Eight hundred pages, twenty on the contents alone! Do we still need these blockbuster productions? Well, the publishers seem to think so - and if they can keep the price below the cost of a three course meal for two [in the UK] there may be an argument for the paper embodiment of a good HELP file.
This offers guidance on the full Office 2000 suite, with a heavy overlay of Internet Explorer.
It starts with a very basic introduction to Windows, which suggests that the publication is aimed at the novice user or the office reference shelf. After file management and the basics of copying, moving, and good housekeeping, it devotes a section to each part of the Office 2000 suite - and it does this comprehensively.
This covers Word [word-processing] Excel [spreadsheets] PowerPoint [presentations] Outlook [personal information manager (PIM) which is a combination of diary and address book plus email organiser] and Access [databases and data management].
The content is presented in the form of easy-stage lessons which explain the elements of each program, as well as offering well-illustrated hints, and words of caution on what can and can't be done. These are all so simple that each one begins with instructions for switching the application on and off. The benefit of this approach is that commonly used functions are described in clear language without the clutter of recherché items buried deep in the program menus.
For someone who has never broached any of the Office 2000 suite programs before, this would be a very straightforward introductory guide. There are plenty of screenshots and reassuring tips. Advanced users might want more detail, but in fact I suspect that advanced users don't buy manuals at all. They write them.
