Apple, Inc., released its new operating system on Aug. 28th, 2009: Mac OS version 10.6, nicknamed Snow Leopard, in development since late 2007. Anyone curious about the ins and outs of this software will want to take a look at one of the newest releases from No Starch Press. I had a chance to take My New Mac, Snow Leopard Edition by Wallace Wang for a test drive and have the following to report.

This is one of the most complete replacement manuals I've discovered, starting with the absolute basics and moving quickly into a tour of the interface and its workings. Detailed coverage of all the standard Macintosh applications are broken down into chapters and further yet into specific projects that take you step-by-step into their operation. The author offers additional tips to get the most out of each application.

Mac users of every level can pick up this book and learn something new. More importantly, this replacement manual is a real timesaver for a family member who has recently switched to the Mac platform. Wang focuses on a lot of questions that a new user might stumble over and presents the answers clearly and jargon-free. The amount of detail that goes into the presentation of this information is impressive.

In addition to the basic training one expects from a publication such as this, there's also some exploration of advanced subjects - including a chapter of ways to protect your personal data and privacy.

But the real gem of this book is its simplicity for a new user. It's detailed without bombarding you with unnecessary information and covers all the basics to maximize the investment of owning a Macintosh computer. For this reason I can easily recommend My New Mac, Snow Leopard Edition. There are many ways to learn about the operation and configuration of your new Mac, and this is one of the best I've run across yet.