David Karp's Windows Annoyances book has been updated (and nearly doubled in size) to cover Windows 98. A major problem is that Windows has a large number of idiosyncrasies or 'features' that are irritating and it is very difficult to find out how to remove or fix them. E.g. if you install any network drivers (including Dial-up) you get a login window asking for username and password every time the system starts (even if you are the only user of the system and have left the password blank).

After Chapter 1, which describes some of the improvements since 95 and outlines some of the problems in 98, chapter 2 entitled 'Customising your system', covers Windows Explorer (handling folders and files: copying, moving, deleting, etc.) and customising the desktop. (E.g. how to display file extensions in an Explorer directory listing. Chapter 3 covers the Registry (which is the database which holds system details such as screen colour, keyboard, applications installed, etc.) and the registry editor for editing the database. Chapter 4 shows how to customise the system using the registry techniques. Chapters 5 and 6 cover maximising performance (upgrading and fine-tuning the system) and troubleshooting (from general preventive maintenance to crash recovery) respectively. Chapter 7 describes networking and how to set up Dial-in networking. Finally Chapter 8 discusses the problem of the integration of Microsoft's web browsers into Windows enabling one to configure ones 'Web View' and choosing another browser.

This is a very good book full of useful practical tips and techniques. After reading the book for a few minutes I found a new System Configuration Utility (select Run and enter msconfig) which enabled me to do some troubleshooting on my system. The CD contains a demo versions of the O'Reilly Utilities - Quick solutions for Windows 98 Annoyances software, see below. Highly recommended for serious users of Windows 98!