Reviews

Members can make written request to review software offered to MUGs free by vendors such as Adobe and Aladdin. A list of the offerings is available from President Steve Hafenbredl and at meetings. Members reviews are posted on this page. Members are also required to give a demonstration of the software they receive at a group meeting, then the member can retain the software for their personal use. To aid members writing reviews, we offer the following Guidelines For Writing Software Reviews

Safari Bookshelf Review
Background:
O'Reilly has long been a leading publisher and supporter of all things Mac. Today it is one of the best sources for those looking to stay on top of the rapid developments in Apple software and its technical abilities. You can find their online home at www.oreilly.com.

Safari Bookshelf is a service offered jointly by O'Reilly Publishers and The Pearson Technology Group. It presents many (if not all) of their books online, in fully searchable text. Additionally, it provides volumes by other publishers including SAMS, New Riders and Adobe Press among others.

Why it is a valuable service:
This may not perk your ears at first notice, but let me assure you that it is a one of a kind service. Imagine having a full sized (more than 1,000 volumes) computer library, (with a thorough Mac section) at your disposal at all times, in the comfort of your home, in front of your favorite Mac. I cannot express the benefit that this resource can be to those of us who pursue Macintosh development, but I wish to focus here on the benefit of this service for the home user who dabbles in webpages, digital photography and/or several other of the creative pursuits that your Mac makes available to you.

During my 60 day trial of this service, I had at my disposal handfuls of choices to learn about Microsoft Word, Excel, and Powerpoint to spruce up my productivity. Now I can fully take advantage of all the features of Quicken, and I was finally able to start learning about HTML and webpage design. I know many of our members use Adobe and Macromedia apps to work with multimedia; the multimedia section contains over 30 of the best books available from publishers like Peachpit Press and New Riders.

How it works:
There are several plans that one can sign up for, ranging in monthly fee from $10 to $35. One can choose bookshelves ranging in size from 5 slots to 30 and can add the option to be able to download chapters in PDF format (limited number per month). There are also discounts for subscribing on a yearly basis. To fill your chosen book slots one can use the powerful search engine to find the volume that best suits your needs, one can even browse several pages of each chapter to verify it has what you want. Then add it to your bookshelf with a few clicks to be able to read the full contents. Most books occupy one slot, but some of the larger books take up two. The real benefit comes about when a book has been on your shelf for a month or more, you can remove it and replace its vacated space with another! This allows you to move on to more advanced volumes or different areas altogether in your reading.

Conclusion:
As a avid reader and Mac fan I am always looking to use my Mac better and expand my knowledge, Safari bookshelf has been one of the best discoveries in this effort. I hope that I have shown that the selection at Safari is broad enough to meets the needs of the most demanding learner, recent switcher or new user. As many of us can attest to, the best way to get more out of your Mac is to augment your skills (that is why we are part of this MUG right !) and a good book is the best companion on such a quest. Now, O'Reilly does offer our MUG a generous 20% percent discount on their titles for those that insist on a paper copy, but reading online is easy on the eyes, pleasant and offers great organization, the ability to search and complete hyperlinks to let the reader flip pages and sections easily. I had always been a hold out for a good paperback in my palm, but after my experience with Safari I have reserved that belief for my bedtime reads. I strongly urge our members to head to http://safari.oreilly.com/ and give Safari a try with the two week free trial offer that you will find there.

Travis Norling (7-21-04)