REVIEW: Microsoft Windows Security for Windows XP and Windows 2000 - Inside and Out

Microsoft Press' history of producing valuable and comprehensive instruction manuals for Microsoft software products is almost legendary, and the latest in this family seems to be following that tradition.

Security is obviously a big issue, so a weighty book which promises all (well, a lot) of the answers would be a godsend to many of us. Stuffed within the covers of this 760-page tome you'll find the answers to numerous questions on the topics of account creation and system security through to remote access security and group policy usage.

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The language is, as you would expect, rather dry but that helps to offer the information in a quick and understandable format. This is not a book for novices and so the handholding that usually accompanies that sort of book is all but missing. There are screen shots and tips throughout - they are not too regular but that prevents the reader becoming complacent when he sees one. This can be a problem in book where every other paragraph has a brightly coloured rectangle drawn around it and a shocking icon in the top left hand corner!

This is, in essence, a reference guide. It has been well designed to sit on the shelf and be picked up at a moment's notice and for the information to be instantly available without having to trawl through lots of text. It achieves this goal well and with a logical method to page identification (shading of the edges, chapter numbers and the use of descriptive text on every single page) I would find it hard to believe that anyone could have trouble finding what they need. The index also plays its role with bold, coloured and indented text helping the reader to make best use of his time.

Possibly the best aspect of the book however is the inclusion of its entire content in referencable form on the accompanying CD. Follow that up with the array of software tools for Windows and you have a worthwhile value-added CD.

CONCLUSION: A worthy addition to any Windows professional's arsenal in the fight to stay secure. Well designed and implemented all round.

Title: Microsoft Windows Security for Windows XP and Windows 2000 - Inside and Out, Author: Ed Bott / Carl Siechert, Published by: Microsoft PressISBN: 0-7356-1632-9 Price: USD44.99Reviewer: Jamie Ayres

This book was provided for review by Computer Manuals (http://www.computer-manuals.co.uk).