I won't throw it away, but ...

I bought this book at the same time that I bought my iPod. I was taken in by the "Missing Manual" part, hoping that the book would give some basic information on how to use the iPod and the related software. It does no such thing.

To illustrate my frustration with this book, let me relate a couple of exeriences.

The iPod idea is not really meant for classical music, since classical music pieces are not organized around "songs." I happen to be interested in classical music, and, with time, I have been able to work around the iPod's limitations and make it serviceable for Beethoven, Bach, and the rest. But this book was of NO help in this. Instead, it tells the reader that if he is a classical music buff, he will just have to suffer for his art.

Keeping in mind my first lessons in computing, back in the 1980's, I know that the three basic laws of all computing are backup, backup, and backup. When you work with an iPod, backup is even more important than for ordinary computing. This book is of very little help with that. Again, I had to learn by myself, without much help from this book.

On the other hand, there are things in this book that are interesting. The way to use this book is not as a source of answers to questions you have (that would really be a manual), but as a source of ideas and facts that you never knew were there. So I won't throw it out in disgust; I'll read in it from time to time. I have gained some insights from it and will no doubt do so in the future.

Other Reviews

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