About the Authors

Steve Lambert

Steve has written 18 books, most of which are about Microsoft applications. As President of Online Publishing and Programming Solutions, Inc. (OP²S), he has managed the development of many tools for creating and viewing training material. Steve takes advantage of the Internet and computer technology to work from homea ten-acre horse ranch on the Olympic Peninsula. When not working on technology products, he and his wife Gale spend their time working on the property, training and riding horses, and picking up horse poop.

M. Dow Lambert III

During 20 years in academia, Dow authored or co-authored 19 social science research publications, developed curriculum and training programs for social services professionals, and managed longitudinal studies of human behavior. In 1995, he moved from academia to the private sector, where he worked for a small company that developed and maintained reservation systems for the travel industry. Here he learned the difference between writing research reports for scientific journals, writing technical specifications for programmers, and writing user guides for the people who actually needed to understand and use the software that his company produced. In his spare time, Dow and his wife Marlene enjoy birding and bird photography.

Joan Lambert Preppernau

Joan is the author of more than a dozen books about Windows and Office, including the popular Microsoft Windows XP Step by Step, and a contributor to the development of the Microsoft certification exams for the 2007 Office system and Windows Vista. Having learned about computers literally at her father's knee, Joan's wide-ranging experiences in various facets of the computer industry contribute to her enthusiasm for producing interesting, useful, and reader-friendly training materials. Joan is the President of Online Training Solutions, Inc. (OTSI) and an avid telecommuter. The power of the Internet and an obsession with technology have made it possible for Joan to live and work in New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark, and various locations in the U.S. during the past 15 years. Having finally discovered the delights of a daily dose of sunshine, Joan has recently settled in San Diego, California, with her husband Barry and their daughter Trinity.

The Team

Without the support of the hard-working members of the OTSI publishing team, this book would not exist. Susie Bayers and Marlene Lambert guided the editorial process, and Robert (RJ) Cadranell guided the production process. Lisa Van Every laid out the book using Adobe InDesign, and Jeanne Craver processed the graphics. Jaime Odell proofread the book, and Jan Bednarczuk created its index. Another important member of our team, Microsoft Press Series Editor Sandra Haynes, provided invaluable support throughout the writing and production processes.

Online Training Solutions, Inc. (OTSI)

OTSI specializes in the design, creation, and production of Office and Windows training products for information workers and home computer users. For more information about OTSI, visit

www.otsi.com