Getting StartED with Netbooks

Timing makes this book unique. Mobile-connected culture has been a relatively exclusive club up to this point. Because it has almost entirely been based on smartphones — expensive, quirky, n- standard, walled garden gadgets — its growth has been stulified by fragmentation on every level. In contrast, netbooks offer a populist solution: inexpensive, dependable, and benefiting from a huge head start in software applications, peripheral devices, and web-based services that were built for desktop or laptop computers, but can be easily reused by netbook owners. Even in a weak economy, netbooks have taken off in Asia and India, and show every indication of following suit in North America. In this book, I set out to make you a better, savvier consumer of a technology that can transform your day-to-day life in some pretty important ways. But I don’t assume that you already know a lot about this kind of computing or, for that matter, any kind of computing. I was guided by the idea that if you want to get started, I want to help you do it. So here are all of the steps, with nothing left out.

You’ve found your perfect communications partner. Tiny, light, and inexpensive, netbooks are an ideal match if you need to keep in touch with work, family, and friends wherever you go. Tech mag guru Nancy Nicolaisen helps you to make the right choices about your netbook, from empowering you as a savvy shopper to showing you how netbooks and other mobile Internet devices can make your life easier, perhaps even better! Share the visions and aspirations of major market innovators in exclusive interviews about the global mobile future and see where netbooks could take you tomorrow.

1. Getting the Best Fit and Value
2. Getting Connected
3. Hands-On Power Shopping:Best of Breed Tools for Today's Netbooks and the Cloud Lifestyle
4. A Beginner's Guide to Cloud Lifestyles
5. Hot Tickets for Netbook Software,Media, and Content Experiences
6. Best of the Web Part 1: Business and Reference
7. Best of the Web Part 2: Entertainment and Lifestyle
8. Maintaining Privacy and Security in a Pervasively Connected World

Nancy Nicolaisen is an author, researcher, veteran software developer and former Computer Science Professor specializing in mobile and embedded device technologies. In 2008 she provided mobile device developer education materials, analysis and strategy consultation to Nokia, Symbian Foundation, Intel, Microsoft, Time Warner AOL, Information Today and other global players in the mobile connected device space. In 2007 she served as technical advisor for the development of the Microsoft Professional Education course titled "Designing, Building and Managing Wireless Networks". Her feature articles, columns and analyses have been internationally circulated in publications including BYTE, PC Magazine, Windows Sources, Computer Shopper, Dr. Dobbs Journal of Software Engineering, Microsoft Systems Journal, DataBased Advisor, Telecom Advisor and McGraw-Hill/DATAPRO Research; She regularly provides feature and analysis content for Internet based publishers including jupitermedia.com, codeguru.com and Information Today; She is author of three books: Making Windows Portable: Porting Win32 to Win CE (2002, John Wiley & Sons); The Practical Guide to Debugging 32 Bit Windows Applications (1996, McGraw Hill); and The Visual Guide to Visual C++ (1994, Ventana Press) available in five foreign language editions. Ms. Nicolaisen is currently active in exploring open source technologies and trends for mobile, embedded and wireless devices.

Karen J. Offermann is a veteran enterprise solution project manager, with background in global service delivery and high profile editorial/analyst experience. Her full resume is available upon request, and demonstrates:

• Proficiency in all phases of interactive content delivery
• Ability to manage multiple work and project streams, ensuring strategic goals, budgets and schedules are met
• Broad experience in global solution deployments

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• Planning and business analysis acumen supporting design, deployment and ongoing management of solutions and services delivered to more than 1 million network endpoints