About the Author
Mark L. Chambers has been an author, computer consultant, BBS sysop, programmer, and hardware technician for more than 30 years — pushing computers and their uses far beyond "normal" perfor-mance limits for decades now. His first love affair with a computer peripheral blossomed in 1984 when he bought his lightning-fast 300 BPS modem for his Atari 400. Now he spends entirely too much time on the Internet and drinks far too much caffeine-laden soda.
With a degree in journalism and creative writing from Louisiana State University, Mark took the logical career choice: programming computers. However, after five years as a COBOL programmer for a hospital system, he decided there must be a better way to earn a living, and he became the Documentation Manager for Datastorm Technologies, a well-known communications software developer. Somewhere in between writing software manuals, Mark began writing computer how-to books. His first book, Running a Perfect BBS, was published in 1994 — and after a short twenty years of fun (disguised as hard work), Mark is one of the most productive and best-selling technology authors on the planet.
His favorite pastimes include collecting gargoyles, watching St. Louis Cardinals baseball, playing his three pinball machines and the latest computer games, supercharging computers, and rendering 3D flights of fancy — and during all that, he listens to just about every type of music imaginable. Mark’s worldwide Internet radio station, MLC Radio (at www.mlcbooks.com), plays only CD-quality classics from 1970 to 1979, including everything from Rush to Billy Joel to the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Mark’s rapidly expanding list of books includes MacBook All-in-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition; MacBook For Dummies, 4th Edition; OS X Mavericks All-in-One For Dummies; Macs for Seniors For Dummies, 2nd Edition; Build Your Own PC Do-It-Yourself For Dummies; Building a PC For Dummies, 5th Edition; Scanners For Dummies, 2nd Edition; CD & DVD Recording For Dummies, 2nd Edition; PCs All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies, 6th Edition; Mac OS X Tiger: Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks; Microsoft Office v. X Power User’s Guide; BURN IT! Creating Your Own Great DVDs and CDs; The Hewlett-Packard Official Printer Handbook; The Hewlett-Packard Official Recordable CD Handbook; The Hewlett-Packard Official Digital Photography Handbook; Computer Gamer’s Bible; Recordable CD Bible; Teach Yourself the iMac Visually; Running a Perfect BBS; Official Netscape Guide to Web Animation; and Windows 98 Troubleshooting and Optimizing Little Black Book.
His books have been translated into 15 different languages so far — his favorites are German, Polish, Dutch, and French. Although he can’t read them, he enjoys the pictures a great deal.
Mark welcomes all comments about his books. You can reach him at [email protected], or visit MLC Books Online, his website, at www.mlcbooks.com.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my youngest daughter, Rose Chambers — she of the Boris Beast and Major Tom — with all the love and happiness I can give her.
Publisher’s Acknowledg-ments
Acquisitions Editor: Aaron Black
Project Editors: Nicole Sholly, Susan Christophersen
Copy Editor: Teresa Artman
Technical Editor: Dennis Cohen
Editorial Assistant: Annie Sullivan
Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case
Project Coordinator: Erin Zeltner
Cover Image: ©PhotoInc/iStockphoto.com