Windows Vista For Dummies corrections

All but the first two corrections here have been fixed in the book’s second and subsequent printings. To see your book’s printing number, turn to the copyright page — the one with all the legalese — and look at the page’s bottom for numbers like these:

10  9  8  7  6  5  4  3  2  1

The last number in the row is your book’s printing number.  (As an example, the numbers above mean the book’s a first printing, the one highly sought by “For Dummies” book collectors.)

Chapter 3, page 57, Working with the Details Pane (fixed in  third printing).

To make the Details pane reappear along  the bottom of a window, repeat the steps in the second bulleted item. (The book says to reverse the steps.)

Chapter 8, page 163, Macromedia Flash/Shockwave (fixed in  third printing).

Adobe purchased Macromedia, so Macromedia’s Flash product is now Adobe‘s Flash product. You can download Adobe’s Flash player from Adobe’s Web site.

Chapter 9, page 177, Finishing up your Gmail account in Windows Mail.

In the sidebar explaining how to set up Gmail, Step 5 mistakenly lists “Outgoing” when it should say “Incoming.” The corrected Step 5 should read, “Check the box next to This Server Requires a Secure Connection (SSL) under Outgoing Incoming Mail (SMTP).

Chapter 10, page 197, typo in link for antivirus program

The link contains a misprint, so here’s the corrected paragraph: McAfee offers a free virus-removal tool that removes more than 50 common viruses. Downloadable from http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/, it’s a handy tool for times of need.

Chapter 11, page 222, Adjusting Vista’s Volume and Sounds.

In Steps 2 and 3, the references to “Volume box” should be “Volume Mixer box”.

Chapter 11, page 229, Adding or Removing Programs.

The second sentence mentions the “Installed Programs” category. It should really be the “Programs and Features” category.

Chapter 11, page 230, “When a Program Doesn’t Have an Installation Program” sidebar.

The last sentence in the sidebar’s first column should use the term “Uninstall or Change a Program list” instead of the currently worded “Change or Remove a Program list.”

Chapter 14, page 263, “The Easiest Way to Connect Two Computers” sidebar.

Windows Vista no longer supports two computers connected with FireWire cables. Therefore, the sidebar should read like this in its entirety:

Sometimes you simply need to link two computers, quickly and easily, to move information from one to another (from an old computer to a new one, for example). You don’t need expensive equipment, just a single cable called a crossover cable, which is a special breed of Ethernet cable. Be sure to emphasize crossover or crossed cable when shopping at
the computer store; a regular Ethernet cable won’t work. Connect the crossed cable between the two computers’ network adapters, and Vista creates a quick network between the two computers. If one computer connects to the Internet, the other computer should be able to share its Internet connection.

To connect two computers that each have wireless adapters, let Vista set them both up in ad-hoc mode, set to the same channel, using the same workgroup name, and the same type of security and password. Warning: This is complicated. (Windows Vista no longer supports connections between PCs with FireWire cable, unlike its predecessor, Windows XP.)

Chapter 14, page 266, “Workgroup Names and Windows XP” sidebar.

The sidebar only applies to the “Home” versions of Windows XP. Windows XP Professional versions don’t have the network name problem. That’s because Windows XP Home PCs use MSHOME for their network name, whereas Windows XP Professional PCs use WORKGROUP for their network name, just like Windows Vista does.

Chapter 17, page 337, Retrieving Previous Versions of Files and Folders section.

Only Vista’s Business, Ultimate and Enterprise versions offer the Restore Previous Version feature that lets you retrieve older versions of your files.

Chapter 21,  page 377. Turning Vista’s Off button into an On/Off switch.

The steps at the top of page 377 should read like this:

To transform the left button into a simple On/Off switch, follow these steps:

1. Click the Start button, choose Control Panel, choose System and Maintenance, and choose Power Options.
2. In the task pane along the left, click “Change when the computer sleeps.”
3. Choose “Change advanced power settings.”
4. Choose “Power Buttons and Lid” from the Power Options box.
5. Click the plus sign next to Start Menu Power Button.
6. On a desktop PC, choose “Shut Down”; on a laptop, choose Shut Down for the Power Button in the On Battery and Plugged In list.
7. Click OK.

Appendix, page 389.  Change CD to DVD

The reference to the Vista CD should be the Vista DVD. Vista doesn’t come on a CD, just a DVD.

Appendix, page 389-340, steps 5 through 8.

Steps 5 through 8 should read like this:

5. Choose Upgrade and click Next.
Upgrading preserves your old files, settings, and programs. If this option’s grayed out, either of these things could be wrong:

• You’re trying to upgrade an incompatible version of Windows XP. You can’t install Windows Vista Home version on Windows XP Professional, for example. See this chapter’s Table 20-1 for the lowdown.
• Your copy of Windows XP doesn’t have Service Pack 2 installed. To fix this, visit Windows Update (www.windowsupdate.com) and download Service Pack 2. If the site refuses, you probably don’t have a genuine copy of Windows XP installed. Call your PC’s vendor, be it a store or the kid down the street who built it for you.
• Your hard drive isn’t big enough. Your hard drive needs up to 15GB of free space to install Vista.

When you click Next, Vista copies files onto your PC’s hard drive, then installs itself. It usually restarts your PC a few times during the process.

6. Choose your country, time and currency, and keyboard layout, and click Next.
Vista looks at how your Windows XP PC is set up, and guesses at your location, language, time and currency. If it guesses correctly, just click Next. If it guesses wrong, however, set it straight on your country, local time, currency, and language used with your keyboard.

7. Choose Use Recommended Settings.
Vista’s recommended security settings keep Vista automatically patched
and up-to-date.

8. If you’re connected to a network, choose your PC’s location.
Vista gives you two options: Home, Work, or a Public Location.

Choose Home or Work, and Vista eases up on the security a bit, letting the PCs on the network see each other. If you’re in a public setting, though, choose Public Location. Vista keeps your PC more secure by not letting other PCs share any of its files.

After rummaging around inside your PC for a few more minutes, Windows Vista appears on the screen, leaving you at the logon screen. But don’t rest yet. Run through the following steps to complete the process:

• Use Windows Update. Visit Windows Update, described in Chapter 1, and download any security patches and updated drivers issued by Microsoft.
• Make sure that Vista recognizes your software. Run all your old programs to make sure that they still work. You may need to replace them with newer versions or drop by the manufacturer’s Web site to see whether they offer free updates.
• Check the user accounts. Make sure that your PC’s user accounts all work correctly.

Welcome to Windows Vista!

Please let me know of any other mistakes you find in Windows Vista For Dummies.