Intrepid technology columnist joins the ranks of beloved authors

14 September 2004

Moral crisis, sensation-seekers, moral crisis. I'm a technology columnist for a great metropolitan newspaper, and I often write columns about new tech books that I'm fond of.

Now, I'm also the series author of a new line of Macintosh books, the first title of which has just been released.

Obviously, I'm fond of my own books, but can I mention them in my column without sounding like Joan Rivers flogging trashy jewelry on the Home Shopping Network?

I have assembled an interfaith and interdenominational panel of clergypeople to debate this issue, and they unanimously insist that I would be lying to you, my valued readers, if I failed to identify my entry into the book market as one of the high points in the history of written English.

Just a Geek (Wil Wheaton, O'Reilly; $24.95). We've all navigated that treacherous arc between being a snotty teen and a mature, slightly chastened, adult. There are plenty of enjoyable memoirs about that journey, and this is one of them. It ought to be: Wheaton wasn't just a snotty kid. He was a snotty kid actor, for God's sake, with a starring role in the proto-classic film "Stand By Me" that led to joining the cast of "Star Trek: The Next Generation."

Wil is one of those guys who has stood in a maze of twisty passages, all alike. Some of you understood those references, which means that you're (a) of a certain age and (b) have certain geek tendencies.

In either case, you're the perfect audience for this book.

Digital Photography Hacks (Dereck Story, O'Reilly; $29.95). The best thing I can say about this book is that shortly after it came in the mail, I lent it to my Dad (a fresh convert to digital), and he won't let me have it back. It's now studded with notes and Post-Its, and I had to e-mail O'Reilly and ask for a fresh copy.

Well, my Dad has taste. It's typical of O'Reilly's Hacks line in that it focuses on quick snippets of practical info. But what impresses me the most is its wide range. The digital tips are duly covered (how to balance color in Photoshop; how to downsample an image and turn it into an e-mail attachment), but it's chockablock with every great tip about general photography that I've learned and picked up in my years of avid shutterbugging, and plenty that I haven't.

I rarely bothered with my camera's redeye-reduction mode, but now, I make sure it's on whenever I take a picture of my mom. She always blinks, you see, and with redeye on, she blinks at the preflash, leaving her eyes open for the actual shot. Good stuff.

The Broadband Bible (James Gaskin, Wiley; $24.99). Every homeowner should understand how to reset an electrical breaker or how to replace a broken faucet. Every car owner should know how to change the oil and jump-start the battery. And everyone with broadband in their house should learn the basics of networking.

Windows can do far more with a network connection than simply download the Astronomy Picture of the Day; so why do so many people use Wi-Fi to connect their home computers to the Internet, but not to each other? Because they don't have a book like this to teach them the basics of networking and how to exploit Windows' networking features.

My own selfish motive for this recommendation is that if you read about security and firewalls, and take the advice that Gaskin offers, then maybe, just maybe, your PC won't be targeted and exploited by malicious software, and it won't be used to flood the Internet with even more spam and viruses.

Panther (Andy Ihnatko, Wiley; $29.99). Surely, there is no finer book about Mac OS X 10.3 specifically, and Macs in general. It's both informative and fun to read, and thanks to its shiny silver cover, it can also be used to signal ships in an emergency.

So you should definitely buy copies for the home, office, car and RV. Or don't you care about your loved ones?