Dan Gookin - Laptops For Dummies

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It’s lightweight, high-tech, and portable; the product of years of research, a longtime dream of engineers and scholars, something people all over the world crave. It’s wireless. It’s about communications. And it will help you become the ultimate mobile computer user. Of course, I’m talking about this book: Laptops For Dummies .

This is the seventh edition of Laptops For Dummies, updated and spiffed up for the latest in PC laptop hardware and software as well as for Microsoft’s latest operating system, Windows 10.

This book covers your portable computer from laptop to lap-bottom, inside and out, on the road or resting at home. The information here runs the gamut, from introducing your laptop to making your first wireless connection at your favorite swanky cybercafé. You’ll find this book useful whether you want to go laptop shopping or you consider yourself an old hand.

I’m glad that you’re still reading this introduction. Most people stop reading after a few paragraphs, or they don’t even bother reading the introduction. Consider yourself special.

This book covers laptop computing, from buying and setting up to going on the road, from networking and the Internet to power management and security and everything in between. There’s a lot of laptoppy advice to be had between this book’s yellow covers.

I don’t intend for you to read every chapter in sequence. That’s because this book is organized as a reference: Find the tidbit of information, the knowledge nugget you need to know, and then be on your merry way. Everything is cross-referenced, so if you need to look elsewhere in the book for more information, you can easily find it.

In writing this book, I assume that you may know a bit about computers, as most folks do today. But you may be utterly fresh on the idea of portable computing. Despite what they tell you, a laptop computer isn’t merely a desktop computer with a handle attached. There’s more to it, and this book is here to show you the ropes — and to let you take full advantage of what the laptop has to offer.

Let me jump to the conclusion that you're a human being, not a cleverly disguised owl. Furthermore, either you own a laptop PC or you want to buy one. You may already have a desktop computer, or perhaps you had a laptop a long, long time ago and noticed that things have changed.

I use the word laptop to refer to all types of portable computers, from the traditional notebooks to the teensy Ultrabooks. A new category is the 2-in-1 laptop, which is more like a tablet. Those are covered here as well and fall under a general category that I term tablet PCs. Any laptop with a touchscreen display is a tablet PC, and I wax eloquently on that topic in Chapter 7.

This book assumes that your laptop is PC-compatible, that it runs the Windows operating system. The current version is Windows 10, which is a great operating system for laptop users. This book doesn’t cover older versions of Windows, nor does it cover using Linux, which is fun but way too nerdy.

This book doesn’t describe the basic operations of a computer, Windows, or your software. I've tried to keep the information here specific to the portable aspects of the laptop computer. Beyond that, if you need more information about running your computer, any standard PC or Windows reference works fine.

The Tip icon notifies you about something cool, handy, or nifty — or something that I highly recommend. For example: “Never make a bar bet with a guy wearing a bowtie.”

Don't forget! When you see this icon, you can be sure that it points out info you should remember or something I said earlier that I'm repeating because it's important and you'll likely forget it anyway. For example: “There is no need to touch the electric fence a second time just to be sure that it’s on.”

Danger! Ah-oogah! Ah-oogah! When you see the Warning icon, pay careful attention to the text. This icon flags something that’s bad or that can cause trouble. For example: “The enormous sea monster slithering toward your village won’t be using the legal system to settle its grievances.”

This icon alerts you to something technical, an aside or a trivial tidbit that I simply cannot suppress the urge to share. For example: “My first laptop was a steam-powered, 8-bit 6502 that I breadboarded myself.” Feel free to skip over this book's technical information as you please.

You can start reading this book anywhere. Open the table of contents and pick a spot that amuses you or concerns you or piques your curiosity. Everything is explained in the text, and stuff is carefully cross-referenced so that you don't waste your time reading repeated information.

My email address is dgookin@wambooli.com . Yes, this is my real address. I reply to all email I receive, and you’ll get a quick reply if you keep your question short and specific to this book. Although I enjoy saying hi, I cannot answer technical support questions or help you troubleshoot your laptop. Thanks for understanding.

You can also visit my web page for more information or as a diversion:

www.wambooli.com

This book’s specific support page can be found at

www.wambooli.com/help/laptops

There you’ll find updates, as well as frequent blog posts with laptoppy information, tips, and tricks.

The publisher also maintains a support page, complete with updates and such. You can visit the publisher’s website at dummies.com . To search for specific information related to this book, including the bonus online Cheat Sheet, search for Laptops For Dummies from the site’s main page.

Enjoy your laptop computer. I'll see you on the road!

Part 1

IN THIS PART …

Discover how the modern laptop came to be.

Learn how to buy a new laptop that’s just right for you.

Chapter 1

IN THIS CHAPTER

Understanding portable computing

Reviewing laptop history

Discovering modern laptops

Getting to know the subnotebooks