs, and what to do with the music once you have it.
Part Three is entitled Beyond The Music, and is about the many non-musical things you can do with an iPod besides listening to AudioBooks and working with photos.
Chapter 8, "iPod Games And Other Extras," notes that color screen iPod models, including the iPod nano and 5G come with four different games on board, plus a stopwatch function, a world clock to keep you current in mobile time zones, a screen locking feature to keep unauthorized folks from prying into your content, and the Notes feature first introduced in 2003, with short tutorials on using all of these features.
Chapter 9 is entitled "The iPod as External Drive," which is what the iPod essentially is, although one with a spectacular form factor and a load of bells and whistles, and it can function as a general-purpose external hard drive for your computer for storage, backups, file transfers, or even as a boot drive if you use a Mac. You can even install OS 9 on an iPod, and of course OS X.
Chapter 10,is about "Connecting the iPod" turning it into the hub of a stereo system, using iTunes with Airport Express, hooking your iPod up to a car stereo, and of course to computers.
Part Four: Extreme iPodding, Gets into the real esoteric stuff.
"Hot Hacks And Cool Tools" is the title of Chapter 11, which gives you the lowdown on using AppleScripts to automate and enable many iPod functions and tasks. A selection of shareware iPod enhancement utilities are also outlined, and there is a section on using Linux on an iPod. There is a tutorial on recording our own MP3s, and exporting your GarageBand songs to iTunes, as well as a brief discussion of the Podcasting phenomenon, which I expect will get more extensive treatment in the next edition.
Chapter 12 is a handy reference on iPod "Troubleshooting," with advice for remediation if you encounter malfunctions, be they software or hardware related. There is also a tutorial on battery life issues, a dedicated section on troubleshooting the iPod shuffle, another on chasing the iTunes Blues away, tips on on iPod software updates, and some links for where to seek help online.
Part 5, contains the book's one real Appendix - "iTunes Menu by Menu," followed by a 15-page Index.
In design, iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual adheres to the familiar and effective Missing Manuals series formula, with lots of screenshots, photos, and sidebars to amplify and illustrate the main text content, albeit only in black and white, and printed on matte-finish paper, unlike some of the recent TMM editions which have gone color on more gl,ossy paper stock. The upside of that is, as previously noted, the book's price - still $24.95, As opposed to ten or fifteen dollars more for the color/glossy Missing Manuals. For an iPod manual, I think the more austere and cheaper approach is appropriate.
If you have an iPod or are planning on getting one, you just can't go wrong with this book. Like all Missing Manuals, it's packed with usable and interesting information presented in entertaining and readable prose. In fact, I would rate iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual as an extraordinarily effective member of the Missing Manuals family, all of which are outstanding, and there's plenty of reason why it is one of the bestselling titles in the series. I'm certain that you will find ideas and information in this book that will enhance the enjoyment and utility you derive from your iPod.
iPod & iTunes: The Missing Manual, Fourth Edition
By J.D. Biersdorfer
Fourth Edition March 2006
328 Pages
Price: $24.99 USD, $34.99 CAD, £17.50 GBP
ISBN: 0-596-52675-X
For more information, visit:
http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/ipodtmm4/#top
Charles W. Moore
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