Rating: 
Summary: Excellent reference but not intended for novices
Review: As a person who seems to be called upon more and more to fix someone's computer, and as one who's learned by doing in several years of owning these machines (my first was a humble 8088 with a then-huge 20 megabyte hard drive, way before today's Pentiums), I've found this book to be an invaluable reference for assistance in diagnosing computer problems. This is NOT the book for the computer neophyte who knows pretty much how to turn the machine off and on, and who can type a letter and get on the Internet but not much else; it assumes a level of familiarity with computer processes considerably higher than that. However, if you know how to take the cover off, if you're not afraid to remove and replace cards, and you have a basic understanding of interrupts, COM ports and the like, this book is DEFINITELY for you. I heartily recommend this book for the tinkerer, the unofficial neighborhood computer guru, and the professional technician. Two more of his titles that I've purchased and have found just as indispensable is Bigelow's Build Your Own PC Pocket Reference, and his PC Hardware Fat Faqs: Troubleshooting, Upgrading, Maintaining and Repairing. This man KNOWS computers.
Rating: 
Summary: Very wordy, outdated information.
Review: I found that this book needed to just get to the point, instead of giving you a large amount of info that you did not need. Also the information in the book is very much out of date at this point. I would recommend a book such as A+ Certification for Dummies. It really concentrates on the things that you need to know to repair a PC and best of all, the information is not 3-5 years out-of-date.
Rating:
Summary: Very wordy, outdated information.
Review: I found that this book needed to just get to the point, instead of giving you a large amount of info that you did not need. Also the information in the book is very much out of date at this point. I would recommend a book such as A+ Certification for Dummies. It really concentrates on the things that you need to know to repair a PC and best of all, the information is not 3-5 years out-of-date.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: I must say that before I got this book I though i knew it all. Then when I got it, I was BLOWN AWAY by all the usefull information and tips in this book. This is not a book for beginners. It dosent spend time explaining useless tutorials. It gives the information you need so you can use it for yourself. I reccomend this book to anyone interested in learning more about how your system works
Rating:
Summary: Very Disappointing
Review: I purchased this book because of the several glowing reviews of it on Amazon. Now that I have a copy (which I will be returning shortly) I can only guess that those reviews were written by friends of the author. This book is little more but a long and rambling antidotal collection of PC repair stories roughly organized into general failing areas. No symptom analysis, no error code explanations, no organized flowcharts of logical procedures, no tables of settings and types. Just paragraph after paragraph of "if you notice this, try that". In my mind this should be called something like the "Jeff Foxworthy you might be a redneck PC repair tech manual". However, if you are new to PC repair and have no idea where to start looking for the resolution of a problem, this MIGHT be just the book you need - because you can sit and thumb through it and look like you are doing something useful while you await the arrival of the guy who knows what he's doing. You might even stumble on an antidote that actually applies to the problem you are currently experiencing.
Rating:
Summary: Very Disappointing
Review: I purchased this book because of the several glowing reviews of it on Amazon. Now that I have a copy (which I will be returning shortly) I can only guess that those reviews were written by friends of the author. This book is little more but a long and rambling antidotal collection of PC repair stories roughly organized into general failing areas. No symptom analysis, no error code explanations, no organized flowcharts of logical procedures, no tables of settings and types. Just paragraph after paragraph of "if you notice this, try that". In my mind this should be called something like the "Jeff Foxworthy you might be a redneck PC repair tech manual". However, if you are new to PC repair and have no idea where to start looking for the resolution of a problem, this MIGHT be just the book you need - because you can sit and thumb through it and look like you are doing something useful while you await the arrival of the guy who knows what he's doing. You might even stumble on an antidote that actually applies to the problem you are currently experiencing.
Rating: 
Summary: I don't recommend it
Review: Poorly organized. Useful neither as a field reference nor study manual. Don't waste your money. Much better investments are: (1) Upgrading And Repairing PCs, Field Guide, by Scott Mueller, and (2) Pocket PCRef, by Thomas J. Glover & Millie M. Young. If you're studying for the A+ Exam, check out 'A+ Certification', by Michael Meyers. Another excellent book which goes into greater depth, is 'Upgrading And Repairing PCs', by Scott Mueller.
Rating:
Summary: Concise, useful, and it fits in a toolbox
Review: Stephen Bigelow's book on Troubleshooting PCs is a personal favorite, containing (literally) pounds of practical advice and information. Alas, that great work is far too bulky to fit inside my toolkit... which is why I own this book. There are no frivilous details here, only the "meat and potatoes" a technician needs to do his or her job correctly. It is loaded with lists of facts (POST codes, AT and DOS commands, connector pinouts, and so forth), as well as instructions on diagnosing and resolving many hardware problems. My only complaint is that not all the page numbers in the index are correct, but the book is so well-organized that I seldom need the index. When troubleshooting a PC, I use this book almost as often as my screwdriver. It is a tool that few technicians should be without.
Rating:
Summary: Get the book, you will NOT regret it!
Review: This book is amazing. I repair and troubleshoot PC's professionally, this book is one of my most valuable tools. I always take it with when I am out in the field. I cannot even begin to guess how many times this book has help me find a solution to a problem quicker than I would have found it on my own. I own many pc repair and troubleshooting books. If I were made to give them all up but one; I would not even have to consider which one I would keep. I would keep Bigelow's PC Technician's Troubleshooting Pocket Reference without hesitation. Get the book, you will not regret it. It is a must have tool for your repair kit, absolutely incredible!
Rating:
Summary: An invaluable reference for anyone repairing computers.
Review: This book is filled with the information computer repair professionals need to do their jobs. The reference is split into major categories, like Input Devices, Motherboard and Drive Troubleshooting. From there you can quickly look up the specific error and find a solution. Multiple solutions are almost always provided. The collection POST codes for different manufacturers is alone worth the price of this book.
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