Book review: My New iPad 2

It's been a long time since Apple included a comprehensive paper manual with their iDevices. And while this adds to the perception of the device as being easy to use, it can be hinderance, especially to those who don't follow the tech world as closely as you, frequent TDL reader.

For a comprehensive overview of the iPad 2, look no further than My New iPad 2 by Wallace Wang, published by No Starch Press. Despite his other career as a standup comedian, Wang takes a no-nonsense approach to highlighting the features of the iPad 2. While not everyone will benefit from seeing in writing how to change screen brightness, for example, the book takes the time to go over these little details. While the book is best suited for those with limited tech experience, you might still find a few helpful tips for yourself. For example, while I knew it was possible to turn off push mail, and hence save some battery life, I had completely forgotten about it until it was mentioned in this book.

Cleverly, the book has been published with the same dimensions (height and width, not thickness) as the iPad, which helps to make both feel more approachable. 

Given the amount of movement (pinch, stretch, gestures, etc.) used to accomplish different tasks on the iPad, any book can have challenges describing those moves in words that make sense. while I was never confused by the descriptions in the book, I did wonder a few times whether that was only because I was already familiar with what the author was trying to say.

At any rate, if you're getting an iPad 2 for someone as a gift, and they're not the most tech savvy of users, this book will go a long way to help them get the most out of their new iPad, and just might reduce the number of tech support calls you get from them later.