Rating: 
Summary: Doesn't have what a professional developer needs... Sorry !
Review: Having read the rave reviews on amazon.com, I purchased this book hoping to find all sorts of interesting information on manipulating the registry programatically. (In particular I have an interest in user accounts and NT security in my current application.) Whilst I'm sure the book is an invaluable source of information for some (hence the two stars, not just one), I personally found that it contained little that wasn't either already obvious to the developer, or that couldn't be found elsewhere fairly easily.For me - something to consume shelf space, and little more.
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Summary: Jerry Pournelle Chose this book as his Dec book of the month
Review: I want to respond to the reader from London that obviously didn't understand my book. First, there are hundreds of registry settings in this book that can not be found ANYWHERE else. For example the registry settings for every dialog box, check box and other setting of every Control Panel applet is given. Plus, these settings have all been tested and they work. Second, as to programming these settings, the book does not go into how to modify the registry via Visual Basic, C++, or other language. What it does do is give you the registry settings and values that you can programmatically use if you know minimal programming, and if not, the book shows how to use elementry Batch files and the native Registry editors to modify any settings given in the book. Finally, I put way more trust in Jerry Pournelle of Byte magazine who chose this book as his December 1998 Computer book of the month in Byte Magazine, stating "...(This Book is) one of those books that if you don't know about it, and you need it, you need it a lot." This can be seen at Jerry's web site, and I trust his judgement far more than ANY developer from London. Thank You; Sandra Osborne Washington, DC
Rating: 
Summary: Not for beginners.
Review: I'll take the experts' word for it that this is an excellent book. But from looking at it in the bookstore, it is not a book for beginners. The Introduction states that the book is for NT configuration specialists, and that the reader should already be familiar with the Registry editors.
Rating: 
Summary: Finally, the book I've been waiting for!
Review: I've reviewed almost every book on the Windows Registry and this is finally the book I've been looking for. The other books cover how to use RegEdit and RegEdt32 well, but they fail to give any kind of comprehensive list of registry settings. This book does. It's divided into chapters where each one covers a specific topic and all of the registry settings which apply. Very well organized. You owe it to yourself to add this book to your collection.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT Registry book for NT Admins!
Review: Of all of the books that claim to demystify the registry, *this* book lives up to the task. It is apparently obvious that Ms. Osborne has taken the cryptic keys within the registry hives and figured out what they do (no small task at all) and how they interoperate (even more amazing). A must read if you want to figure out what is happening "beneath the covers" on the NT platform. Buy it NOW!!
Rating: 
Summary: Not Good
Review: Please inform me when someone writes a decent book on the registry. This one doesn't fit the bill either. We need practical examples that are organized in a useful manner, like "Controlling the User Interface", "Network Services", "File Associations", and "Shared DLL Handling". I will be waiting with bated breath. Until then, save your money on this book.
Rating:
Summary: Not Good
Review: Please inform me when someone writes a decent book on the registry. This one doesn't fit the bill either. We need practical examples that are organized in a useful manner, like "Controlling the User Interface", "Network Services", "File Associations", and "Shared DLL Handling". I will be waiting with bated breath. Until then, save your money on this book.
Rating:
Summary: AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Review: Sandra Osborne is a Senior Technical Developer for a large international organization in Washington DC, where she leads a team in using registry manipulation and answer files to created automated installations. Sandra was responsible for migrating the organization's network, including 6000+ users, 60 servers in three central locations, and over 150 field offices worldwide from Windows 3.1 to Windows 95. She is currently involved in the evaluation of implementing Windows NT 5.0 and Windows Terminal Server as a possible migration strategy. Sandra has more than 20 years of computer experience, including stints in the Navy, the Tennessee Valley Authority and various computer firms. An experienced programmer and analyst, Sandra has used all flavors of Windows since its inception. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from the University of North Alabama as well as associate degrees in Computer Science, Mathematics, and Nuclear Engineering. This is her first book.
Rating:
Summary: Table of Contents
Review: TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction Part I Managing Hardware Chapter 1 Disk Drives Chapter 2 Configuring Display Settings Chapter 3 Settings for Mice and Keyboards Chapter 4 Settings for Sound Chapter 5 Settings for Memory Chapter 6 Settings for Configuring Network Adapters Chapter 7 Configuring Printers Chapter 8 Other Hardware Issues Chapter 9 Configuring Notebook Computers Part II Managing NT Workstation Components Chapter 10 Modifying the Windows NT Workstation Boot Process Chapter 11 Managing the Desktop Chapter 12 System Components Chapter 13 Windows NT Profiles Chapter 14 Security Chapter 15 Settings Created by the User Manager Tool Part III Managing Network Clients Chapter 16 Settings for Dial-Up Networking Chapter 17 Configuring Network Services Chapter 18 Configuring Network Communications Chapter 19 Configuring TCP/IP Part IV Appendixes Appendix A NT Workstation Registry Keys Appendix B NT Server Registry Issues
Rating:
Summary: BRIEF DESCRIPTION
Review: The book begins with an introduction to the NT registry, and how to access it. The rest of the book will be divided into issues and settings. The issues sections discuss the types of problems that can be solved for a particular component by modifying certain registry settings. The settings will then be explained in a section immediately following the corresponding issues. The detailed organization will make it easy to use as a reference.
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