Windows Vista (once codenamed Longhorn) replaces Windows XP and will be Microsoft's most powerful client operating system to date. Security and file management has been greatly improved and hundreds of features, including multimedia creation tools, have been added.

The Beyond the Manual series addresses the needs of very experienced readers. Although it is not assumed that they are familiar with the book's topic, it is assumed that they are very familiar with similar technologies. The presentation of information is extremely dense and avoids introductory or basic text. The series delivers as much information in as little space as possible.